Broken English Cast/Crew

Cast
Ivan.....................RADE SERBEDZIJA
Nina...................ALEKSANDRA VUJCIC
Eddie....................JULIAN ARAHANGA
Darko......................MARTON CSOKAS
Mira...................MADELINE McNAMARA
Vanya...................ELIZABETH MAVRIC
Clara..........................JING ZHAO
Wu...............................YANG LI
Crew
Director.................GREGOR NICHOLAS
Screenplay...............GREGOR NICHOLAS
..........................JOHANNA PIGOTT
..............................JIM SALTER
Producer...................ROBIN SCHOLES
Executive Producer.........TIMOTHY WHITE
Cinematographer................JOHN TOON
Editor.....................DAVID COULSON
Production Designer............MIKE KANE
Line Producer...............JANET McIVER
Casting......................FIONA EDGAR
Music....................MURRAY GRINDLAY
...........................MURRAY McNABB
The Cast
From left to right: Aleksandra Vujcic as Nina, Madeline McNamara as Mira, Marton Csokas as Darko, Rade Servedzija as Ivan, Elizabeth Mavric as Vanya


Aleksandra Vujcic Aleksandra Vujcic

Radiant newcomer Aleksandra Vujcic makes her film debut in Broken English as Nina, the fiercely bold and independent young woman who comes from Croatia, just as Vujcic does. Vujcic brings to Nina the truth and authentic cultural detail that Nicholas was seeking in a lead actress. Vujcic related closely to Nina saying, "Because part of the character was based on some true war stories, lots of that character comes from my real life experience. I just transferred it to that character, the way she feels, talks, walks, sometimes I was just myself really." Fluent in English, Croatian and Russian, Vujcic collaborated with Nicholas in writing the opening narration.

Rade Serbedzija

Rade Serbedzija (Ivan) was one of the most celebrated actors in former Yugoslavia playing more than 50 leading roles, many of which were in competition at the Cannes, Venice, Berlin and Montreal Film Festivals. He received numerous theatre and film awards in his former homeland. Having been forced to leave his native country, Serbedzija has lived in London since 1993 where he has successfully continued his acting career internationally. In the theatre he has co-starred with Vanessa Redgrave in two acclaimed productions and his recent films include the acclaimed "Before the Rain" by Milcho Manchevski, which won The Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival (Serbedzija also received the Critics Award for Best Actor) and was nominated as Best Foreign Language Film in the 1995 Academy Awards, and "Two Deaths" directed by Nicholas Roeg. Serbedzija has recently finished filming "The Saint" for Paramount Pictures directed by Philip Noyce and "The Truce," directed by Francesco Rosi. He is currently starring opposite Gina Gershon in "Prague Duet" for writer/director Roger L. Simon.

Rade Serbedzija

Julian Arahanga Julian Arahanga

Originally from Raetihi, New Zealand, Julian Arahanga (Eddie) brings authenticity to his portrayal of Eddie, a young country Maori. Arahanga first appeared in front of the camera at the age of 11 in the short film "The Makutu on Mrs. Jones," which was directed and produced by his father, film producer/director Larry Parr. Best known for playing the aggressive eldest son Nig Heke in Communicado's successful debut feature, "Once We Were Warriors," Arahanga has also had parts in the American fantasy series Hercules, which is filmed in New Zealand. Since completing BROKEN ENGLISH, he has been co-writing a short film, worked as a grip for an English feature film, and has continued his involvement as a film technician for television commercials, television programs and films.

Marton Csokas

Although Marton Csokas (Darko) was born in New Zealand, his father is Hungarian, which has given him an insight into the Eastern European intensity required for his role. Csokas graduated from New Zealand Drama School in 1989, and since then has appeared in fifteen plays, seven movies and nine television productions. His most notable credit was portraying the character of Dr. Leonard Dodds in New Zealand's long-running TV series "Shortland Street."

Marton Csokas

Robin Scholes

As one of the founding partners and Deputy Chairman of Communicado, (New Zealand's largest independent television and film production company), Robin Scholes (producer) initiated and established a wide range of television series before deciding to produce Communicado's first feature film -- "Once We Were Warriors." The film swept the 1994 New Zealand Film & Television Awards, won the Grand Prix of the Americas in Montreal, and went on to be New Zealand's highest grossing film to date. With a background that includes writing and directing, Scholes also planned programming for a privately owned consortium bid for New Zealand's third channel and is now establishing a wide range of film projects.

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