From the Catwalk to the Silver Screen – Sunset Song’s Agyness Deyn is Here to Stay

On the surface, it doesn’t seem like too much of a stretch for a model to turn to a life of acting. After all, they’re evidently comfortable being in front of a camera, being told where to stand, how to look. But they couldn’t be further away from one another, and it takes some real skill and diligence for those famous on the catwalk to become synonymous with a career in cinema.

It’s certainly commonplace for models to try their hand in acting, and while some have triumphantly navigated their way around Hollywood and formed successful careers for themselves – such as Channing Tatum, Cameron Diaz and Mark Wahlberg – it’s not always such a straightforward transition. Suki Waterhouse, Emily Ratajkowski, and Kate Upton have all given it a shot, and not quite to the positive feedback they may have hoped for – albeit early days yet. Meanwhile, Cara Delevingne had more success in Paper Towns, while Rosie Huntington-Whiteley was a shining light in the critically-acclaimed Mad Max: Fury Road.

But the one name which stands gloriously out from the crowd, is that of Agyness Deyn – who has pursued a career in screen acting, and so far, it’s been staggeringly impressive. She’s been quoted as saying, “If I was asked what I do for a living, I’d say an actor” and that is a clear indication as to why it’s proven to be such an easy crossover for her – for she’s taking it incredibly seriously, and the roles she has picked are reflective of that. Where Ratajkowski or Upton have chosen to play mere love interests in romantic productions, Deyn has played nuanced, subtle characters such as Lily in Electricity, a young woman suffering with epilepsy, and now she’s the star of innovative auteur’s Terence Davies’ latest endeavor, the profound, moving drama Sunset Song.

For a model, the idea is to look beautiful, to beguile, and to engross. But an actor is tasked with something rather different, not just to be striking and bear some real screen presence – but to be real, and sometimes the two do not always go hand in hand. At times, an actor’s greatest asset is to appear to be so ugly. Be it James McAvoy in Filth, or Leondaro DiCaprio in The Revenant – looks play no part, the character takes over, and appearance falls completely by the wayside. Deyn is evidently aware of this, to have lost her inhibitions and played characters as they are, warts and all. It’s a requirement of a naturalistic drama, the whole idea is that the characters are supposed to be completely unaware of the camera – whereas for a model, that’s something of an offense.

There’s no reason why Deyn can’t shake the tag of being a model-turned-actor and eventually become known merely as the latter. “I just want to make movies. I really want to make movies,” she has been quoted as saying. Well it’s a sentiment we most certainly share. So Agyness, please do.