Sound of Metal (2019)

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In The “Profound & Universal” ‘Sound Of Metal’ Riz Ahmed Is A Drummer Facing Hearing Loss – Toronto

[Show spoiler]

In Darius Marder’s Sound of Metal, Riz Ahmed is Ruben, a drummer who loses his hearing in the midst of a nomadic music tour with Lou (Olivia Cooke), and finds solace in the deaf community.

Before filming, Ahmed embarked on an intensive six-months of drum lessons. But still, he claims his skills are not up to scratch. “I should not play the drums at all,” he says. “Luckily the kind of genre that Ruben exists in is one that is more about passion than technical prowess. It’s very much a cathartic form of expression for him.” The physicality of it also proved a full-on workout. “Drumming is great cardio,” he says. “I’d be in a sweaty studio in Brooklyn all day, just dripping sweat.”

That would be enough work for some actors, but as Ruben begins to panic over his deafness, he is gripped by his addiction issues, so Ahmed also delved into researching that. “I’ve been in and around that world and seen up close what addiction can do to people,” he says. “It’s something that I’ve been intimately familiar with.”

There was a third challenge, too. Ruben ultimately embraces his deafness and finds the kinship he needs within the deaf community, so Ahmed also had to learn American Sign Language. “I was very grateful to Jeremy Stone, who was my ASL teacher,” he says. “He was someone at the heart of the deaf community in New York who really welcomed me.”

As Ahmed threw himself deep into these facets of Ruben’s life, he found himself deeply affected. “It was really immersive,” he says. “It was about respecting these cultures and sub-cultures as communities.” And the work has had a lasting takeaway: “I’m just so grateful to have experienced having made this film,” he says. “It’s one of the special experiences of my life.”