MEET THE UK’S BRIGHTEST NEW STAR
Bukky Bakray, winner of the BAFTA EE Rising Star Award, tells Hanna Flint about her debut in film Rocks
The BAFTAS might not have had a live audience, but Rocks’ breakout star Bukky Bakray – in a Prada gown and Chopard diamond ring – was not short of applause after she was crowned this year’s EE Rising Star. Her friends and family could be heard whooping as she overcame her shock to thank her mother – who gave her a kiss on screen – her brothers and her
Rocks family too. ‘Thank you for showing me what it means to live a life,’ said Bukkyy. ‘I’ve never met women like you.’
Rocks director Sarah Gavron plucked the then 16-year-old Hackney girl from her classroom to play the lead in the criticallyacclaimed British drama, now on Netflix. In it, a teen girl is forced to fend for herself and her younger brother after their single mother abandons them. Bukky was also nominated for Best Actress, but tells
Grazia the most validating thing about this awards season attention is the spotlight it puts on the important films she’s making.
‘Stories like Rocks, and the people responsible for it, are put on that prestigious platform, which adds to the outreach,’ she says. ‘It reminds people who can identify with these characters that their stories are indispensable.’
Now 18, Bukky has already lined up her next role, in Channel 4 drama
You Don’t Know Me. She has also taken the lead in a mental health short film, Self-charm, from emerging film-maker Ella Greenwood. ‘It’s been such an exciting time, with so many opportunities and options. For me, everything is about the story.
‘What I love about acting is the escapism as well as the possibility of having a career; the longevity aspect really fills my heart.’