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The hard sell

Freefall

Day and time to be confirmed ³ÉÈËÂÛ̳ TWO

• Programme copy

Dominic Cooper plays Dave, the smooth-talking mortgage salesman who shamelessly pushes discounted loans to people who can ill-afford them, in Dominic Savage's Freefall, which tackles the financial crisis head-on. As the man who creates the debts that the banks eventually package together, Dave is at the heart of the story.

The actor, whose extensive credits include Mamma Mia! and The History Boys, explains: "He's the cog that starts the wheel in motion. He's told to sell as many mortgages as possible, and he does so, but not necessarily for the right reasons.

"He believes he's only doing his job. And he's very good at it."

Initially, Dave seems content to be hard-selling his mortgages to naïve strangers but, following a chance encounter with an old school friend, he can't resist the temptation to bring his business closer to home. "He not only cheats people he doesn't know, but eventually people he's friends with as well. His only motivation at this point is money and greed."

Although the ramifications of this decision threaten to shatter Dave's cosy lifestyle – not to mention the lives of those closest to him – Dominic has mixed feelings about his character: "He absolutely shouldn't have done it, but I don't think he's fundamentally a bad person.

"It was interesting talking to people who've actually done it. I don't think any of them really had any idea how things would turn out. I don't think Dave ever thinks things could go as badly wrong as they do."

Getting into the head of the character like this is typical of those who work with writer/director Dominic Savage, whose improvisational style and attention to detail often result in ultra-realistic performances.

"It was amazing working with real people, going to these estates and talking with real families who did want to change their lives. In terms of getting under the skin of the character and truly inhabiting that person's life, it was incredible.

"The way people were advised is terrifying. These salesmen made it difficult to even comprehend the concept of money."

Life almost imitated art when Dominic's research led him down a familiar path.

"I have a great friend from school who became a mortgage lender; he started from scratch and now owns a successful business. He's not like Dave though; he's one of the good ones. I hadn't seen him for ages and I went down and visited him. We did some role play.

"I think skilled salesmen have the ability to work out who you are and pick out aspects of your personality. They almost manipulate you, in a way, to make you buy their product."

When working with Savage, intricate knowledge of your own character is, according to Dominic Cooper, only half the story. To make the improvisation flow, knowledge of every character in the scene is just as vital.

"I would talk to the other actors for hours at a time before filming, we worked out details of the characters – how we knew each other, what our background together is. That way, when you're there on the day, you know exactly where the scene needs to go. You have loads of stuff to play around with and you can just be that person and run with it."

So what does Dominic Cooper consider the key message of Freefall to be?

"The film explores what motivates us to do the things we do. Why are we constantly searching for something better? What is behind that desire? Overall, I think it demonstrates how fragile relationships can be and how much more important they are than the desire for material happiness."