The series “The Label” tells the story of 4 young men on their journey from Syria to Greece, which is fraught with danger and death, in which the hero of the work, Qusai Khouli, turns from a victim to an executioner, after he is assigned to criminal acts in which he eliminates everyone who opposes him, then finds himself facing the mafia men from On the one hand, and jurists on the other, all in the form of a police thriller.
Qusai Khouli spoke to “Sky News Arabia” about the story of the work, saying: “The series talks about the refugee situation that occurred in the world in general, especially Syrian asylum, Europe’s rejection of a refugee, and the story of return.“.
He added, “In the series, I embody the character of Nawras, who is one of those refugees who have been polluted because of the problems surrounding him. In his opinion, he is coming to save himself and his family, so he takes revenge for the events he experienced, trying to build his small empire in which he is able to control and possess power.”
And about the idea of the work that he developed 6 years ago and waiting until now for its implementation, Khouli said: “I want to focus on an important matter, which is that the industry is the basis of the profession in which I work, meaning that drama is an industry, and when you meet with specialists to extract from this work scenes with a high production cost. At the same time, you feel that you are presenting a new idea similar to what you would like to follow from a dramatic production abroad, here you have to wait for the appropriate opportunity to implement it in the maximum proportion that you deem appropriate, and this is what happened with me in this work, until the opportunity came.”
Regarding the compatibility of the idea of working with the general production mood of the electronic display platforms, the Syrian artist said: “When the platform took this work, it was aware that it was a special kind and that its production was not easy at all, and that it posed great challenges due to the high cost of production and the conditions of filming in more than one country. “.
He explained that this made filming more difficult, due to travel conditions in light of the restrictions imposed due to the Corona pandemic.
As for the director of the work, the Syrian Seif El-Din Subai’i, he spoke to “Sky News Arabia”, saying: “The work consists of two parts, and each part contains 7 episodes, and what attracted me to take it out and go through such an experience was the short duration of its episodes, in addition to the idea of filming in more than A country, which is an opportunity in itself to learn about other cultures, and the form of life in these countries, and try to transmit this pulse in one way or another.
Al-Subaie expressed his admiration for Khouli’s talent, adding: “He always presents something new in his performance, as he is very talented and has the ability to present himself in a different way, and this is what distinguished him and turned him into an Arab star with distinction. What he presents in every work is surprising and confirms that he is working to develop himself in a way Regular, and this has been my pledge since the beginning of our cooperation together.”
On the other hand, Lebanese actress Merva Qazi revealed the dimensions of the “Alexandra” character she presents in the series, saying: “She is a cruel and merciless character.”
She added to “Sky News Arabia”: “This role is never easy, and I worked hard on it to present it in the way that the viewer will follow me. Alexandra is a gang leader in Slovenia, so I filmed all my viewers in this wonderful country that I visited for the first time, but without a doubt I will not be the last.”
And she continued, “The atmosphere of filming was harsh because of the cold, as the temperature reached 10 degrees below zero, and the most important thing that attracted me in the work was that it did not contain exaggeration in acting, and this is rarely found in works in our Arab world.“.
As for the writer of the work, Bassim Al-Rayyes, he explained the reason for launching the word “Tag” as a title for the series, saying: “If the mark is on a person, it is called a tattoo, but if it is painted on the animal, it is the mark, and here lies the beginning of the work story and its backbone.”
And he continued, “In fact, there is inside the character of the hero that I built in the work that Khouli performs. A sleeping monster is exposed to circumstances and events, to rise and wake up after that. He is a very intelligent and sensitive character, and his name (Nawras) has indications that he has a journey that he takes within events. Reality intertwines with fantasy.
He continued: “This monster that emerges from within him overcomes all his enemies and all the difficulties facing him, until he finally overcomes himself.”“.
The artist Ismail Tamr also considered that his role in the series is one of the important roles in the work, which has a great impact on the course of events, given that he shares the majority of his scenes with the hero Khouli.
He told “Sky News Arabia”: “When I read the text, I felt how tired the work team was on the production and the idea they presented, and I was sure of the greatness of the effort they made to develop this work, and to allocate all this effort, energy and great budget to present it to the viewer in a way comparable to the one we see in Western dramas.
On the other hand, Tamer confirmed that he “faced a challenge in this work to prove himself as an actor, after his star shined as a rapper.” All I have to do is look right away from the way the audience defines me as a rapper“.