Interview with actor Zef Bushati:
How the movie “Man with Cannon” was made 40 years ago. Mato Gruda’s meeting with Agushi. “How did director Viktor Gjika choose me for the role and why did the expression remain: “Eat Cottage Cheese, Agush..”
Taken from “TELEGRAF” Newspaper (on line)
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– I met Timo Flloko when I started the Academy of Arts, where the artistic leader was Drita Agolli, teachers Birçe Hasko and Timo Flloko.
– About 430 boys and girls competed and only 12 of us won.
– The students of this course were Vasillaq Vangjeli, Ilir Bezhani, Yllka Mujo, Vangjel Toçe, Gjergj Lale, Natasha Ndreka, Afërdita Rranxi, Fotaq Xheke, Jorgaq Tushe.
– How the director Viktor Gjika chose me for the film “The Man with Cannon”
– Viktor had auditioned me several times, but I was disqualified because of my biography.
-Viktor was giddy with joy when a member of the KQPPSH gave his name to me. – I played with Timo in the movie “War Paths” where Timo played Kanan Tafili, me as an Italian lieutenant officer.
– The close cooperation started in the movie “The Man with Cannon” where we became friends.
– He looks very serious, but Timo is a loving person and always smiling.
– I have always played negative roles and on horses, which they knocked me down.
-How did we become corked with brandy when we were playing “The Man with Cannon”, since we wanted to do it correctly.
– Timo tells me: Agush eats curd to stay “esëll” (not drunk).
– The novel by the great writer Dritëro Agolli was very beautifully written
– Kadri Roshi – old man Mere, and Drita Pelingu – aunt are not forgotten in this film.
– After the year 90, art in general suffered a decline and for 30 years it has not been able to recover
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Both actors of the film “The Man with Cannon”. Timo Flloko in the role of Mato Gruda, and Zef Bushati in the role of Agushi, the Italian.
Mato and Agushi after 40 years. 
-These days, a photo of you with the actor Timo Flloko 40 years ago made an impression on everyone on social networks. When did you meet Timo Flloko for the first time and what was your opinion?
I met Timo Flloko when I started the Academy of Arts. The artistic leader of the course was the well-known director, Drita Agolli, the lecturers were Birçe Hasko and Timo Flloko. We had passed three competitions. About 430 boys and girls competed. Only 12 people were disqualified and we won. The students of this course became well-known actors of the Theater and Cinematography. I believe you remember Vasillaq Vangjeli in “Lady from the City”, Ilir Bezhan in “Pallati 176”, Yllka Mujo, Vangjel Toçe, Gjergj Lala, Natasha Nderko, Afërdita Rranxi, Fotaq Xheka, Jorgaq Tushe, all the greats of the scene and screen. In addition to being a teacher, we also made friends with Timo.
-“Man with Cannon”, a film that is still watched the most, how did the director Viktor Gjika choose you? Did you do a screen test or was it a desire of the director?
As an actor I liked director Viktor Gjika. He had auditioned me several times, but I was disqualified because of my biography. He called me again and told me to do a screening for Agushi. I laughed and told him that he is using me for a number of screenings. “No,” Viktori told me, “no way, but I thought since he is Italian and not a partisan, God willing they will accept him.”
“Ok!” I told him. When the screenings went to the Party Central Committee for approval, someone said to Viktor about me:
“are you still bringing this up, Viktor?
At that moment, a very important woman of the KQ said: what Italians do you think we fought with, well it’s Zef Bushati”. Viktor was giddy with joy and immediately came to meet me and give me the news of winning the screening. That’s how I was chosen. I worked to bring the character to life even though it was a little different from my nature. 
– This was the first film with Timo Flloko, how did you collaborate?
Timo and I were together at the beginning in the movie “War Paths”. Timo played Kanan Tafili, while I played an Italian lieutenant officer (negative character, as always). But the scenes we shot were different and we didn’t cooperate. The collaboration started in the movie “The Man with Cannon”. We cooperated very well. We had even become friends. We were both preoccupied with realizing the characters’ characters. I think we succeeded to some extent. Goodness has no end.
– Was it simple or severe, as it seems.
Timo is serious? Not at all. Timo is a loving person and always smiling. Romantic. He liked poetry since he was young. “He saw – he told me – the tears in the horse’s eyes”. I laughed heartily. Timo is a very positive person. I am happy every time I meet him. 
– Who was the most difficult part of this film?
In every movie there are also difficult scenes. I have had a hard time getting used to the horse. Once I filmed and performed the character of Mic Sokol in Tropoja, the horse threw me down. Then with the Italian officer in “War Paths” again the horse knocked me to the ground, the third movie with a horse was “Shirts with vax” where I played Captain Jano. This time the horse didn’t knock me down, but again I didn’t have it easy. In Albania, on the day we started shooting, we used to mount the horse. And the actors who played Ertugruli, Osmani, Sulejmani, etc. they trained with horses for a year before they started filming.
But I can remember a scene with Timo from “The Man with Cannon”. We were shooting at the thatched hut where Mato Gruda had hidden the ball. It was the scene when Mato and Agushi sit down to drink “Raki” (brandy). Timo told the director Viktor Gjika to drink a real “Raki”, so that the scene comes out as original as possible. I drink “Raki” and make a double, drink and make another double, drink and make double… I say to Timo: do you know that “Raki” is taking me? He turns to me and says: “Eat curd Agush, because it makes you sober”. Laughter caught us, oh, how we laughed, we laughed with tears and the shoot was broken. We were not able to shoot because we were half drunk!!! Director Gjika stopped the shooting. We shot it the next day but not with real “Raki”
Photo from the two roles of Mato and Agushi in "Njeriu me ball"
– How would you rate this film from the artistic side?
Good movie. The novel by the great writer Dritëro Agolli was very beautifully written. Very good script too. Director Viktor Gjika, one of the best in Cinematography. Very good actors, Kadri Roshi, old man Mere, and aunt Drita Pelinku, great stage and cinematographic actors. With these components, the film is naturally made very well. After the 1990s, art in general suffered a decline. It’s been 30 years since he couldn’t get over himself. Well, that’s another topic. We worked with passion and made beautiful plays and films.
According to the newspaper “Telegraf” – June 2021 Interview with the actor Zef Bushati
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