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Riz Ahmed is no stranger to hard-hitting drama – his first major role was in Michael Winterbottom's partially unscripted Road To Guantanamo, and he recently appeared in Channel 4's horror thriller Dead Set. This put him in good stead for working with Dominic Savage on Freefall, and Riz embraced the character of Gary – the financial ally of unscrupulous trader Gus – with enthusiasm:

"I enjoy being completely free to do the research and build the character. I find that really exciting. I knew that Dominic worked in this way, and I was eager to work like that again after doing some fully scripted pieces."

"Improvisation is incredibly liberating. It's the kind of thing that people can respond to in different ways. Dominic keeps everyone on their toes. You don't know whether you'll be doing extra scenes or changing something around. There's nothing you can do but really be in the moment."

When it comes to researching a role, Riz is a self-confessed "geek" and will go to extraordinary lengths to ensure his performance is authentic.

"Improvisation means you have to be prepared, you have to know everything that the character knows, whether it's how to fly a plane or the intricacies of collateral debt obligations. We decided that Gary is working towards his pilot's license so I had to go away and find out about two-seater planes in case the conversation came up during filming."

It was during the course of this research that Riz really began to understand the truth behind the global economic downturn.

"I think we're all familiar with the 'credit crunch' as an abstract term, but this is an opportunity to really understand it from the inside. What is this situation that has suddenly imploded over our heads? What did these guys who sat behind their desks all day actually do? It puts a human face to it."

This face is provided in part by the character of Gary. In a marked contrast to Aidan Gillen's Gus, Gary seems to be a trader with a human side.

Riz explains: "He's not a stereotypical banker; he's actually quite a balanced guy. He has a happy family life and a healthy – if extravagant – hobby with the flying. He's not someone who blows his money on cocaine and gambling.

"He's there to work and he won't live or die for the company. He's there to provide for his family. He's a counterpoint to Aidan Gillian's character. For Gus it's a life, for Gary it's just a job."

Despite these apparent differences, Gary and Gus are not only colleagues, but friends. It was this complex relationship above all that Riz found fascinating.

"I think the relationship is central, particularly their different ways of looking at life. I think Gary has life sorted. Gus admires this but considers it a mediocre, cop-out existence."

"Do you live to work or work to live? Those are the mirror images thrown up by the characters. What's great in Freefall is that you get to see so many lives within the picture."