Animator Angela Yu: “I love telling stories carrying a message that matters to people.” (photo courtesy of Angela Yu).
With a dazzling visual style, an acute eye for design and a keen ability to overcome unexpected challenges, animator-art director Angela Yu’s boundless technical capacity and artistic creativity are remarkable. Moreover, she has an innate knack for approaching projects with a transformative originality that frequently redefines and improves upon the initially proposed concept.
Yu’s spent her entire life preparing for this, going all the way back to her childhood in Bejing, China. Yu became fascinated by comics, anime and manga books at an early age, covertly defying her parents’ strict bedtime rule to read them by flashlight under her blanket. “I always loved to draw and became obsessed with beautiful things and I wanted to know how to create things like that,” Yu said. “Manga books were my earliest inspiration for drawing—I’d doodle the characters all over my text books. I also loved watching animation, especially Japanese anime—“Dragon Ball” and “Sailor Moon.” I still watch anime these days, such as “One Piece.”
“I grew up in a very traditional family in China, and though I dreamed of being a Manga artist or animator as a kid, I never thought I’d have a chance to do it in reality—because for all my life I had made decisions based on whether or not they would impress my parents,” Yu said. “But when I was 22, I came to America and was studying at Michigan State University, just as my parents planned. This gave me a chance to view my culture from a distance, with a different perspective, and it gave me the space to think independently and the courage to pursue what I really wanted for my own life.”
Once that decision was made, Yu, with an MA in advertising from MSU, did not hesitate. “I studied Motion Graphic Design at the Ex’pression College for Digital Arts. Since I graduated, I’ve worked at studios and agencies such as Goodby Silverstein and Partners, Oddfellows, First person. And I worked on projects for clients like Google, Yahoo, Cisco, Comcase, NBA, Motorola, GE, Adobe.”
“I love telling stories carrying a message that matters to people. It needs to be meaningful. It can be either an artistic short film or a commercial project. As long as I feel what I am creating has a purpose, I find it fulfilling,” Yu said. “It’s all about how strongly I believe in the message I work on, even on a branding video for a digital product. If I believe the message in the video will make a difference to the brand, to people who work for the brand, then I enjoy what I am doing.”
Once Yu brings her talent to bear, the results are impressive. The ability to enhance and elevate has been a hallmark of her career; if Yu is brought in to consult, she’ll envision something that takes the entire project to a higher level; when Yu finishes a task, it often assumes a life of its own, garnering more notice and appreciation than anyone expected, whether a promotional film or a rock music video.
As Dorry Levine, Digital Media Strategist at ReThink Media, describes her: “Angela was easy to work with, very accessible, met every deadline, was flexible with our ever-changing requests, and turned out a phenomenal project that people are still talking about. The video she animated for us was even covered by the New York Times. I’d work with her again in a heartbeat!”
Yu’s artistic vision is a marvel in its own right. Her gorgeous animated short, “This is California,” is a perfect example of the animator’s rich aesthetic. With stunning visual design and flawless animation, it depicts some of the Golden State’s most iconic spots in an arresting, irresistible form that earned Yu the Best Animation award for 2015 at the IndieFEST Film Festival.
Yu’s already impressive roster of successful jobs with some of the world’s biggest companies underscores both her illimitable potential and singular gift for expanding the parameters of any design or animation undertaking. “Angela is the type of person that makes the seasoned artist step up their game, while also reminding everyone what that fire looked like when they first started,” said Mike Landry, Creative Director at Goodby, Silverstein & Partners.
Most importantly, Yu loves what she does: “I see animation as music written in pixels. I don’t play music very well, but I am fortunate to find animation as the medium to express my creativity,” Yu said. “To this day today, I still enjoy spending the whole afternoon nerding out a motion curve in the graphic editor. It is a very ‘zen’ feeling. I enjoy my craft, and I never stop creating original content. I want to keep developing myself as a better animator and designer.”
Media production expert thrives in producing high-rated television shows
Daniel Ariano is a seasoned television and film producer with over eight years of industry experience. His extensive list of credits includes hits such as “Ídolos” (Brazilian “American Idol”), “TUF Brasil” (Brazilian “The Ultimate Fighter”) and most recently, “O Aprendiz” (Brazilian “The Apprentice”).
Led by two different hosts over the course of its ten season run, “O Aprendiz” was a Brazilian, business reality show where candidates competed for a contract in a specific that would last at least one year, paid by the program’s sponsor. Competitors were divided into two teams where they were asked to complete a series of tasks that were then judged by the presenter and a panel of counselors.
A natural born leader, Ariano climbed up the latter upwards from his very first position on the show, moving from Production Assistant to Production Coordinator over a span of four seasons. Ariano was a part of seasons 7, 8, 9, and 10 of “O Aprendiz,” his responsibilities varying and increasing as the years progressed.
Prior to his work on “O Aprendiz,” Ariano gained experience with reality television via producing season 4 of “Ídolos,” Brazila’s version of America’s famed show, “American Idol.” His talents caught the attention of director Fernando Viudez, who later connected Ariano to “O Aprendiz.”
Speaking of their collaborations, Viudez provided, “I first met Daniel on the “Ídolos” production. Our crew was big, but Daniel was young and thirsty, and had a way of looking at television production like no one I’d ever met before. I invited him to be a part of “O Aprendiz” and, there, he surprised me even more. He is a leader, and he brought his intelligence and added to an already good TV show, making it great.”
The types of contestants involved and the overall theme of “O Aprendiz” that Ariano worked on varied from season to season. The 7th season followed college students, the 8th entrepreneurs, the 9th welcomed back the show’s original host, Roberto Justus, and the 10th showcased well-known celebrities. “Working on “The Apprentice” was a real challenge for me. I think it’s the most real TV show out there among all other reality TV. You give the contestants a task, and they can do and go wherever they want in order to complete it, so you have to be ready for every kind of situation,” Ariano said regarding his experience.
On the flip side of challenging, the production provided Ariano with luxury of traveling all over the world for his work as a result of his stellar communication skills and problem solving abilities. “Besides traveling all over Brazil, the show was shot in Turkey, Colombia, Orlando, Washington D.C., Italy, and South Africa, to name a few places. On top of location scouting and taking care of legal authorizations, my responsibilities were to follow all of the contestants during each of the tasks, make sure that the history was being told properly and that the logistics between the production crew were always 100%,” Ariano commented.
That being said, the perks of getting to travel for work didn’t come without challenges. “From dealing with flat tires to international travel arrangements for 60+ people, I faced it all,” Ariano admitted. “Traveling is fun when you’re on vacation, but when you travel for work, your mind never rests.”
With it’s multiple, demanding components, even Viudez agreed that working on “O Aprendiz,” “Is a challenge like no other. We chose every member of the production carefully. We have an inside joke that goes, “To be a good producer for The Apprentice, you can’t eat, sleep or sit.” However, joke aside, it’s hard. It’s really hard. And people like Daniel make it easy. He has a light way of dealing with hard situations, and that just makes everyone calmer. At his first season, he was a great producer. By his fourth, he was necessary for the show. Plus, if you enjoy the people you spend the majority of your day with, you will enjoy your work.”
Contestants over the four seasons of “O Aprendiz” ranged from everyday college students and businessmen, to musicians, actors, TV hosts, models, and athletes. For the first six seasons, businessman and TV personality Roberto Justus hosted the show, while entrepreneur, university professor and politician Joao Doria Jr. presented the latter end.
“My favorite episode was from the first season I worked on, the “semifinal” episode,” Ariano said. “It took place in Italy, and on that episode I had to go on camera and disqualify a contestant, Gabriela Gaspari da Costa, because she had broken a rule. The task was to get from one point in Italy to another point, in a different city, without money and without asking for it or for a ride. What you could do was find some work and get paid to do it. Contestants had 48 hours to complete that. What Gabriela did, was ask for a ride and ask for money to buy a train ticket. Since I was the one following her with a hidden camera, I had to disqualify her.”
In the final season of “O Aprendiz” involving celebrity contestants, every icon represented a single charity. The winning participant was volleyball player Ana Moser, who raised 828,000 reais (translated to something around $400,000) for her charity. “It’s always more satisfying when you know your work is going to help someone in need,” said Ariano of the matter. “It wasn’t about the audience, it was about doing the right thing. I gave so much of my life to this show, and knowing that charities benefitted from it made my time and work that much more worth it.”
Ariano stated, “There’s a saying among producers from The Apprentice that goes, “If you can produce The Apprentice, you can produce anything on TV.” And it’s so true. The show puts you on the spotlight constantly, and everyday is a new experience. Just when you think you’ve seen it all, something brand new is thrown at you, and being able to live through that makes you grow as a person and as a professional.”
Actor Cesare Scarpone brings passion and talent to all of his character portrayals.
Cesare Scarpone is an award-winning actor who consistently projects a formidable dramatic presence. The Canadian-born Scarpone inhabits each characterization with a masterly combination of skill and instinct, and whether it’s romantic comedy or a dark suspense story, he deftly crafts a persuasive, tangible persona imbued with the full spectrum of nuance, traits and emotion.
It’s a rare balance of sensitivity and showmanship and Scarpone, surprisingly, stumbled upon his avocation almost by chance.
“I started in high school, not knowing what acting really was, but coming from a town where theatre and acting are seen as a fantasy, imagined only through the TV, this attitude was the norm,” Scarpone said. “At my first performance, I stepped onto the stage and was overwhelmed by the mass of people watching me. I’d gotten through half the play but all of a sudden I froze. I’d forgotten my line and time stopped. This was the biggest rush I’d ever felt and I wanted more.”
Scarpone’s path was set, and the following year his performance as Jerry in the Edward Albee classic, “The Zoo Story,” earned him the Sears Drama Festival’s award of excellence for the York Ontario region.
“From there, I couldn’t get enough. I tried to do as many independent films as I could sink my teeth into,” Scarpone said. “This led to a few spots on television programs, union films and a commercial.”
Scarpone’s talent has shown up in his outstanding character portrayals in the films “Black Forest” from writer-director David Briggs, director Gabriella Bevilacqua’s “Aftermath,” Omii Thompson’s “Modern Romance is Dead,” Rebecca Carrigan’s “All I Need,” Rob Comeau’s “Chance” and “Dead Monday” from director Mark Korven. On TV, Scarpone has acted in History’s “Curious and Unusual Deaths” and Cineflix’s true crime docudrama, “Dual Suspects.”
“Working with Cesare on “Black Forest” was a great experience,” said Briggs. “It was obvious from the first take that Cesare is all about the character, and he digs deep to bring the script to life. He believes in the craft of acting, and that passion brought a lot to his role.”
Scarpone’s meticulous approach is fueled by a soul-deep passion, not just for the craft, but also its role in world culture. “Story telling is something that everyone knows in their hearts. We love it, yearn for it,” Scarpone said. “You see it in your everyday life, in some form or another and through different mediums, but we are slowly losing the original performed art. Our generation no longer needs to even get out of bed to watch a film or read a news article. They have everything in their hand. But the experience of live theatre can be life changing, perspective changing. You can truly connect with people, and not in a way that is buffered by static transmission through a screen. Everyone should know live theatre, and everyone deserves to have access to it.”
With almost 20 film and TV credits, Scarpone knew it was time to reach for an even higher level of accomplishment. “I decided to apply for a drama school, and this led me to London, England—the heart of theatre. What better place to train?” Scarpone said. “I came across The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, and decided to audition for their flagship courses. I was surprised to get the call from the legendary Rodney Cortier, head of the school, inviting me to their two-year acting course—the best of its kind in London, which equates as one of the best in the world.”
Arriving in London in 2014, Scarpone subsequently performed in more than half a dozen stage productions (including “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “The Tempest”), absorbing a full measure of the almost alchemical depth of skill which has always typified British stagecraft.
“When I got that call I was ecstatic and screamed at the top of my lungs because this meant that I would finally have the foundation I needed to have my skills really develop,” Scarpone said. “Now I am in my final term at the school, graduating in July and ready to attack this growing market.”
“What first led me to acting was the feeling of not only being free on stage, but also feeling the effect I was having on the audience in theatre and film. I love both mediums, each with their joys and merits, and both are something I’m extremely excited about,” Scarpone said. “There are so many new things going on in the industry, like immersive theatre, and advances in technology with film and television that allow new ideas to be better completed and given to the world.”
Scarpone has already distinguished himself as both a capable technician and self-possessed artist. His very sense of wonder itself generates an aura of appealing enthusiasm and is something he’s sure to bring in many more productions to come.
Cristina Tomas Rovira specializes in photography and videography for music, fashion and weddings.
Professional photographer and videographer Cristina Tomás Rovira has worked alongside with some of the greats of the entertainment industry, capturing moments via still photography and film for more than half a decade.
Originally from Barcelona, Rovira’s awareness of the arts was sparked at a young age. “I’ve been interested in this world since I was little,” Rovira said. “Every time I watched a movie or a TV show, I could picture myself working on one of them. I was, and still am, addicted to watching behind the scenes videos.”
After obtaining her first camera around the age of 10 and receiving praise for her photographs, Rovira explained that, “something just clicked. I loved the feeling of people telling me that my talents were special and that they liked my pictures. So, I kept going to continue to get the same reactions from them.”
Rovira began working professionally while attending The Centre de la Imatge i la Tecnologia Multimèdia (Barcelona) in 2010.
“My first job as a photographer was at a music festival in Barcelona. I was 19 years old at the time, and it was one of the best experiences of my life,” Rovira described. At the time, Rovira’s pictures from the festival were used for press, ultimately gaining her work recognition around the city of Barcelona.
It was also during college when Rovira picked up her first DSLR camera in an attempt to figure out the basics of videography. “I was working on a fashion assignment for one of my classes and noted a lack of videographers surrounding me. DSLR cameras were increasing in popularity, so I decided to try the whole video thing for myself. I ended up capturing the making of that fashion project, and from that day forward my life was forever changed,” said Rovira.
Since 2010, Rovira has been in charge of all filmmaking at Padilla Rigau, a leading, Barcelona-based Wedding Photography and Videography company. The company is known for capturing some of lives most precious moments with a unique, modern and fresh twist.
“I truly believe that our work as photographers and videographers is based on feelings – to create them, and to capture them,” said Rovira. “Attending weddings has provided me with a greater sensitivity towards what is in front of the camera, and I now use that sensitivity always, whether I’m shooting a wedding, a commercial or a fashion film.”
In Rovira’s opinion, two of the most powerful qualities a good photographer can have are that of speed and affectivity. One must be fast, humble and approachable, and the same goes for videographers. “If you shoot the same look or seen a thousand times, the subject will get the impression that it is his or her fault. If you have something specific in mind, you need to explain your idea when everyone’s around, so that everything translates, including your excitement regarding the prospective shot,” Rovira explained.
When it comes to her own work and creative tendencies, Rovira tends to enjoy capturing the details that are often overlooked. “I consider myself an adventurer,” said Rovira. “I have always been on the hunt of new perspectives. I like telling stories from a different outlook. I’m really observant. I’ve always been that way, and that fact about my personality has given me an extreme sense of what people like to see in my work.”
The work of a photographer entails so much more than a simple point and click. It is a job that requires an excellent aesthetic eye, and both creative and technical aptitude. For example, when it comes to the different types of lighting she’s worked with, Rovira provided, “You have to be like a chameleon and adapt to the lighting that has been given to you. Sometimes, I’m shooting something that’s happening under one kind of light, and when I turn around to film something else, the light is completely different, so I have a very small window of time to reset my camera to shoot the second scene. I have to be fast and prepared so I don’t lose the moment.”
Rovira developed her own photographic style upon moving to Los Angeles for a year, where she collaborated and refined her camera skills with the internationally renowned photographer, Joseph Llanes. Llanes’ work has been published in Rolling Stone, Billboard, Spin, New York magazine and L.A. Weekly. His wide range of clients includes talents like Rihanna, Justin Bieber, The Black Keys, Katy Perry and Gavin Rossdale, to name a few.
“Everything that surrounded me was invigorating and I felt a constant need to capture most of the people and things that I came in contact with,” Rovira explained of her introduction to the entertainment industry of Los Angeles. “Being a foreigner gave me the chance to see the extraordinary in the ordinary.”
Alongside mentor Llanes, Rovira assisted with multiple photo shoots with top clients, where she ultimately acquired an intense understanding of the building blocks of professional photography. “I always learn something from Joseph in every photo shoot or project that we collaborate on. He taught me the importance of creating a good environment at work, and to always be two steps ahead of yourself with every project. Have a plan B, C and D, so you’re prepared to quickly solve any problem that might occur during the shoot, without the client noticing that there was even a problem to begin with,” Rovira said.
Since this experience, Rovira has photographed and assisted with shoots involving many top tier musicians, bands and musical events, her framework including talent such as Quincy Jones, Phoenix and Els Catarres. In 2013, Rovira assisted Llanes at the world famous annual music festival, Coachella. She has also photographed leading music events in Los Angeles with Llanes such as Hard Summer and the Hard Day of the Dead Festival, where Rovira worked in photographing such famed talents as the Grammy winning DJs Calvin Harris, Skrillex and Zedd.
During the Aokify America Tour’s November, 2013 Los Angeles show for Steve Aoki, a Grammy nominee and Billboard Award winning EDM musician, Rovira photographed Aoki as well as music superstars Iggy Azalea, Linkin Park, Travis Barker and Kid Cudi.
As a videographer, Rovira has engaged her outstanding talents for companies Brownie Spain and Padilla-Rigau, for several years. As an innovative team member, Rovira has, and currently, films and photographs weddings and fashion events. “Nowadays, we are amongst the top ten wedding photographers and videographers in Spain,” Rovira said. “I love doing weddings because I work with two of my best friends. We have built a really strong company together.”
When it comes to fashion, Rovira has created fashion films with some of the most well known brands in all of Spain. Some of Rovira’s clients include Shana, Swarovski, Codigo Basico, Estel Alcaraz and Pompeii Brand, among others. Regarding her work, Rovira commented, “Working with [these brands] on a regular basis allows me to improve and try new things with each video. I love capturing what’s going on around me.”
With industrial designer Estel Alcaraz, Rovira has acted as her, “right-hand person,” as quoted by Alcaraz, since the beginning of Alcaraz’s career. “Cristina is a part of my team. I was lucky enough to know her when we were both starting our professional careers and we helped each other as much as we could. She works with me on every project I start. She’s exceptionally sensitive to detail and puts my ideas on paper or on video. Either way, she always gets what I want because she has the ability to capture the emotion and passion that I put into my products through her work.”
The pair worked closely with one another on one of Alcaraz’s most important projects, The Sardines Boots. The Sardines Boots are bright yellow, light, flexible rain boots that are designed to easily fold and compress to a backpack size. With the motto, “Don’t let wet socks give you cold feet,” the campaign was published worldwide.
“Cristina knows how to showcase the essence of my products and it was great to be known inside the world of industrial design with her work, as she is one of the people who believed in me from the very beginning,” Alcaraz said. “Working with Cristina is great because she always wants to go one step further and is always thinking about starting new projects. Sometimes, she even encourages me to design so that can she make a new video. She has this contagious positive energy that makes you believe that you can make everything come true.”
Rovira has also applied her profound camera skills for a TV commercial with professional Spanish footballer, Andres Iniesta. “I showed my footage and pictures to the director of that shoot and his reaction was priceless. He liked how I captured moments that he didn’t realize happened, and commented that the composition of my work was extremely beautiful.”
Jordi Egea, owner of the Spanish production company Smilefilms, directed the commercial shoot. Previously, Egea and Rovira have collaborated on several projects with the brand Dormity. Regarding Rovira’s sought-after skills, Egea said, “We hire her because she is great at doing her work, she gives you what you and your client ask for, and goes above and beyond what is needed of her. She understands her clients and what they want and captures the essence of every brand while still maintaining her personal style. Plus, people feel comfortable around her, and that’s key when you work with people who are not necessarily used to being in front of a camera.”
Game designer/producer Zi Li has been the brains behind many leading titles in today’s marketplace.
We recently had the opportunity to sit down and visit with Zi Li, a revered game designer and producer who has helped deliver award-winning titles including “Dissonance,” “Paralect,” “MiraLab,” “Dungeon Crash” and “Epic Knights.” Shining in both PC and mobile platforms, Li has also engaged her talents for the award-winning “Leviathan” virtual reality project and for the short films, “The Birthday Girl” and “Fly.”
Li, a Guangdong, China native, has a well-founded background for the field. She received a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Digital Media from Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, and a Master of Fine Arts degree in Interactive Media & Games from the University of Southern California.
Dispatching her design brilliance, Li has been instrumental in the development, design and execution of cognitive puzzle games, fantasy RPGs and adventure games. She works with Firefly Games Inc., that operates offices in both Shanghai and Los Angeles, and had prior stints with Digital Domain 3.0 Inc., Floor 84 Game Studio and Ericsson Communications.
Li has constructed a standout career with a formula comprised of artistic creativity, engineering ingenuity and a command of computer programming and design principals. We are excited to share her story below in our exclusive interview!
What was it like to grow up and live in Guangdong?
ZL: To be honest it was kind of boring. I grew up in a middle city. Its economy is okay to maintain people’s basic needs. But we don’t have much to do. People are very chilled and always have morning tea, afternoon tea and night tea. Being chilled and relaxed is not in my nature. I always want to go to other places and see what is exciting and creative. I guess that’s why I am here making games.
What games did you grow up playing?
ZL: I did not grow up playing games. My parents were very strict when I was young. They don’t allow me to access to anything that could make me feel addictive. I was learning painting and into manga when I was a child. I always wanted to do art.
Unlike a lot of game developers, I didn’t fall in love with games first. I have particular types of games I like. I love visual art and engineer first and then found games that express meanings and allow me to feel smart when I am playing are very attractive. That’s why I get into game industry.
What drove you to pursue a career in game design?
ZL: I would say I’m driven by the idea of communicating thoughts through art pieces. For me game is art. Game designers are the same as other artists.
I was good at science related fields when I was a kid. I thought my ability is enough support me to become an engineer in the future. On the other hand, I spent more than 6 years studying paintings until high school. I always thought I could become a part time artist. I did an animation later. I found that doesn’t satisfy my needs of expressing my engineering mindset.
Later, I got clearer that in the field that science intersects with art is what I’m really passionate about.
For me, games is a media that allows both science and art collapse together.
What is your favorite game genre?
ZL: Puzzle. I like games that can make me think and use my logic.
What are your top three favorite games all-time?
ZL: Braid, Machinarium, Windosill.
How would you describe your job as a game designer and producer?
ZL: My job includes a wide range of tasks. As a producer, I work with different teams and communicate with each team about their perspective of the game. Also, because I’m a game designer, I also work on game design decisions and help with correcting the game development direction.
What does it take to be a successful game designer?
ZL: I think a good game designer should be innovative, open-minded, and passionate. Other skills will come along as long as the game designer knows what he or she wants.
How did your academic career help shape your professional career?
ZL: I got an engineering degree in Digital Media. We learned lots of basic knowledge about films, animation and games. I learned how to program and work on cinematic pieces during my study in the Digital Media Department. I found my passion in films and games by trying out various media.
Then I went to graduate school for Interactive Media and Games. I was majoring in game design. I knew that this program is not only limited in traditional games. It matches what I want out of games. So I started as a game design student in the industry and gradually figured out my strength. I was involved in various games projects and learned different skills, like design methodology, cinematic expression and so on. They definitely help me to become a game designer and producer.
“Dissonance,” for PC, won the Indie Prize and the Experimental Game Showcase at the Out of Index Festival. Tell us a little bit about it.
ZL: Dissonance is a puzzle-adventure game developed by Team Dissonance. I created Dissonance as a bridge between puzzle games and a psychology concept cognitive dissonance. It started as my personal project. With six months development, the team has expanded to over 10 people. The developers transmitted the psychological concept cognitive dissonance into the core mechanics of game to make it more than just a puzzle game.
What place do puzzle and psychology games have in today’s gaming market?
ZL: Puzzle games are always popular. But I don’t see many games combining puzzle and psychology together. I think as one of the art media, comparing to other media, video games are still new and have lots of potential. Hopefully it will be growing and explored the usage in different areas.
The fantasy RPG – “Dungeon Crash” – has over one million downloads for Android and Apple. How would you describe the game and what’s made it such a success?
ZL: Dungeon Crash is a fun and adorable game which has playful battles accompanied by strategic role-playing elements.
The gameplay is deep and fun. Players always have the next goal in the game. The main goal of the game is to collect the best team of warriors, mages and healers. When a player is trying to work towards the main goal, he or she can balances other elements like gear, upgrade system, guild and so on. There are numerous things a player can do. Each person has their unique way to get close to the goal. Also they can show off their progress through fight against other players to get to the top position on the leaderboard.
Share with us a little on your background in art and how that’s helped shape you as a game designer.
ZL: At the place I grew up, my life contains 3 major activities: taking regular classes, painting and notebook shopping in bookstores (I collected notebooks when I was younger). Like I mentioned earlier, I spent 6 years studying painting. Also, my dad loves poets and calligraphy. He loves sharing them with me. I think this type of environment helps to build my aesthetic standards, creativity and cultivates my passion in arts.
I do think game design is a pretty flexible area. A lot of times, game designers need to make decisions with their aesthetic and design sense. Those things are very abstract and hard to grow in a short term. I’m glad that I grew up with practicing my aesthetic consciousness.
You contributed to the art that’s featured in the PC game, “Paralect.” What is the premise of “Paralect” and how did you enjoy working as an artist for the game?
ZL: Paralect is a 2D platformer that uses gameplay, visuals and narrative to tell a personal story of cultural un-rooting. It explores the paradigm shifts caused by culture shock and adaptation and investigates how those transformations affect one’s vision of people, their environment, the place you initially came from and, most importantly, the place you wish to call home. It is a story and a world inspired by the creative director Loan Verneau.
I had great time working Paralect. I like the concept a lot. I think the protagonist reminds me a lot of myself. I feel attached to the character. The game is programmed with C++, so all the art asset needs to be designed carefully. Loan and I spent time together figuring out how to interpret the design through programmed visual elements. It is great that I got to apply what I know into the game and learning new ways to express ideas in games at the same time. It also helps me to grow and build up experience to make my independent games.
“MiraLab” went on to win the Gold Award in the Education Category at the Serious Play Conference. Was the educational aspect a motivator for the Miralab team in creating the “MiraLab” concept?
ZL: The world in Miralab is a media arts world and accompanying design methodology that emerged out of a multi-faceted exploration of a naturally occurring biological process: the lifecycle of Turritopsis dohrnii, the immortal jellyfish. The biological structure acts as a contextual framing, research prompt, and unifying theme that generates multiple interdisciplinary arts and science media explorations. It foregrounds knowledge and outcomes associated with arts and design practice experimentation within the realm of interdisciplinary arts science research. It asserts how the unique potential arts practice engagement contributes to interdisciplinary learning. This abstract briefly describes each mode of exploration and contextualizes it within a larger poetic science methodology. It considers this methodology’s contribution to a new understanding of interdisciplinary arts science research centered in transmedia design principles.
That said, the “Leviathan” project you worked on implements some VR along with other components. What’s “Leviathan” all about?
ZL: The Leviathan project, based on Scott Westerfeld’s Leviathan trilogy, takes place in 1895, 20 years prior to the source material. In Westerfeld’s story, World War I is reimagined with bioengineered fabricated animals replacing technology and facing off against large mechanical robots. While the books focus on the tension of war, the Leviathan Project emphasizes the experimental exploration in the concept of fabrication. By taking place earlier than the series, the project builds a world of wonder and amazement for the unknown and the unexpected possibilities that can suddenly arise.
“Leviathan” received the New Frontier Project award at the Sundance Film Festival and was featured at CES in Las Vegas. What were the responses and feedback you guys got on the project?
ZL: Players are amazed by what Leviathan offers. In the Leviathan project, we adapt the techniques that can track the player position in a room. So what players need to do is put on the headset and walk around in the room. It is simple and intuitive.
They love that they can walk around in the Leviathan world and observe the world and the stories as an officer. They can get immersive experience while creating their own version of story.
What opportunities does your role as producer allow for at Firefly Games?
ZL: As a producer, I get the chance of communicating with each team and overseeing the project I’m responsible for. Also, I have been communicating with other producers from other projects to share our experiences and tools. I have lots of practice in project management, negotiation and various problem-solving skills.
What can gamers expect to get from Firefly releases?
ZL: Firefly Games focuses on the games that are intuitive and fun for mobile gamers. We have three games out there and are developing more games. Hopefully players can find that our games are fun and relaxing.
What are some of your hobbies outside of the gaming realm?
ZL: I like reading books and watching animated films. These two media can always offer me endless inspiration. Currently, I’m reading a book called The Hero with a Thousand Faces.
What types of games are you looking forward to designing and producing in the future?
ZL: As an artist, I hope one day I can make a game that offers players a unique experience in a way that they reach part of the mind they have never explored before. I always have fun knowing myself and learning about myself. I find it fascinating that a lot of us don’t know ourselves very well. And a lot of art pieces help us. For example, the pilot in The Little Prince does help me to see that I’m just like him. He wants to be a painter, not a pilot. And I’m a person who always wants to be an artist instead of an engineer. I hope people can try the game and then say ‘This game is affecting me. I never knew that I’m a person like that.’
There are many different types of acting, but the most universally recognized can often be when one is standing on a stage or in front of a camera. For Brazilian actor Lucas Zaffari, a different type of acting challenge is presented to him on a regular basis.
Zaffari dubs Spanish telenovelas into Portuguese, his native language. Dubbing, also known as revoicing, is the replacement of the voices of the original actors with a different performer in another language. To do so, Zaffari receives the video and script with all the timelines of exactly where his character speaks and reacts in an episode. He then studies those lines and goes to a sound studio to record the revoicing of his character.
“As an actor, specifically for film and television, you get all you can from circumstances that are happening around you and in your imagination. When it’s me, I try to absorb as much stimuli as I can from my acting partner, location, sometimes music, smells, senses,” he said. “But in a sound studio all you have is a cubicle with foam and the recordings that you see on the screen, and on top of that, all you have to show what your character is feeling is through your voice. It is challenging.”
Zaffari is currently cast in three telenovelas with Voxx Studios. These seven to nine month commitment are the Colombian Allá Te Espero which is soon to be completed, Venezuela’s Piel Salvaje, and the Venezuelan American Voltea Pá Que Te Enamores.
Although it is more common for Portuguese dubbing studios to be in Miami and Brazil, Voxx set up their studio in LA because they believe that is where the most talented actors are located.
“I’m really honored to know that after I joined Voxx Studios, they continued to hire me on all of their new telenovelas. It’s a great opportunity to voice different characters,” said Zaffari.
The sound booth where Zaffari works is a cubicle about eight feet by eight feet covered in foam so the sound does not reverberate, a microphone, a headphone, two televisions (one for the video and one for the lines with the proper time codes). There is also a sound-proof window that goes through to a different room where the sound engineer and the director are located.
“It can be quite hard,” described Zaffari. “You need to match your voice to the mouth of the original actor. Sometimes the Spanish is too fast and it is hard to match everything in Portuguese to that pace. Sometimes we have to change it to what people would understand instead of a perfect translation, without changing the meaning, of course.”
Zaffari describes acting as the hardest job in the world. He says that feeling as someone else is extremely challenging, but with dubbing, you do not have the capability to pull from your surroundings and react instantly to the people around you.
“Dubbing is not on location,” he said. “You are in a cubicle. You don’t have another actor to pull emotion from. Your partner is a microphone and a television. The senses I use when I am acting
I can’t use when I am dubbing. I am not there. You need to put all of those things you would normally use into your microphone and just use your voice.”
Despite the challenges that dubbing can present, there are many parts that Zaffari enjoys.
“In a way it is less stressful because you are not on camera so you can just wear your comfortable clothes,” he said. “But I really like to put a little bit of my interpretation into a character, even though it is another actor’s performance.”
Zaffari said that when he first started dubbing, he was conflicted on how to approach each character.
“Should I dub as my personal interpretation of what that character is going through? Or as the original actor’s interpretation?,” he said, describing his initial thought process. “But to me now, it is a mixture of those two things.”
Leila Vieira, Zaffari’s dubbing director for Piel Salvaje, thinks Zaffari’s mixture is working out very well.
“One of the main qualities an actor has to have in order to be good at dubbing is being able to recognize and mimic pace,” described Vieira. “Lucas has an incredible ability for listening to the dialogue and being able to reproduce it in Portuguese with perfection, making the process fast at the same time as high quality with his great acting skills. Aside from recognizing pace, acting with only your voice can be a challenge that Lucas masters with flying colors.”
Vieira believes that it is not only Zaffari’s inherent talent that makes him successful at dubbing, but also his personality as a whole.
“Lucas is the nicest person you could ever work with,” she said. “Not only he has an amazing working ethic, but he also has a great personality that accepts critiques and understands the adjustments, which makes the whole process fast and productive.”
Sebastian Zancanaro, another director at Voxx, describes Zaffari as the ultimate professional.
“I cast Lucas as Francisco (Pacho) in the dramatic soap opera Alla Te Espero and I was mesmerized by his commitment to our team and by his stamina. His unique skill as a Portuguese speaker actor in conjunction with his acting abilities make him one of our most valuable cast members,” said Zancanaro. Lucas has also being cast as Pedro in our upcoming soap opera project entitled Our Family, our longest and most prized project to date.
Zaffari says that dubbing with Voxx is a great working environment.
“It is so much fun,” he said. “There are so many nice and talented people around, which makes this creative work much more richer.”
Zaffari has no plans on slowing down.
This versatile actor has already started dubbing the new telenovela Somos Família (Our Family) as Pedro.
Archibald Spring 2015 cover styled by Kirsten Reader
Sometimes, the greatest success can come from stepping outside of your comfort zone. Leaving what you know and experimenting with new things can lead to the extraordinary. This is what happened with wardrobe stylist and fashion director Kirsten Reader when she embarked on a journey to create Archibald Magazine’s spring 2015 cover.
Reader left her home in Toronto to shoot in Los Angeles. Not only was this her first time shooting in LA, it was her first time shooting in the United States. On top of this, Reader had to not just be in charge of fashion, she was also the fashion editor, creative director, wardrobe stylist and groomer.
“This was my second issue as Fashion Editor for the men’s fashion publication, Archibald,” said Reader. “I wanted to do something to really show what the publication could do and achieve given not only was it my second issue, it was also the second issue for the publication as a whole. I wanted to truly push myself and do a shoot in LA and also create content for the publication that showed being a new publication we could compete with the best men’s publications. This was a personal challenge to see what I could achieve.”
Reader decided to reach out to her former schoolmate Patrick J Adams to see if he would be interested in being featured in the shoot. Adams, a SAG-Award nominated actor well-known for playing the lead role of Mike Ross in the critically acclaimed television series Suits, jumped on board, along with the photographer Vanessa Heins.
“Vanessa was actually going to be there, and had been trying to get a shoot with Patrick so it was a project that was just meant to be,” said Reader.
The shoot was just Reader, Adams, and Heins, and took place in Los Angeles with a lot of it in Silver Lake and around the LA River.
“Once in LA we just location scouted and ended up shooting the whole concept fairly guerrilla style,” Reader described.
The threesome of Reader, Adams, and Heins worked extremely well together, and were able to create a successful feature for the magazine.
“It was great to work with Patrick as we hadn’t worked together since drama class back in high school,” said Reader. “To have Vanessa on board and her to have a relationship with Patrick already made the whole atmosphere of the shoot relaxed and enjoyable, really allowing us to have fun with the process and create some great images that showcased Patrick in a way that hadn’t been shown prior.”
Adams agrees, and attributes Reader’s talents as the reason the magazine sold over 50,000 copies in Toronto and received over 1.3 million views online.
“This extraordinary success would not have been possible without Kirsten’s prowess,” he said. “She successfully represented me as an actor and an artist.”
Adams describes the collaboration as “nearly flawless”.
“Kirsten always kept a laid back atmosphere for the shoot while directing the overall project and styling,” he continued. “She is widely recognized for her contribution in Canadian fashion, especially within Toronto, and is listed as one of the most recognized stylists in the world.”
Despite having to overcome some difficulties initially, Reader describes the shoot as a learning experience.
“There were numerous challenges for the shoot like not having an assistant,” she said. “I definitely learned by doing.”
Reader acknowledges that she was lucky to be able to reach the talents of Adams and Heins at the click of a button.
“I was lucky enough to go to high school with some incredibly talented people who have made an impression in LA,” described Reader. “Patrick was one of them and I took the chance and reached out. Vanessa has been a great friend and work colleague who I always feel privileged to work with. Her talent behind the lens is one that inspires me to be better on every project.”
All in all, the experience was a great one for Reader.
“The whole day was a so much fun and even though I was wearing many hats for the project we had fun just trying out the concepts we had loosely brainstormed,” said Reader.
She even got to discover some natural talent that was hidden before.
“My favorite part was probably the motorcycle shot. We actually shot it with my driving across the LA River Bridge keeping pace with Patrick on his motorcycle and Vanessa leaning out the window to shoot,” she said. “Apparently I make an excellent pace car driver as well.”
Patrick Adams styled by Kirsten Reader featured in Archibald Magazine
Photographer Tom Penpark specializes in panorama, natural landscapes, architecture, electronics, food, people and objects.
Tom Penpark has been at it since he was 6 years old.
“I was inspired by my father to become a photographer,” he said. “He carried his camera with him all the time. His main subject was my mom. One day, he handed me my first camera, and I’ve enjoyed taking pictures ever since.”
And since that initiation, it’s been a pattern of success, recognition, accolades and honors stemming from Penpark’s world-class photographic brilliance.
His outstanding work has been published with The Huffington Post, The Telegraph: UK, Discovery Channel, SF Chronicles: San Francisco, Amazon.cn, Photographer’s Forum Magazine, Popular Photography Magazine China, Chicago Metropolitan Association for Education of Young Children, and American Photographic Artists (APA) San Francisco, to name a few.
His photography clients have consisted of well-known brands like Adidas, Google, Crossroad Trading, Monster Products, and Rodeo Realty Beverly Hills. Additionally, Penpark has demonstrated his retouching skills with clients such as Men’s Warehouse, Levi’s, Old Navy, Peet’s Coffee, T-Mobile, Charlotte Russe, Airbnb, Adobe, Nike, See’s Candies, and Gillette.
Originally from Bangkok, Penpark was used to photographing communities where the scenery around him was all quite similar. Exploring America allowed Penpark to expand his photographic imagination and immerse himself into the realm of panoramic photography. “My first trip to the U.S. started with Yosemite National Park in 2007. I had my old Canon Rebel with me. I learned that I could not capture what I saw in one frame and I couldn’t show what I actually saw through my pictures. That’s when I began learning about panoramic photography and started shooting panorama in order to get exactly what I saw,” Penpark said.
While panorama remains one of Penpark’s highest interests, he thoroughly enjoys photographing many different subjects. From architecture, electronics to food, people and objects, and natural landscapes, his photography spans a wide range of topics.
Photo: Tom Penpark.
Regarding his versatile style of capturing, Penpark commented, “If I had to pick a favorite subject, it would have to be either landscape photography or people in landscapes. I enjoy traveling to places I’ve never been and conversing with and learning from new people. I love capturing people’s emotions and the perfections made visible in still life through my photography. Having to hike up to new destinations and dedicate copious amounts of time in order to ensure I get the perfect landscape photography always inspires me and constantly pushes me to work beyond my limits.”
Over the past ten years, Penpark has dedicated his time to exploring the different avenues of photography. “At the moment, I think my photography goes in two directions,” Penpark explained. When he has the time, Penpark continues to pursue his love of landscape photography through various road trips. “When it comes to my personal photography, I think the beauty of my photographs is the perfect of the imperfection. However, for my commercial photography, I focus specifically on perfection and what my clients are looking for.”
Early on in his career, Penpark worked as an Assistant Photographer to some of the biggest names in the business. For several years, he assisted talents such as Shalom Ormsby, Trinette Reed, Chris Gramly and David Fischer.
“I have learned all of my skills from others,” said Penpark. “My processes of planning, shooting, post-processing, and printing are all of general knowledge, the same as other photographers. Personally, I plan all of my shoots when I can. Long preparation and a short execution are always better than no plan at all for me. I will go the extra mile to find the best times and locations that will allow me to obtain the best final images as a result.”
Penpark has collaborated since 2008 with John Lund, a stock photography phenomenon, founding member of Blend Images and current APA SF Board Member.
“Tom’s background in art direction and design is apparent in his work, his Photoshop abilities are deep and professional, and his understanding of Lightroom and digital capture is extensive. Tom is more than just a talented photographer; he is a problem solver as well,” Lund said of Penpark’s many talents.
After earning recurring awards and recognition as a remarkable photographer by the American Photography Association (APA) early on in his career, Penpark was selected as a member and actively participates as leading voice in their events.
The APA is a non-profit organization built by photographers for photographers. It exists to provide business tools and creative inspiration in order to aid artists in the artistic process of photography and maintaining a stable, profitable business.
Over the years, many of Penpark’s images have been accepted by APA judges and exhibited throughout several selective shows such as the APA SF Something Personal Exhibition and the APA SF Selected Works Exhibition. In 2011, Penpark was awarded a Judges’ Fourth Place Award from the APA San Francisco Something Personal Exhibition.
“APA is a well-respected community for professional photographers. It was an honor to be selected for the APA Judges’ Fourth Place Award in their exhibition that took place in 2011,” Penpark said. In 2012, he acted as APA’s guest speaker at the Apple Store in San Francisco for their Creative Professional Series.
“After that,” Penpark continued, “my pictures were selected for their exhibitions almost every year.” In 2015, he was selected to be an APA judge. “As a professional photographer, this is a great honor.”
National Board Member of the APA and Chairman of the Board APA of San Francisco Chapter, Christian Peacock, commented of Penpark’s valued skills, “His talents and dedication to the excellence of his craft were evident in his examples of imagery that cannot be seen with the naked eye. I highly endorse Tom Penpark as an outstanding member of the APA and am looking forward to seeing his future accomplishments in our industry.”
Photography is a profession that requires both creative and technical abilities. Throughout the years, Penpark’s spent proving himself as an esteemed photographer. His work clearly showcases his mastery of having acquired both.
Photo: Tom Penpark
“Being a professional photographer requires a lot of investment in technical and artistic education,” Penpark said. “Having a solid foundation of the arts, painting and the history of photography are necessary qualities. However, at the same time, having excellent camera and lighting skills, knowing how to retouch images, and being knowledgeable of digital printing and digital assets management is important, too. Digital photography is half art and half tech. As a photographer, I can never stop learning and exploring.”
For the 2014-15 and 2016-17 editions, Penpark was selected and published as one of the Best Ad photographer’s for Leuzer’s Archive Magazine, a leading magazine for innovative ideas, photography and illustration. The honor is among the best in professional photography.
“The photos in Archive Magazine inspired me to become a full time photographer,” Penpark said. “I am proud and honored to be part of the selected group of photographers from around the world.”
In 2011, Penpark first initiated his role as a Contributing Stock Photographer at Getty Images and Blend Images.
Based out of Seattle Washington, Getty Images is a stock photography agency that is known for supplying business and consumers with an archive of over 80 million still, stock images and illustrations, and more than 50,000 hours of stock film footage. Similarly, Blend Images is an international commercial stock agency, founded by some of the world’s most successful photographers and industry veterans.
Penpark continues to successfully contribute his work to these stock agencies to this day and is now a Photoshop Production Artist with Schawk! on-site at Apple Headquarter in Cupertino.
Penpark formerly worked as the Digital Media Group Manager and Lead Photographer for Monster Cable Products, Inc., a company known for it’s manufacturing of audio and video cable products. The photographer fondly remembers one of his most recent shoots with the company – a concert at CES in Las Vegas, Nevada.
“It was a Michael Jackson Tribute Concert,” Penpark said. “I was given the opportunity to take pictures of Aerosmith’s Joe Perry, Ne-Yo, Rick Ross, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal, Christina Milian, and the Jacksons. I was their official photographer at that event. One of the best moments was when my prints were signed by Jermaine Jackson, one of my idols.”
At Monster Cable Products Inc., Penpark worked under Ryan Notch, the Former Digital Media Group Manager of the company. “Tom is the real deal,” Notch said. “Not only is he an incredibly skilled technician at his craft, but he is amazing at concept and creative as well. I have been extremely fortunate to have Tom as the rock on my team here at Monster. He is very hardworking, dependable, and self-driven. Best of all, Tom is truly a pleasure to be around. His thoughtful and eager-to-help attitude has always made him an integral team player within our department. I can’t say enough wonderful things about Tom. I would, without hesitation, recommend him for any and all opportunities that come his way.”
In 2013, Penpark had the opportunity to meet Hossein Farmani, the founder and president of the legendary “The Lucie Awards,” Co-Founder of the Palm Springs Photo Festival and an all-around icon of photography. “I showed my prints to Hossein and they were selected to be a part of the 180th Anniversary of Thai – U.S. Exhibition,” Penpark said.
Penpark’s photos were showcased in the same exhibition as other world-class famous photographers such as James Nochtwey, Steve McCurry, Greg Gorman, Colin Finlay, Benya Hegenbarth and Douglas Kirkland.
Penpark’s photographs have also been featured in a solo exhibition at Google Headquarters and recognized as an award winner in the Travel Category of the Top 50 Sony World Photography Awards of 2015.
Rex Alan McMillan and Katie Lee (right) star in Katie Micay’s “Limited Engagement.”
It’s a romantic comedy about a woman who always finds herself the bridesmaid, but never the bride.
It was shot on real film without sync sound, tells a visual story without dialogue and features a professionally trained dog named Chachi who incidentally drives the plot.
For writer-producer Katie Micay, “Limited Engagement” is a testament to her exceptional filmmaking forte. The story follows Kate, an unmarried, perpetual bridesmaid and hopeless romantic. Kate is ecstatic to find an engagement ring in her boyfriend, Ian’s, pocket. But to her dismay, the ring goes missing and in a panic, Kate turns her house upside down to find the ring before Ian notices.
The two-person short stars Katie Lee (“10 Days of Rain”) in the role of Kate and Rex Alan McMillan (“Alice Agonistes”) as Ian.
“In just a few short minutes, this film takes you on a roller coaster of emotion,” Lee said. “There is a clear conflict which everyone can relate. The story finishes with a resolution that not only gives a sense of relief, but also reminds you to laugh at yourself because in life everything works itself out one way or another in the end.”
Micay aimed to craft a story with a self-deprecating and witty sense of humor. “While writing this, I pulled a lot from one of my friendships,” she said. “I am extremely sarcastic in real life and my good friend was extremely literal. It never ceased to amuse me how many times she would fall for my sarcasm.”
“Limited Engagement” is an exercise in creativity that demonstrates Micay’s screenwriting inventiveness. The entire story is put in front of the camera and is conveyed by the characters’ viewable actions. It’s entirely absent of expository dialogue and the achievement befalls only the best screenwriters.
“I actually love creating stories without dialogue because it pushes you to really tell a story visually,” said Micay, a Vancouver native. “These days a lot of films over explain, but the audience often prefers to put the pieces together on their own.”
Said Lee, “The script seemed really fun and quirky and I’m all about quirky. Plus, the idea that it was a silent, slapstick style comedy was very appealing to me because as an actor there is such a fun physical exploration to the characters.”
Growing up, Micay absorbed influence from shows such as “Friends” and subscribes to the writing convention that situational comedy is driven by strong characters. So is the case with “Limited Engagement,” where she created a dynamic leading female that carries the story in many scenes all by herself, all the while executing the needed comedic, situational mishaps.
“The audience really stays with Kate and goes through the struggle with her. You feel her pain and her happiness,” Micay said.
The character had familiar feelings for Lee and also hit close to home. She said the best part of acting in the role was “how relatable Kate is to most women. I was going on four years in my own personal relationship and was watching friends settle down left and right. Making Kate relatable and likeable gives the audience the ability to sympathize with her and also want to follow along on her journey to see what happens.”
From a producer’s standpoint, Micay was charged the task of finding a dog that would play an integral role. Kate’s plight within the story is incited to a peak when her dog accidentally swallows her ring. Kate discovers its whereabouts using a metal detector and winds up getting it back using a laxative.
“It could happen to anyone and likely something similar has happened,” Lee said. “You can’t help but laugh because everyone knows.”
Micay says implementing the dog, Chachi, was the biggest challenge to the production. “Even though he is a professionally trained entertainment animal, it was still much harder than a human,” she said. “We had him on set one day and had to get everything we needed in a very short period of time.”
Casting the human actors, on the other hand, was a different experience. “When casting, we needed people who were very expressive, but natural at the same time. Both Katie and Rex auditioned and it was clear that they were very talented,” said Micay. “They were both a great joy to work with. They really wanted to collaborate and help my vision reach the screen.”
Micay is known for her previous writing and producing of “Flirt,” a Reality Bytes Film Festival Official Selection, “My So Called Family,” that was an Official Selection at the Bel Air Film Festival and “The Firefly Girls,” which screened this month at the Sonoma International Film Festival.
“Limited Engagement” achieved critical acclaim as it received an Award of Merit at the Women’s Independent Film Festival. It was also an Official Selection at the Los Angeles Women’s International Film Festival.
The 2012 film was dedicated to Micay’s great aunt, Clara Nelson. “She passed away before I made “My So Called Family,” which is loosely based off the week she died. She was a stand-up comedian that loved to tell a good dirty joke. She just loved life and family. When I moved to Los Angeles, she really helped make it home for me.”
Director Merve Tekin is having quite a year for comedic films, and on Friday night, her short film Honey Pot made its World Premiere at Hollywood’s celebrated TCL Chinese Theatre.
“I’m so honored that we made our premiere in the Chinese Theatre. The theatre was full. Many of my friends couldn’t find tickets,” said Tekin. “Hollywood Comedy Short Film Festival made a great job by putting this event together.”
Honey Pot stars Mark Kelly, known for his role as Dale in Mad Men, and his starring role in the Duplass Brothers film The Do-Deca Pentathlon. Kelly leads the comedy as Frank, a lonely farmer whose only interaction with the female form is by artificially inseminating cows for a living. He proudly call himself “The Inseminator!”, the alternative name for the film. This is until he picks up the dippy blonde Donna on the side of the road, who is in need of some help. Frank’s loneliness and manly needs cloud his better judgement. Donna is played by Brianna Oppenheimer.
“Everytime people laughed out loud, Mark was gripping my hand to share in this happiness,” said Tekin. “It is a beautiful feeling to make people laugh. It is so nice to share those happy moments.”
“Shooting a comedy film is tough,” she said. But the challenges that Tekin was presented with seem minimal now, as Honey Pot has been officially selected for six short film festivals so far. These include LA Cinefest, The Texas Ultimate Shorts Film Festival, TMFF, UCLAxFilmFest, IFS (Independent Filmmakers Showcase), and The Hollywood Comedy Short Film Festival where the film premiered.
Tekin is no stranger to success, having directed more than 20 different television programs in her home country of Turkey. The last program she directed for over 600 episodes was titled Shopping Monster, which was sold to 22 countries around the world. Her first feature film, Yes, It Is a Camel, is also set to start production later this spring.
“Merve is the director you dream of as she knows what story she is telling, and demands with a nourishing touch at getting that story told, all the while trusting the actor for giving his or her input as well,” said Kelly. “Merve handled the challenges of a tight schedule and budget with grace and fed me and the other actors with all the food we needed to tell the story. She also had the capacity to roll with needed choices that allowed us to tell her story under fire.”
Calli Ryals, known for the feature film Stick It, starring Jeff Bridges, as well as her work in sketch comedy with the world-renowned Second City, also wrote, produced, and acted in the short film. Ryals found there was a lot of chemistry working with Tekin. She described it as “Yes And” writing chemistry.
“Merve would throw out an idea, and I would go YES! and then I was off the ground writing a scene,” she said. “This was my first short film as a writer/producer. I was really lucky to have this first time experience with someone like Merve. She pushed me to set high expectations for myself and the project, and exemplified true leadership. Even when times got really stressful, as they do especially in low budget film making, she was able to keep a calm demeanour and push through, always keeping a strong end goal in mind.”
Ryals, Tekin and Kelly all agree that they were a well oiled team, where working together was not only successful, but fun.
“I feel very lucky that I worked with Mark. He is a real talent. He contributed a lot and improvised a lot in this movie,” said Tekin. “Calli was involved in every aspect of this project, she co-wrote it, she produced it and she acted in it. She was always with me during the process. We are still working together for future projects.”
“Mark added so much to the character that wasn’t written. In between takes, he would say ‘What if I did this?’ And Merve let him run with it. Merve let him improvise the takes and he would have everyone in stitches,” described Ryals. “Had I known he was so dang funny I would have budgeted in muzzles for the crew members.”
“I hope I get another opportunity to work with Merve and Calli Ryals as I felt we had a great balance in juggling all of the demands of a tight schedule and still walked away feeling like we achieved our creative goals,” said Kelly. “Merve knows when to leave the actors alone when things are creatively on par and when the step in when we go off the rails and need her guidance. She is an absolute pleasure to work with.”
Tekin desribes the entire process of making this film as fantastic.
“We gathered great spirits together for this project. We stayed in a RV park in the middle of the desert with 17 people. We were shooting during the day and having barbecue parties at night. Locals joined us, we ate together, we drank together,” she described. “Keeping motivation up is one of the biggest duties of the director. People felt like they belonged to the project. What we laughed about during filming was what made people laugh in the screening.”
Tekin was very successful in her goal of keeping motivation up and ensuring a positive work environment on set.
“She is so passionate about film making, always learning, watching, using references, observing people in real life,”said Ryals, still describing working with Tekin. “She is the ‘reel’ deal, pun intended.”
International Entertainment, and the Talents that Leave us Buzzing….
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