Meet Quoc Huy Tran
Quoc Huy Tran is a Vietnamese-born filmmaker and now based in Sydney. He is studying at the University of Technology Sydney, majoring in Media Arts and Production. He is passionate about telling human stories in creative and exciting ways.
Career Journey & Inspiration
What was the defining moment that made you realize you wanted to pursue filmmaking (or your role in the industry)?
For me, there aren’t any defining moments, but I do want to pursue filmmaking because my mother loved films, and I loved watching movies with her. I want to inspire that joy in a lot of people.
Who or what has had the greatest influence on your creative journey?
Not a filmmaker, but I think Haruki Murakami has the most influence on my creative journey. I am always fascinated by how he is able to surprise me in his stories and how he combines the real and surreal. He can make the most mundane things feel the most significant and it is something I want to emulate in my works.
What was your first project, and what did you learn from it?
This was my first short film that I have released, and I learned a lot from it. I only had editing jobs before, doing advertisements for NGOs and short films. I have made some short films before this, but I didn’t show them to anyone. Since I worked alone, I had to learn how to be resourceful. I had to know what I wanted and how to achieve it within my non-existent budget and borrowed gear from my uni. More importantly, I have to learn how to shape a story in editing, I have to be really picky to choose which moment to use when to get the emotional impact I wanted.
Looking back, what was the biggest challenge you faced breaking into the industry?
I’m not in the industry yet; I’m a film student, but I guess the difficulty I faced the most in my filmmaking journey so far is just to have faith in myself. I’m not a confident person, so it can be hard for me to even finish a film. I would always think that I’m not good enough, that if I show this to someone other than my family, they will hate it. So, I have scrapped a lot of ideas in my head because of that. Completing this short documentary has made me feel more confident in myself and to be able to continue this journey further.
Which project are you most proud of, and why?
This one, because it’s the only one I have released, and it’s a personal story. The reception has exceeded my expectations. I know it’s a very flawed movie and I still have much to learn, but at the same time, I poured my heart and soul into this project and learning that it has touched some people made me think that filmmaking is still worth pursuing after all.
Creative Process & Behind the Scenes
Can you walk us through your process when starting a new project?
I always start with an image that resonates with me in my head. I would then start developing that image into ideas or characters; basically anything I had in mind. These ideas and characters would then help me write the script or outline in the case of non-fiction. To find actors or collaborators, I would just ask friends or family members to help me with the film and just start filming.
How do you approach developing a story or visual style?
To develop the story, I always try to make my character want something really bad but is forced to do something that goes against their interest. I think it’s always interesting to see characters who are contradictory and just figure out how they get out of the mess they made.
What’s something about the filmmaking process most people would be surprised to learn?
It’s how accessible it is now. When people think about filmmaking, they think of a large crew in a studio, when in reality, I think anyone can make a short film at home. Even with just a smartphone, some friends or even alone, and basic editing software like iMovie, you can technically make a film. That’s how I started making films. Those films are, however, trash, and I haven’t shown them to anyone, but they did make me understand filmmaking better. Even then, I think it is possible to make great films with just an iPhone, even without mounting a cinema lens on it, like 28 Years Later or those Apple commercials. There are even film festivals that cater to smartphone films. For example, Tangerine (2015) by Sean Baker is a great film shot on an iPhone. So, there aren’t really any reasons not to just do it. All it takes to make a good film is persistence, I guess. You just have to do it over and over again until you make something good.
Can you share a behind-the-scenes moment that changed the way you view filmmaking?
When I was editing a short film in high school for a friend, the project was literally stopped in its tracks because of bad audio. That friend hired a cinematographer to help with the film because she was taking it to a competition, but she didn’t think to hire a sound recordist or rent any lapel mics or even booms. Hence, most of the time, there was only droning noise. Because she shot it quite close to the submission date, there was barely any time for ADR, and the ADR wasn’t very good (performance-wise), so I couldn’t even use them. We did manage to submit it in time, but she was so embarrassed with the final project that she buried it. The obvious conclusion I got was that sound is actually more important than visuals. But the thing that sticks with me is that prep determines the quality of a film, and the good part is that it is when you spend the least amount of your money on a project. You had to account for everything in pre-production, or your film will sink. Since then, pre-production is where I spend most of my time, and it has changed how I approach filmmaking. Also, I always rent a lapel whenever possible now.
How do you handle creative differences with collaborators?
With actors, I just really talk with them to see what their interpretation of the script is, and we work together to see where we can take the characters. In the editing room, when I’m working for directors or clients, I’m usually very open to new ideas. Whatever notes I have, I would try them out for myself and show them to the client. We would then have a discussion about whether to keep them or not and continue with the project.
Pushing Boundaries
How do you challenge yourself to tell stories in ways that haven’t been done before?
I just take things from my own personal life and incorporate them into my movie. For me, it makes the films feel more unique, and it offers a unique angle on stories that have been done before. I do believe that every story has been told before, so the best we can do is just to put a little bit of ourselves into our own stories.
What risks have you taken creatively that paid off?
I feel like every film I make is a creative risk. The one that I think paid off is that I used no talking head interviews in this documentary. I only use archival footage and fly-on-the-wall segments. This is a decision to make the film feel more personal and intimate, because I felt that having a talking head interview always induces a detached feeling when I’m watching a documentary. Surprisingly, it worked really well, and it made the film stand out.
Have you ever taken a risk that didn’t work out, and what did you learn from it?
Only my professor watched this film because it was really bad, but in a stop-motion short that I made in film school, I thought I could do stop-motion animation all by myself. I knew it was difficult and time-consuming, but I really love stop-motion films and want to do it by myself. The thing was that I really didn’t know how to do it, and I didn’t spend enough time researching how to do it, so the result was not desirable. That project taught me to just do things within my own limitations and to spend more time on pre-production in future projects. Yet, I still do experiments in every project I make; it just doesn’t involve an entirely different skill that I have never learned before.
How do you balance personal storytelling with universal themes that connect to wideraudiences?
For me, personal storytelling is already rooted in universal themes. Because it’s my own lived experience, people can resonate with aspects of it that are personal to their own. It’s empathy.
In what ways do you see film as a tool for cultural or social change?
I do think films can become a tool for cultural and social change because, as a medium, films are a very emotional art form. So, it can raise a lot of empathy for a cultural and social topic, grounding issues into something personal. That’s just the power of cinema, in my opinion.
Funding & Sustainability
What has been your experience with raising funds for projects?
I just borrow stuff from my university and ask friends and family to help – that is all my experience with funding. I’m still practicing filmmaking and finding my voice, so I don’t want to pour so many resources into my little short films. However, I’m currently planning to do a larger support as a part of my university course.
How do financial constraints influence your creativity?
I never feel that the financial constraints makes me more creative. I have to find ways around things I can’t film and I always like that kind of problem-solving.
What strategies have helped you sustain a career in such a competitive industry?
I’m in film school, so I guess I’m still finding a way to break into the industry. For right now, I’m still trying to network and meet new people to get to know what the industry is like.
What advice would you give to filmmakers who are struggling to secure funding?
I would recommend trying to make a film within your limitations and budget. If you can’t get the funding, just limit the film’s scope and write around it. I don’t really know about this because I have never really tried to seek funding. I’m still trying to build a reputation first so it would be easier to get financing. Just trying to make small movies and submitting to festivals. It may be easier to convince government funding bodies or independent funds.
Do you think access to funding is getting easier or harder for emerging filmmakers today?
I think there are more ways to get funding, like crowdfunding sites like GoFundMe, and that can make it easier to get funds. However, there are more and more projects being made, so it can be competitive. In Australia, we have funds from the government, but those are difficult to get. Some film festivals also have independent funds that support emerging filmmakers, but I find that those are easier to get if you have been selected for their festival. There are a lot of options, but it can be competitive if you want a sizable amount.
Indie vs. Mainstream
Have you ever felt pressure to shift toward mainstream filmmaking practices, and how did you respond?
This may be irrelevant, but when I do jobs for clients, like for NGOs or for social media content, I sometimes have to conform to their standards and make content to optimise for engagement and algorithm on Instagram or TikTok. For example, some clients want me to add more cuts or fancy graphics because they are afraid their audience would be bored. However, I always see these as separate from my interest as a filmmaker; they’re more of a job to me.
How has streaming changed the opportunities available to indie filmmakers?
I don’t have a ton of knowledge on this. I do know that streaming has offered more opportunities to indie filmmakers. A lot of indie filmmakers upload to Tubi, Amazon Prime, or even YouTube. I believe it’s like direct-to-video in the 2000s, but it’s more accessible, for better or worse. With streaming, there is an abundance of content. This means that only less than 1% of what is on streaming is even talked about or even remembered, which makes things even more competitive.
Do you think the line between indie and mainstream is blurring, and what does that mean for storytellers?
In my opinion, the line between indie and mainstream has always been blurred. Cinephiles have always been arguing over what can truly be constituted as indie. Does it mean that it was not made with a big studio or with shareholders’ interests, or does it mean that it was made with a small budget, or does it mean it has to be a small film with a limited release? For me, it doesn’t really matter. It may matter more for me when I get into the industry.
Where do you see your own work fitting within the indie vs. mainstream conversation?
My work is not big enough to fit in this conversation, as I’m only a film student. If it did, I guess it would certainly be an indie documentary that was made with no budget and was made entirely solo. Some people do find films like this interesting in the conversation.
More information can be found at: Quoc Huy Tran – IMDb
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