Johnny Tran has the mix just right – creative inspiration, hard work and training, combined with savvy networking skills have secured him awards, funding and a reputation for wonderful films
Bankstown filmmaker Johnny Tran has always been fascinated by family relationships. The 28-year-old’s own family inspired My Brother, My Sanctuary, which won him the inaugural Bright Spark Award at Tropfest 2007.
Now he’s working on The Pizza, a 15-minute drama about a Middle-Eastern family written by Michael Mohammed Ahmed. The film, which has received funding under the NSW Film and Television Office’s prestigious Young Filmmaker’s Fund (YFF), highlights the foibles of families that cut across cultures.
‘When I read the script for The Pizza I imagined it to be Middle-Eastern, but it was very much what happens in Vietnamese families too,’ he says. ‘That's why the FTO were really intrigued, there’s a sense of ‘this happens in my family too’, you know, Chinese whispers and gossiping, personal interest, half histories, conflicts that are unresolved.’
FTO Chief Executive Tania Chambers says one of Johnny’s talents is his ability to develop these subtle ideas into a clear filmic vision. ‘Successful YFF projects are selected for their originality, quality, for being well developed and having a strong voice,’ she says. ‘Johnny is definitely an exciting emerging filmmaker. His various short films indicate a filmmaker of great promise.’
Stepping Stones
Even with great promise, it’s not easy to make a name in film. Johnny has worked hard – he has a degree in Commercial Music Production and Management under his belt, as well as a Masters Degree in Media Arts and Production.
And he takes advantage of services and networking opportunities to help him along the way. He hooked up with Bankstown Youth Development Service Arts Officer Tim Carroll, who mentored and supported him through his three short film projects - Reminiscent Cliff, Cupcake and My Brother, My Sanctuary.
He also worked with Information Culture Exchange, the Granville-based community arts and technology organisation. ‘ICE supported me in different ways,’ he says. ‘They supported me to get my name out there and helped me meet up with contacts in the same industry through launches and events, meeting producers and other filmmakers. As a struggling filmmaker, that's always a helpful thing, having someone to believe in your vision.’
TropWest
One of these events was TropWest, a partnership event between ICE, the FTO and Tropfest. This free event offered potential Tropfesters from Western Sydney a full rundown of the entry process, including selection criteria, filmmaker activities and the chance to network with Tropfest organisers and fellow filmmakers.
More than 100 content creators attended the event, and many went on to enter Tropfest and Tropfest Junior, for filmmakers under 15, with Johnny’s film winning the Bright Spark Award.
‘The event was about broadening both our filmmaker and audience base,’ said Tropfest Project Director Morgwn Rimel. She says Tropfest sat down with ICE to brainstorm ways of reaching out to Western Sydney’s creative community. ‘It was felt that not many people understood what Tropfest was about or that it was truly open to anyone who wanted to enter a film, so we felt that hosting an information session would be a logical first step.’
FTO chief Tania Chambers says the FTO is actively searching for fantastic filmmakers in the community. ‘The FTO believes that there are compelling stories in different pockets of our state and we want to find those compelling stories and encourage people to tell them,’ she says. ‘If we want our screen industry to tells stories that genuinely reflect our community, we need to make sure the broadest range of access and encouragement is there. So, the inspiration behind TropWest is to encourage participation by emerging screen practitioners in Sydney’s West.’
ICE Director Lena Nahlous emphasises the importance for filmmakers to use career-making events like Tropfest to learn, network and promote their work. ‘We want to provide a launching pad for filmmakers to give them the information and inspiration to take their work to the next level,’ she said.
TropWest 2008
Following on from last year’s success, TropWest will be on again on 18 October 2008 at Parramatta’s Riverside Theatres. This year, a TropWest scholarship valued at $5000 will be awarded to a Western Sydney filmmaker or team to support their entry to Tropfest 2009.
The scholarship includes access to facilities at ICE’s Switch Multimedia and Digital Arts Access Centre, a small production budget, as well as access to an experienced filmmaker to act as mentor – an exceptional way to get a Western Sydney film off the ground.
And according to Johnny Tran, Western Sydney filmmakers have an unstoppable drive to tell their stories. ‘No dream is greater than the dreams of those living in working class areas,’ he says. ‘If you ask a kid from Western Sydney, they often tell you they want to be the best sportsman, the best director or the best musician, they strive to be the best. I think it’s a social-political thing for those of us who grew up in areas where we don't see those outlets for success. We want to be the best. We won't settle for less.’
For info on TropWest and the 2008 TropWest Scholarship please visit ice.org.au/tropwest2008