The Hot Seat - Jordan Han Andrew

1. What is the first film you can remember having an effect on you?

Well Yung Jord it would’ve been Space Jam for sure. That VHS copy was punished. But later on, maybe 14 years old, I saw Snatch by Guy Ritchie. I hadn’t really seen editing, performances, humour or soundtracks like that just yet. It checked a lot of boxes.

2. If you could work with one filmmaker, dead or alive, who would it be?

Top of mind right now I’ll say Edgar Wright and we’d do some wild UK garage jungle electronic soundtrack for some absurd kinetic storyline that takes place ON THE MOON.

3. If you could remake any film, what would it be and what would you change?

Space Jam and make it so much better by being live acti…

4. What is your biggest passion outside of being a creator?

I love playing pool and watching skateboarding reels (retired skater now so I just watch while massaging my knees with deranged jealousy).

5. What are you working on now?

I’m scoring a teen surfing series called Surf Bay which requires all sorts of fun genres. Brought onboard Ben Wayne Kyle this rad folk/indie artist and I encourage y’all to go peep his music! Doing additional score on a CBS cop show and then have a feature musical in March called Rags 2 Richmond that I’m stoked to co-compose with my homie Ethan Lawrence aka RickRubin Jr.

6. Creatively, what inspires you to continue your journey in filmmaking?

Tricky question.I suppose I’m really grateful that many film composers seem to hit their prime beyond their 50s. So I look forward to developing as an artist and to dive into whatever worlds are available to me around that time. It’s weird but I suppose that ‘in it for the long run’ journey really inspires me and takes away some of the angst. So basically I’m manifesting Space Jam 3 Max Pro 2049.

7. Who are your frequent collaborators and what do they bring to your projects?

Jordan in the mix.

I’ll spare y’all the names. However they all share traits as in they know they don’t need to give me ALL the musical answers. We always find it together.

To put it in more digestible terms, it’s like when Bugs Bunny gives his losing team the ‘secret stuff’ drink in the third act of Space Jam, and all of a sudden their powers increase and they win. Only to realize it was just water but metaphorically it represented belief and confidence. All these folks I haven’t named are my version of the ‘secret stuff’ wow goosebumps cheers

8. What is the most rewarding part about being a BC creator? What is the most challenging?

Dare I say it, but nowhere else globally has festivals like RNG, Crazy8s, MAMM/VAFF etc, all of which give so much opportunity to up and comer filmmakers to find their cohorts and begin rising the ranks together. Of course there are bigger markets with richer film-making history but I’ve heard firsthand that the barrier to entry is higher and so our young artists struggle breaking in. I believe BC is exclusive in how it’s such a great launching pad for young folks to dive in and get actual momentum. On the flip side, I believe a heavily dependent tax credit system for filmmaking could have its negatives in many forms. I think these structures are a bit dated and pigeon holed to an MOW type of pipeline. Let me just end this with saying BUDGET FOR MORE TIME FOR YOUR MOVIE TO GET MIXED. Shout out to our Re-recording Mixers.

9. As a filmmaker, how do you measure success?

So as a board of director of the Vancouver Post Alliance, we’re constantly advocating for our film community’s success. In our EDI committee, we’re very interested in work life balance right now. I’m often more curious about the artists I look up to, and all the things that revolve around their actual work. How do they manage their lives and mental health? How do they cope with pressure and balance a thriving career along with lifestyle? I think these answers actually dictate success more than trophies and numbers.

So maybe to be successful is finding that soulful balance for yourself, while also being able to afford the other zests of life that you seek. To be well adjusted with healthy relationships in your life and forgetting this notion that you need to suffer for your art. Or really bleed for it in order to be “good”. That shit leans into pretentious territory and I often worry it’s the wrong model for artists to practice. Sweat for your art and have integrity. But keep in mind the tradeoffs here and how it impacts your life beyond your art.

Go watch Elizabeth Gilbert’s Ted Talk called “Your Elusive Creative Genius”. It sums up how I feel about creative success.

10. Tell us about a time you failed and how it helped you.

Jordan in his element.

This question reminds me of a quote I like : the master has failed more than the beginner has tried.

I mean there’s mini failures in every project. In my starting years, I wrote a spicy email or two based on the wrong perspective. I am a workaholic and like anyone, I have felt work stress on projects, however not because of the project or the people involved, but simply because I’m hitting my capacity.

In the past I have wrongfully pointed to a project/collaborator as the source of my angst, grief or work stress, when it’s actually my workload and a calendar being too stacked. If I’m going through something tedious, I ask myself would I feel the same way if I had nothing else going on? That usually helps me define it as an actual problem or not, or at least offers it in a different light.

So some failures in the past would be my normal work stress was pointed at the wrong targets. It’s caused me to reflect more and aim better for a healthy career workload.