Interview with Tan Chai, editor of the award winning commercial ‘BrightMinds’

Hi Tan! Huge congratulations on winning ‘Best Commercial’ and on being nominated in Best Editing for your commercial ‘BrightMinds’. Could you tell us more about your project?

This commercial video is about a TECH app – BrightMinds. BrightMinds (“the app”) is a psychology-based, highly personalized self-improvement/social hybrid app designed to provide support for the career development and learning of millennials and Gen Z individuals. In creating this commercial video, we chose different roles and scenarios from various professions to highlight how this app can help individuals from different fields in their work and learning.

Tell us a bit about your background. When did you decide you wanted to work in the film industry?

I graduated from RMIT University with a Bachelor of Communication in Media and then from DePaul University in Chicago with an MS in Cinema Production.

My original college major was about media, I learned a lot about video production, and in my third year of college, I took film studies, which included Asian, American, European film studies, while studying During the process, I learned about the production process and ideas of many classic films, and I became very interested in it, and made my first short – GROW UP. After graduating with a bachelor’s degree, I came to the United States and started filming production master’s study, and focus on film and video post-production, since then, I decided to become a film and video editor in the film and television industry.

After graduating with a master’s degree, I entered some film and television companies for film and television post-production internships, and was responsible for some film and video editing and post-production works, including commercial: “I learned from the best” art electronic music video: “Flare” etc. and in 2021 as an editor made another commercial – BrightMinds, these works have won many awards, including LAFA, Los Angeles Film Award-Best Editing, Best Editor- Best Istanbul Film Festival and Best Editing- The Gladiator Film Festival.

As an editor, I am more focused on capturing the emotional details of characters and finishing the film with a better editing rhythm. In my career, I am passionate about bringing creative projects to life.

The editor Tan Chai and the official poster of ‘BrightMinds’ – tanchai.myportfolio.com

What did you enjoy the most about working your commercial?

One of my favorite and enjoyable parts of making this BrightMinds commercial was my editing process. When I started editing this commercial, as an editor, I was thinking about how to make this film quickly appeal to TV or Internet audiences. I tried a variety of editing rhythms and logic, and finally, we chose matching editing and montages related to actions, and adopted a relatively fast rhythm, so that the entire commercial can be more continuous and attractive, thus giving the audience a refreshing feeling.

Do you have any on set stories you would like to share?

There were many memorable stories and experiences that happened during the filming of the BrightMinds advertisement. Throughout the filming process, we encountered both smooth and enjoyable work as well as many difficulties. One of the most notable challenges was during the filming of a young woman skateboarding on the beach, we needed to capture as many skateboard movements as possible, so we required a location with few people and a suitable environment, however, as we started filming, we realized that many skateboarders were coming to the area and it would soon become very crowded, this would inevitably affect our filming, through the efforts of the director and the team, we quickly planned out all the necessary skateboard movements and completed the filming before the location became too crowded. Although the final shots were slightly affected by some passersby, overall, we completed the filming successfully with the help of our team’s abilities.

Can you tell us more about the team and cast involved in the production? How was working with them?

The director of this commercial is the famous director Yang Liu, and the producer is my long-term partner, Tye Liu. They are both highly capable and award-winning film and video directors, especially Director Yang Liu, whose films have won the Remi Award at the Houston International Film Festival. While working with them, I learned a lot and gained a lot of valuable experience. Their communication skills are excellent, so I can clearly understand their requirements and ultimately complete the editing work smoothly. As for the actors, they have high standards for themselves. During the filming, they can offer their own insights and do their best to achieve almost perfect work, which I greatly appreciate.

What keeps you inspired to continue working as a filmmaker?

I think the main reason is that film editing and production is a lifelong passion of mine. This career has a great appeal to me because films and videos have a certain magic that is different from the emotions that other forms of art bring to people. Whenever I complete a work, it gives me a great sense of accomplishment, and I am also happy to use my work to bring unforgettable audiovisual experiences to people.

Do you have a dream project or someone you would like to work with one day?

I have always dreamed of making a long sci-fi or fantasy film that I love personally because sci-fi and fantasy have always been my favorite movie themes and genres. If I could edit a movie of this kind, I believe it would provide me with a great movie-making experience.

Tom Cross is my favorite editor, and I think his work on “Whiplash” is the best demonstration of an editor’s skills. Every scene in the movie is worth studying, if one day I could work as his editing assistant to produce a movie together, my editing skills would be rapidly improved.

What’s next for you? What are you working on now?

Next, I will continue to collaborate with producer and director Tye Liu and participate as the lead editor in his upcoming feature-length thriller film. Currently, I am actively preparing to dive into the production of this film, and I am very excited about it.

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