with feeling, Anoop Pandey From Junglee Pictures was a panelist for the talk show The Curriculum for the BA Film, Television and Web Series curriculum is designed by the production house.
‘My journey has not been an easy and clear journey’
Encouraging students that it is not always an easy journey, Anubhuti shared her story when she started and shared that she was not sure about joining the industry. “My journey has not been a simple, frank journey. In school and college, my interest has been in theater and the performing arts, but I used to take it up as a hobby and thought there was no more creative bone in me. Also, I come from a small town and the belief was still strong in those days that people from good families don’t join the industry, so there was always pressure on me not to follow in the footsteps of my brothers. My brother is in the film industry and by the time it came time for me to make a career, he hadn’t made it big. So, I did my MBA, joined an IT industry and pursued a management career for seven-eight years, expecting it to be my plan B in my life, but it turned out to be my plan A and I thought maybe I would achieve something. Along with my job, media as a hobby which never happened. At that point in my life when I was doing really well in my career, I thought it was time for me to think about whether to change my profession. At that time I took a short sabbatical for work which was like four-five months’ work,” she shared and added, “I started spending time with my brother because I was in Mumbai at that time and my brother has always encouraged me. Do something because he always thought I had a great writer. I did a little writing so he focused on research, writing for a film. And when I took a break, I never thought that I would do something in the film industry and make a career in it, but since then I was not sure about becoming a writer, I thought I could do some technical things. I had experience sitting in editing rooms before as a supervisor and I loved that. I bought myself a nice computer, and started begging amateur filmmakers to give me footage I could edit and teach myself some editing. I managed to do it for a bit but I realized that this job demands a lot and it is an interesting process but you have to be very patient. got a chance, met Raj Kumar Gupta At a social function when he was filming Aamir as a film he told me he had an assistant director position and asked me if I would like to join as a trainee ad. I said I would love it and that was really a film when I saw all aspects of filmmaking while shooting and felt I fit in with ease. I didn’t feel out of place. From then on my journey started.”
Anubhuti Kashyap during the session
‘I entered the industry in 2007-2008 and now I am making my own feature film’
Anubhuti Kashyap, who worked as an assistant director in Gangs of Wasseypur, is now directing Doctor Ji. He also shared with the students that he learned from everyone around him who made it and who didn’t. “I have a band of supporters and filmmakers and without whom it is difficult to exist. I ventured into the film industry in late 2007-2008 and am now making my feature film debut. It will definitely build trust and confidence. It’s a tough job to have that you’ll make it one day. It’s impossible without a band of supporters and well-wishers. People who are examples to you, people who started with you and reached somewhere, people who also got nowhere They are important sources of learning for you too. You learn from everyone’s journey,” she explained.
‘Working with Dr. ji was a wonderful learning experience’
Talking about his next film, he shared that working in the film was an amazing experience. “It involved a long wait but it really paid off. I am still part of the process but it was a great learning experience. Earlier, I had only seen directors go through this experience from afar, learning that It was a great experience and I had a lot of fun along the way,” she said.
Movies are watched in their entirety whereas on OTT every episode is watched as a movie
Anubhuti, who has experience of working on both the platforms – films and web series also spoke about the difference between working in both the mediums. She explained, “It’s quite different, the whole approach to it is very different. From scripting, you’re watching an episode like a movie. Episodes have a beginning and an end. The structure of the episodes is completely different and so on. There is also the making. An important difference is that these are watched on OTT platforms, you don’t worry much about the cinematic scenes. You do this if you have the budget for it and if you have a great timeline, But often you don’t have to worry much about it but more about getting the performance right, getting the right edits and scripts is king. In terms of structure, once you are done shooting, web series There are things about OTT that are far more important. You don’t see it at all like the pilot episode is the most important. It’s like the pressure that will come from the OTT platform and even the pilot episode. Even within, the first 10 minutes are the most important because when you engage the audience otherwise, they leave you. You don’t have that kind of pressure and dynamism in third films. Indian movies are seen as a complete package so the way of watching movies is totally different. Depending on the budget and scale you are making the film, if it is a theatrical release, there are many other aspects to it. You have box office pressure which means you have to grab the stars, you have to add spice to attract the audience whereas on the web, content is king. ,
Anoop Pandey in session
‘This is the best time for young talent to join the industry’
While Anubhuti focused on her personal journey and answered questions posed by students on the opportunities available for young talent in the industry, Anoop Pandey of Junglee Pictures encouraged the students and shared that it is important for the youth to join the industry. This is the right time to be. “This is the right time for those who want to join the industry. A lot of OTT platforms are coming up and everyone wants to consume a lot of content. And a lot of good work is being done. The main part of my work is to always look for young talent in terms of writing, directing and acting. Everyone is shining their moments right now. We want that creative energy to flow into our writers’ room, where a lot of young writers are jamming out and that’s what the target audience is seeing as well. It may sound intimidating but if you are talented you will shine. And the production house needs dedicated people and institutions like This Giving students a pre-training can help which can help more creative producers in the industry,” he said.
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