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I live pretty typical Armenian-American life: Interview with producer
Katherine Sarafian
http://style.news.am/eng/news/3421/i-live-pretty-typical-armenian-american-life-interview-with-producer-katherine-sarafian.html
MARCH 7, 20:04
By Anna Ghazaryan
This year `Brave' of Pixar Studios, produced by Katherine Sarafian,
won Oscar for the Best Animated Feature Film. In an interview with
NEWS.am STYLE Katherine Sarafian shared thoughts about her success,
secrets of animation and her Armenian family.
First of all congratulations on getting the Oscar award. You have
worked on other famous Pixar films such as Toy Story, The Incredibles,
Monsters,Inc. and others. Now it is Brave which won the prize that all
filmmakers are dreaming about. What do you think is the secret of
success? Is it about hard work or work is nothing without luck?
It's such an honor to have Brave recognized by the Academy, the
Hollywood Foreign Press Association, and so many of our industry
guilds. But even more rewarding is that Brave has been embraced by
audiences. We spent more than six years making this film, so having
audiences around the world appreciate and enjoy the film is our
greatest reward.
Of course, the film required a tremendous amount of diligence,
patience and hard work. Filmmaking is highly collaborative, and at
Pixar, we feel successful when we work together toward the common goal
of a great film. So I feel successful if the 250 artists and
technicians working on the film had great relationships and made
something exceptional that will stand the test of time. If we are
working hard and staying passionate about our work and respectful of
each other, then we succeed.
Making an animation film is a tough process. You need much time and
need to be patient. Does animation-making affect person's character?
Animation requires a particular kind of patience and discipline. It
is not for people who need to see quick results. Our work develops
and evolves over many years, so it doesn't look beautiful until the
very end. We have to truly trust the process, and trust the talents
of our colleagues--we have to hold firm to the belief that everyone on
the crew is invested in making the best film possible. That requires
a level of trust and respect for others. People who cannot trust
others or who cannot remain passionate and invested in an idea will
not enjoy the animated filmmaking process. The animation artist's
character is all about giving creativity the time and space to
blossom--so that means time and patience and tolerance.
In one of your interview you said that while working on the film, you
understood that you had much in common with your father "who was not
great at managing people.' You are a producer and managing others is
one of the elements of your job. What do you think is the most
difficult in your job? What person must do to manage people well?
My father's strength was in understanding people and empathizing with
them, and I find that animation filmmaking requires a lot of skill in
that area. My father was a priest, and he valued presence and being
trusted by the parish. As a manager, I've found that my father's
values are so much more helpful and meaningful to maintain than simple
management. So while managing is a huge part of the job, it's not
what really matters at the end of the day. It's the people and how
trusted and valued they feel, and how much they believe I have their
back and will help them with the going gets tough.
Brave tells a story of princess Merida who lives in Scottish kingdom.
You recreated Scotland and the costumes of the Middle Ages in detail.
Nowadays, producers of movies are not paying much attention to the
details. Why do you think it happens?
I think filmmakers do pay attention to details, but it varies among
films. At Pixar, we believe that research is important, so we put a
lot of thought and effort into getting the details right. We wanted to
create a believable, authentic world, something that would be
immersive for our audiences.
It's easier to take short cuts when making films, but on Brave, we
felt it was important to go deep into research, because we did not
want to create a stereotypical Scotland. We wanted a film that would
be a new classic and withstand the test of time. That meant it had to
feel ageless, and we were not going to take short cuts. Every
filmmaker is different, but the decisions made on Brave were all about
what our story required: a believable, immersive, rugged Scottish
world with rich characters and costumes. The land had to feel epic
and adventurous for our adventure story; the forests had to be dark
for the more intense moments in the story; and the landscape had to be
lush and inviting so that we would understand why Merida craved her
freedom, riding her horse through the Highlands.
Armenians were very proud to hear that you are a producer of Oscar
winning film. We would like to know have you ever thought about making
an animation film based on Armenia's history or with Armenia's
mountainous landscape.
I adore Armenia's mountainous landscape, and I saw many areas of
Scotland that made me think of Armenia. I even learned that Armenia
has standing stones, ancient relics like those depicted in Brave! I
can't comment on specific film ideas I've considered, but I can say
that I've heard wonderful ideas from fellow artists and friends about
animation and live-action films that could do great justice to our
country. I hope that these projects move forward, though they all
require financial and community support.
You once said that your father was a priest in the Armenian church.
Have you preserved any Armenian traditions in your family? Do you
celebrate Armenian holidays or cook Armenian dishes?
We live a pretty typical Armenian-American life; I, along with my
husband and children, all full-Armenian, are active in our Bay Area
Armenian community. And of course, we eat every bite of shish-kebab
and pilaf we can! We celebrate Armenian holidays and attend the local
Armenian church in which I was baptized, raised and married.
NEWS.am STYLE
Katherine Sarafian
http://style.news.am/eng/news/3421/i-live-pretty-typical-armenian-american-life-interview-with-producer-katherine-sarafian.html
MARCH 7, 20:04
By Anna Ghazaryan
This year `Brave' of Pixar Studios, produced by Katherine Sarafian,
won Oscar for the Best Animated Feature Film. In an interview with
NEWS.am STYLE Katherine Sarafian shared thoughts about her success,
secrets of animation and her Armenian family.
First of all congratulations on getting the Oscar award. You have
worked on other famous Pixar films such as Toy Story, The Incredibles,
Monsters,Inc. and others. Now it is Brave which won the prize that all
filmmakers are dreaming about. What do you think is the secret of
success? Is it about hard work or work is nothing without luck?
It's such an honor to have Brave recognized by the Academy, the
Hollywood Foreign Press Association, and so many of our industry
guilds. But even more rewarding is that Brave has been embraced by
audiences. We spent more than six years making this film, so having
audiences around the world appreciate and enjoy the film is our
greatest reward.
Of course, the film required a tremendous amount of diligence,
patience and hard work. Filmmaking is highly collaborative, and at
Pixar, we feel successful when we work together toward the common goal
of a great film. So I feel successful if the 250 artists and
technicians working on the film had great relationships and made
something exceptional that will stand the test of time. If we are
working hard and staying passionate about our work and respectful of
each other, then we succeed.
Making an animation film is a tough process. You need much time and
need to be patient. Does animation-making affect person's character?
Animation requires a particular kind of patience and discipline. It
is not for people who need to see quick results. Our work develops
and evolves over many years, so it doesn't look beautiful until the
very end. We have to truly trust the process, and trust the talents
of our colleagues--we have to hold firm to the belief that everyone on
the crew is invested in making the best film possible. That requires
a level of trust and respect for others. People who cannot trust
others or who cannot remain passionate and invested in an idea will
not enjoy the animated filmmaking process. The animation artist's
character is all about giving creativity the time and space to
blossom--so that means time and patience and tolerance.
In one of your interview you said that while working on the film, you
understood that you had much in common with your father "who was not
great at managing people.' You are a producer and managing others is
one of the elements of your job. What do you think is the most
difficult in your job? What person must do to manage people well?
My father's strength was in understanding people and empathizing with
them, and I find that animation filmmaking requires a lot of skill in
that area. My father was a priest, and he valued presence and being
trusted by the parish. As a manager, I've found that my father's
values are so much more helpful and meaningful to maintain than simple
management. So while managing is a huge part of the job, it's not
what really matters at the end of the day. It's the people and how
trusted and valued they feel, and how much they believe I have their
back and will help them with the going gets tough.
Brave tells a story of princess Merida who lives in Scottish kingdom.
You recreated Scotland and the costumes of the Middle Ages in detail.
Nowadays, producers of movies are not paying much attention to the
details. Why do you think it happens?
I think filmmakers do pay attention to details, but it varies among
films. At Pixar, we believe that research is important, so we put a
lot of thought and effort into getting the details right. We wanted to
create a believable, authentic world, something that would be
immersive for our audiences.
It's easier to take short cuts when making films, but on Brave, we
felt it was important to go deep into research, because we did not
want to create a stereotypical Scotland. We wanted a film that would
be a new classic and withstand the test of time. That meant it had to
feel ageless, and we were not going to take short cuts. Every
filmmaker is different, but the decisions made on Brave were all about
what our story required: a believable, immersive, rugged Scottish
world with rich characters and costumes. The land had to feel epic
and adventurous for our adventure story; the forests had to be dark
for the more intense moments in the story; and the landscape had to be
lush and inviting so that we would understand why Merida craved her
freedom, riding her horse through the Highlands.
Armenians were very proud to hear that you are a producer of Oscar
winning film. We would like to know have you ever thought about making
an animation film based on Armenia's history or with Armenia's
mountainous landscape.
I adore Armenia's mountainous landscape, and I saw many areas of
Scotland that made me think of Armenia. I even learned that Armenia
has standing stones, ancient relics like those depicted in Brave! I
can't comment on specific film ideas I've considered, but I can say
that I've heard wonderful ideas from fellow artists and friends about
animation and live-action films that could do great justice to our
country. I hope that these projects move forward, though they all
require financial and community support.
You once said that your father was a priest in the Armenian church.
Have you preserved any Armenian traditions in your family? Do you
celebrate Armenian holidays or cook Armenian dishes?
We live a pretty typical Armenian-American life; I, along with my
husband and children, all full-Armenian, are active in our Bay Area
Armenian community. And of course, we eat every bite of shish-kebab
and pilaf we can! We celebrate Armenian holidays and attend the local
Armenian church in which I was baptized, raised and married.
NEWS.am STYLE