Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Brandon Lien. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Brandon, looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?
I realized that I stand on the shoulders of those who have come before me, and that’s where I get my work ethic from. My paternal great-grandfather left Teochew, China with very little to immigrate to Vietnam for a better life; he succeeded at that and owned a productive rice farm. Within one generation, my paternal family uprooted themselves and made their way from Vietnam to the United States for that same reason. My maternal grandfather is an artist himself to this day. For as long as I could remember, he was entrenched in a project around the house, but he also played guitar and wrote poetry.
All of my artistic influences have extremely strong work ethic too. Their fervor, creativity, and resilience don’t arise from inaction, and I strive to be like that.
Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
I have a lot of interests, so my art takes its form in different mediums; the common thread running through it all is connecting to others. I’ve been working as a video editor at California State University Northridge’s Tom & Ethel Bradley Center since I was a student there. I cut mini-documentary clips from our collections on Black Power and the Farm Worker Movement.
Since graduating, I’ve turned my focus professionally to post-production sound in film. Sound can recontextualize and reinforce what you see as well as affect how you feel subconsciously, so there’s a totally different way of approaching the storytelling. I currently do my post-sound work at a studio, Enhanced Media, as well as freelance. I just wrapped a short film called The Stranger, The Lover, The Setting Sun that I’m really proud of. It’s an exploration of how one deals with the end of relationships—of any kind. I’d say 95% of the sound you hear in that film is stuff that we recorded or designed for the film, which makes it extra personal. We’re currently submitting to festivals, so I’m hoping I get to see and hear it on the big screen in surround sound.
I’m also currently working on an album called Love Cycles, just for myself, even though I have friends featured on the album. It’s an eclectic mix of influences, but it’s the most honest expression of myself musically at this point in my life. The album revolves around the cycles of falling in and out of love—with film, music, my friends, myself, and such. I think it’s neat! I’m hoping to get it out by the end of year.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
In this new burgeoning phase of my life/career, I can really only look back on my recent experiences. I am not far off for those early on their journey myself, but here’s what helped me.
I think that with art, but especially filmmaking, it is really beneficial to have mentorship to pull back the proverbial curtain and reveal the Wizard behind it. To really see how the magic in “movie magic” is done definitely makes things more tangible. It’s easier said than done, but it could come in the form of an internship, an individual mentor, or peers that are more experienced.
The second thing is adaptability, whatever that may mean to you individually. Aside from sometimes being out of my comfort zone, it has never hurt me to try to fit what was needed in any creative situation. Oftentimes new perspectives and cool ideas come up from this too.
The third facet is something that I realized recently: listening. Yeah, real wise coming from a sound guy, but I primarily mean listening to people. Trying to understand their perspective, giving them the space to be vulnerable and connect with you, showing interest in the mix of experiences that make them who they are. It’s especially important in a creative space because you have all of those factors too, and they all often come into play in the process of making something.
We’ve all got limited resources, time, energy, focus etc – so if you had to choose between going all in on your strengths or working on areas where you aren’t as strong, what would you choose?
I definitely think being well-rounded eased the pressure of having to specialize immediately after college. Especially because with my experience then, I felt that I couldn’t have gone all in on one thing with good faith that it would be the best I can offer. It’s hard to know if you can give it your all without knowing what options there are first.
Interning at Enhanced Media and Formosa Group out of college helped steer me in the direction that I want to go in professionally. I still use the other skills that I developed before, like video editing or videography, and really, every element can teach you something about the other parts. By knowing how to frame a shot in a way to get the best sound, the overall art and story will be better for it.
I realize now how important it is to me as an artist to incorporate my entire lived experience by my approach to answering these questions. It’s a holistic and evolving approach.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brandonlien_/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandonlien/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@brandonlien
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1bKOxjDJ3nztp60S3W0mqM
Image Credits
Brandon Tran, Rachel Little, Alejandro Flores
