We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Hrisheek Panchmatia. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Hrisheek below.
Hi Hrisheek, thanks for sitting with us today to chat about topics that are relevant to so many. One of those topics is communication skills, because we live in an age where our ability to communicate effectively can be like a superpower. Can you share how you developed your ability to communicate well?
I think communication is something that I got better with over time and experience. I believe that it is a skill that takes a lifetime to perfect and one that can always be improved on. But in general the more you do it, the easier it becomes, the more your confidence grows and before long you will see the direct results of it. Additionally, in my career I have been very fortunate to have worked with a lot great people and this has helped me develop these skills significantly.I learnt a lot just by watching them; how they interact with people, handle different situations and carry themselves. I would highly recommend to students or anyone just starting out to apply for an internship at a production company because not only would it give them relevant work experience but it would also help them develop their interpersonal skills at a professional level.
I truly believe that with communication it is all about practice, last year I was a speaker at the Santo Domingo Global Film Festival in the Dominican Republic discussing filmmaking and my experiences as a Producer in the industry. If you told me 5 years ago that I would be able to do that, I never would have believed you. The simple reason being I did not think I would have the confidence or be an effective enough speaker to do so. But what I have learnt is that by putting yourself out there both socially and professionally, your communicate skills can improve exponentially over time.
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 am a Film/Television Producer. I have had a leading role on a handful of independent feature films namely ‘The Runner’, ‘Get Lost’ and ‘Evergreens’. I have also had the opportunity to be a part of studio pictures such as ‘House of Gucci’ and ‘Napoleon’.
A special moment that I’d like to share came after the premiere of ‘The Runner’. For context ‘The Runner’ is an independent thriller about a recovering drug addict who goes undercover to capture a Kingpin. It won several awards such as Best Feature film at London Independent Film Festival and Best Thriller Film at Paris Film Festival. Shortly after the film premiered, we were able to host a private screening for the former President of the Dominican Republic and hold seminars at addiction clinics to promote recovery and highlight the dangers of drugs. This was incredible as it gave us the first hand opportunity to witness the impact of the film and see how much it could mean to people. It was also inspiring to see how many people related to the main character and see that the movie gave them hope. It was truly one of the moments that I am most grateful for. I think just being able to have these experiences and work on projects that can resonate with so many people from across the world makes this job so unique and rewarding.
Recently, I produced a commercial for Birdfy that I am excited for people to see. The team was so amazing and it was such a fun experience. The commercial was Christmas themed and what was especially wonderful was that by the end of the shoot you could really see everyone getting into the holiday spirit and letting loose. In terms of upcoming projects, I am not allowed to go into too much detail about any of them but if all goes according to schedule then early next year I will be working on a feature film that shoots in New York and Spain as well as shooting a commercial in Europe.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Networking is for sure one of them! The entertainment industry is one where it is not just about what you know but who you know. A lot of production jobs are very much filled on a referral basis. I would recommend starting this off as early as possible as it leads to more opportunities. I don’t think you can ever start too early with it. Don’t be afraid of cold calling, emailing or approaching people at industry events. Always be respectable but definitely have the courage to go up to them and introduce yourself. Everyone was starting off at one point and they remember how daunting that can be so it’s all about putting one foot ahead of the other and just going for it. It is also something that you get better at the more you do it. So I would highly recommend just going for it!
Putting in the work both in terms of technical knowledge and experience helps a lot as well. The industry is ultra competitive and whilst networking does open doors, you want to make sure that you are qualified enough so that once you get an opportunity you can truly make the most of it. Also, the entertainment world is a lot smaller than it looks like from the outside and people talk. So if you do a good job on one project, it is quite likely that your supervisor or manager will recommend you to another colleague for a different project. For technical knowledge if you don’t want to do a full program, there is a lot of great free material online. For experience, this can be more challenging to get but a lot of production companies are open to taking interns so I would encourage anyone starting out to just shoot your shot and cold them email because the worst thing they can do is say no which in the grand scheme of things isn’t bad at all.
The third thing I would say I would say is to just be honest and kind. Treat people how you would want to be treated. There are so many disingenuous people in this industry and it always comes out. Reputation is everything in this business. I mentioned earlier that the world of entertainment is a lot smaller than people think so if there is a negative perception of you it will definitely spread. At the end of the day, a movie set can be a stressful environment with long work hours so the last thing anyone wants is to have someone on the team that is going to either tear morale down or cause problems by not being upfront about a situation. Don’t be afraid to ask for help if you are assigned a task that you aren’t sure how to do. It’s much better to do this and have the task be done correctly rather than doing it incorrectly or ignoring the problem and have it become a bigger one. Filmmaking is a collaborative endeavor and so people are always willing to help. Trust me, it can be scary but everyone remembers what it was like starting off and for the most they will be more than happy to help you.
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
Yes absolutely! My producing partner and I are currently looking for new scripts, so if there are any writers or writer/directors that want to get in touch please feel free to send me an email at [email protected] . In general, I am pretty open to meeting new creatives so if there is anyone that wants to connect, feel free to send me an email and then we can set up a coffee or something from there. A fun story on this topic is that recently I produced a vertical series “Love? No Thanks, I’m CEO” (currently in post production – slated for release early next year) and I actually me the two creatives I did this project with through one of these coffee meetings.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm10540077/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_0_nm_1_in_0_q_hrisheek%2520panch
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hrisheek.panchmatia/
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