We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Jeminta Wangkietkajon a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Jeminta, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.
Unlike many other filmmakers who have found their passion at such a young age. I found my passion for film and filmmaking quite later in my teenage years, during my last 2 years of highschool after focusing on STEM subjects my whole life. My journey in film started when I was 16 now I am 19 turning 20, choosing to be in an art school and seeing insanely talented people have definitely created doubts which I have to overcome. Working with these people has reminded me of how far I still have in front of me. To overcome imposter syndrome for me is to keep reminding myself that the world is so big and I surely know it in my heart I have found where I belong, therefore I will not let anything take that fact away from me.
I think one thing to remember is that filmmaker has the same root, but one thing we have in common is stories that need to be told. Filmmaking is a craft, like sculptures or painting which everyone needs polishing, and that action does take time and the growth will advance even faster if I am surrounded by my peers who are kind, knowledgable, insightful and understanding.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
My name is Minnie and I am a filmmaker from a small town called Hatyai, Thailand. I am now attending Savannah College of art and Design, majoring in Film and Television. I focus mostly on producing and directing.
Being an artist used to be an unreachable dream. I used to think artists must be special and only handful of people can become artists. This way of thinking had shifted my focus as a young girl to more of an academic path in my study, especially in an asian family that artist is never really ‘real’. In 2021 I made one of the biggest decisions in my life to study abroad in the UK. That came with an eye-opening experience, I saw so many possibilities and how my life was not confined to only becoming a doctor or an engineer.
Art school was a myth to my parents but I am very fortunate and thankful to have such supportive family. Although, my parents weren’t quite sure at the time about my choice in career path but they still supported whatever choices I made anyway. 2 years being in SCAD, I have met amazing, incredible, talented, kind people all around. Deep and meaningful connections with such special people are formed that I can say I am where I belong.
The starting of my sophomore year, my dear friend Madelyn asked me if I would like to compete in the 2025 Coca-Cola Refreshing Films Program together. While Madelyn is a sound designer, she has an interest in film and would like some help bringing her ideas out onto the pages as well as for me to be a producer. I said yes, and everything after that was a journey I didn’t expect to happen.
Our script was selected as one of the finalists out of more than 700 scripts nation wide. We were given USD 20,000 to make our script titled ‘Jump!’ to life. Working with a massive brand like Coca-Cola and their partner theaters AMC, BnB and Cinemark to make a commercial spot. It was beyond what I could even think of to get this huge opportunity as a filmmaker this early in her career. Each and every step we took had challenges in it. Over 100 cast and crew in the production we had to take care of, it was very new to both of us, and I am very proud to say we have gone through it together. This project has shown me endless possibilities of how I can move forward in my career. We had a chance to go to 2025 CinemaCon in Las Vegas to present our spot and talk about our journey, and from that it has inspired me to strive to be a better artist.
This summer I have a couple of projects planned, I just finished shooting a shortfilm with my friends which it is now in post-production and I would love to make another stop-motion picture within this summer. In the fall I am going to start my Junior year and I am beyond excited to see what comes next with my filmmaking journey. There are definitely so many areas I would love to explore like Directing, Acting and Writing. More than that I would like to also develop my artistic vision, telling my own stories and finding my voice. But most importantly I am excited to connect with more people who I will get to work with in the future.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
From what I learned through different challenges or projects. Especially to lead one, firstly I need to be a good listener. For me, there are many aspects of film that I am not familiar with, which I totally need help from other people in order to carry out a great quality finished product. As a producer who is new to the job I need to listen to what the crew want, allowing time and clearance in communication has helped me through the toughest part of any project along with my crew. Not only in film, being a great listener can be applied anywhere in life, everybody needs somebody to listen to their stories and take them seriously.
Another quality which I think is important as a creative is empathy. Because I am an international student, I have met and worked with many people from different cultures. Us as filmmakers are striving to shine spotlights and raise each other up for the underepresented. This affects how I represent my beliefs through works and important messages needed to be sent out through the medium of film.
Lastly, self-forgiveness. There has been times I have made mistakes which were very hard for me to not blame myself. I realize that the higher I am on the pyramid the more impact my decisions have on other people. Transitioning from working with close friends to a more professional setting like working with an agency for the first time to deliver a commercial for a massive corporate like Coca-Cola was challenging. When mistakes happen, spending too much time thinking about what could have been right can add even more mental load and doesn’t allow me to move forward with efficiency.
I am very excited for what to come. From past projects, what I have learned were boiled down into these things. I am sure that there are more in the future because my journey has just begun.
Before we go, maybe you can tell us a bit about your parents and what you feel was the most impactful thing they did for you?
I would never be able to come this far without my parents and my family. Like many other parents, they want the best for their children and one thing they did that I always appreciate is the fact that they actually allow me to be who I want to be and pursue my dream, even though they didn’t truely understand what I was going for at the time that I was making such crucial decision in life. For them to have enough trust in me to send me out to another country in another continent to study. In times that I lose confident, when my imposter syndrome creeps up, they are always there to remind me of my journey and how far I have come and how capable I am of achieving things I work for in life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://jemintaw.wixsite.com/jeminta
- Instagram: jemintta
- Linkedin: Jeminta Wangkietkajon
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jeminta4533
Image Credits
Jack Snelson
so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.
