Life & Work with Saranya of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Saranya.

Hi Saranya, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My love for cinema was born from the countless animated films and shows I grew up watching during my childhood in the city of Kolkata in eastern India. As an only child often left to my own devices, the characters from these stories were some of my best friends during those years. However, my desire to work in the visual arts was something I may not have realised had it not been for my undergraduate studies at Delhi University’s Lady Shri Ram College. In an effort to beat my social anxiety, I auditioned for the Dramatics Society and miraculously got in. By exploring acting, writing and directing for stage and street theatre, I discovered the power of visual storytelling and the hard-won joys of creative collaboration.

Getting accepted to pursue an MA in Visual Anthropology at the University of Manchester, being able to assist on feature film projects in India, and getting into film school at USC afterwards were all dreams that my childhood self would never have believed could come true. And despite all the curveballs since then – the Covid-19 pandemic, having to relocate to India, take a break to prevent burnout and move back here again – I feel immensely grateful for where I am today: being able to wear multiple hats and work on compelling film projects in this rapidly changing era of filmmaking.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Having the privilege to study abroad and pursue a career in a non-traditional field, it’s safe to say that I have been luckier than most. However, I don’t think anyone ever has a completely pain-free journey.

Living in the United States was a major cultural shift for me and attending film school in Los Angeles, despite winning scholarships, was a heavy cost to bear. Being naturally introverted, networking did not come easily to me. I often compared myself to more financially stable peers and friends, which affected my self-confidence. And even though I finished a semester early, because of the Covid-19 pandemic, I had to make the decision to move back to India and reconfigure all my plans.

However, in retrospect, I feel that these unexpected setbacks allowed me to open other doors. By not directing a thesis at film school, I was able to specialise in film sound and mixing while learning from pioneers in the field. Afterwards, the time away from LA allowed me to heal from the negative self-image I had forced on my mind and pursue other passions which have made me stronger as a creator and person.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I have never been able to limit myself to one area of specialisation, since so many aspects of filmmaking excite me. Since graduating film school, I have worked as a producer as well as a sound designer and re-recording mixer. Currently, I also work as Sound Coordinator for USC’s Expanded Animation (Research+Practice) department.

What drives me the most in filmmaking is the opportunity to represent characters and communities that fall outside accepted stereotypes: to explore how I can use sound and images to represent emotions that people cannot say in words. I am always thinking about how to blur the lines between fiction and documentary, to find a space of truthful magic.

While I have worked on multiple films since, I am still very proud of my MA dissertation film, “Niishii” from 2017: a 22 minute ethnographic short about nightlife in a small Indian town. I made the film while studying at the Granada Centre for Visual Anthropology in Manchester, at a time when I was a lot less knowledgeable about the technical aspects of filmmaking and had no crew to work with. The project reminds me to trust the process, learn through doing, and always believe in myself.

Right now, I am most excited to be in pre-production for my first independent narrative short film which I will be writing, producing and directing alongside an amazing team. In the future, I also want to produce animated films and help shape the medium that informed so much of my childhood.

What sets me apart is my ability to use an interdisciplinary lens in every project, tying together my academic training in visual anthropology with a strong technical skill set in film production and post-production. This also allows me to perform multiple roles on every team and problem solve with a level of composure that has been built up by getting back up from many failures and chaotic projects. I am usually the calmest person to handle a crisis.

What do you like and dislike about the city?
To be honest, my introduction to LA was rough. For most of my time in graduate school, I struggled to adapt to the urban sprawl, the lack of adequate public transport and the very high cost of living. However, spending some time away after graduation allowed me to reframe my relationship with this endlessly unpredictable city. I learned to be grateful for the blue skies, the small kindnesses of strangers and the sheer diversity of people here who have given up so much to keep following their dreams. Lately I have realised that I love taking the bus in LA and exploring new places without the hassle of having to find parking. I love walking into downtown coffee shops and ordering my usual. I love discovering new graffiti on the walls of buildings as I pass by. There is a lot to LA outside of the stereotypes it is known for, and I love it for the way it has grown on me.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.saranyanayak.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/saranyanayak/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saranya-nayak/

Image Credits
Chaewon Suh
Sheila Sofian
Amy Reynolds Reed
Nic Caceres
Erika Dunn