Story & Lesson Highlights with Andrew de Burgh of Hollywood

We’re looking forward to introducing you to Andrew de Burgh. Check out our conversation below.

Andrew, really appreciate you sharing your stories and insights with us. The world would have so much more understanding and empathy if we all were a bit more open about our stories and how they have helped shaped our journey and worldview. Let’s jump in with a fun one: What’s more important to you—intelligence, energy, or integrity?
Very good question as all three of those are very important attributes. I think to a certain extent intelligence is linked to integrity. I’ve found that a lot of moral people (not all but a lot) have a lot of intelligence to them because they understand deeply the importance of being ethical, moral and compassionate.

Energy is very important as I also think it’s linked to morality. Having a positive energy I believe is very important in life. Although we all have bad days, some people have positive outlooks whereas others have negative outlooks.

To answer the question, I’d probably say that integrity is the most important out of the three (although intelligence and energy come close) as integrity I would argue is the most important when it comes to being a good human being.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I’m a writer, producer and director working in Film and TV. Ever since I can remember, I’ve been obsessed with films so I’m grateful I’m able to do this professionally. Watching “Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace” in theaters at the age of 9 was instrumental in shaping my love of movies and pursuing this professionally.

I also founded the production company Sacred Ember Films in 2018. Our most recent production is the horror fantasy feature “The Demoness”, which I wrote, produced and directed. The film tells the story of a succubus who visits Earth to torment the human race. It was inspired by the “Terrifier” series as well as 80’s classics like “Hellraiser” and “A Nightmare on Elm Street”. The film stars Akihiro Kitamura (“The Human Centipede”) and Riley Nottingham (“V/H/S/Halloween”), Haruka Igarashi (“Shogun”) and Amelia Gotham (“The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild”).

It’s available to rent and buy on Amazon Prime Video!

Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What’s a moment that really shaped how you see the world?
Living in India for a year when I was 10 and seeing so much poverty really shaped my view that the world isn’t fair and that there is great suffering and injustice in the world. It really taught me the value of empathy and compassion for those less fortunate than ourselves.

What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Suffering and struggling in my career really taught me to value success and all my achievements. Every achievement, award, good review etc. felt better because my journey has been so difficult. I still don’t feel like I’m close to making it in my field which really inspires me to keep working hard.

So a lot of these questions go deep, but if you are open to it, we’ve got a few more questions that we’d love to get your take on. What’s a belief you used to hold tightly but now think was naive or wrong?
That hard work is the key to success. While hard work has it’s place (as does effort, attitude, talent etc), more and more I’ve become a big believer in the power of luck and being in the right place at the right time.

Sociological studies validate this belief too. It’s proven that what you look like, your race, what part of the world you’re born in, the socioeconomic group you’re born into etc. plays a huge role in where you end up in life.

Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. Are you doing what you were born to do—or what you were told to do?
I’m grateful to be doing what I believe I was born to do. It may sound like a simplified answer but spending my entire life as a film fan and being able to do it professionally really makes me believe I’m doing what I was born to do. I have such a passion for cinema and it’s history that I hope my journey will continue.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @andrewdeburghdirector
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-de-burgh-88972a102/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/andrewdeburghfilm
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@andrewdeburghfilmmaker

Image Credits
Felix Merback, Summer Singh, Chelsea Gilson, Yiyao Zhu, Cate O’Connor