Ramin Eshraghi-Yazdi, like many, came to the media arts through personal interest, social connections, and geography. He started making experimental films with friends who were at ACAD, then became a team leader for Quickdraw Animation for a project for youth at risk. Quickdraw being across the hall from EMMEDIA, it was only a matter of time before he was a regular there, too.
“I got involved with EMMEDIA just to get more familiar with the media arts scene in Calgary. I wanted to meet people and get more involved, and I eventually joined the board.”
Eventually, he started Nur Films, a production company, with a friend. He has been a full-time filmmaker since 2008, creating music videos, documentaries, experimental, animation, commercial and web content. In the meantime, he was also deeply involved with Calgary’s music scene, attending gigs and programming and hosting a show on CJSW.
He’d always imagined combining the two worlds.
“I thought of the idea that I had wanted to do but never had the resources. The program is a live session with local Albertan artists. It documents and promotes our local musicians.”
It was only a matter of time until he saw his opportunity: he pitched Telus’ Optik TV channel Sing Talk Play, a series now available online at www.singtalkplay.com or on demand on the Telus Optik TV network.
“It’s a really simple live session show, focussed on Alberta musicians. We release one every weeks on Telus on Demand and online. It’s gotten great response from the music community and now I have bands approaching me. There’s so much talent.”
In the meantime (there are a lot of “in the meantime”s for this guy), he has just finished 12 experimental short films of chefs in a style modeled after Andy Warhol’s screen tests for City Palate magazine’s 20th anniversary. The commission is a collaboration with Calgary musician Chris Vail. Creative synapses always snapping, that project may have life as an installation piece. On top of that, there are also plans for a number of music videos and a feature in the works. It’s business as usual for an artist, says Ramin.
“The trick to surviving is to always have 15 to 20 projects on the go. There are no space for breaks. Hustling, basically.”
