Tropicana Jul-Aug 2020 #131 The Beauty Issue

Putting the finishing touches on details that make all the difference
Filmmaking is an intricate craft. What
we see for two hours on the screen is
usually the product of months or even
years of ingenuity, hard work and raw
talent by multiple crew members - not
just of the director and cast but also the
unsung heroes who work behind the scene.
Leslie Ewe is one of those heroes. With hardly any
formal education in filmmaking, it is nothing short of
amazing how he managed to prove his calibre in the
art of visual storytelling to get to where he is today. In
his 19 years in the film and television industry, Leslie
has built an impressive resume, having worked on
prominent productions including Crazy Rich Asians,
Westworld, Netflix’s Marco Polo and The Ghost Bride, The
Amazing Race, and Asia’s Next Top Model.
Young and Determined
According to Leslie, being in a typical Asian household
meant that you were expected to pursue a more
substantial choice in tertiary education. “I wanted to
get into an art school but art schools were expensive
and there weren’t many options,” he shared. “So, we
found a small college in my neighbourhood that offered
an Advertising Communications course.” This was the
closest he could get to study art.
Upon finishing the course, he started an internship
at a local production house and was then assigned as
a production assistant. The position allowed him gain
experience on projects while also lending a helping
hand to other departments such as the casting, location,
technical and production departments.
However, of course it was the art department –
responsible for creating the overall look of a production,
from props to whole set build-ups – that he always had
his eye on. “I had been observing the art department
and always thought of this particular department as
very fascinating, with a fun job scope. They create and
make ideas turn into life,” he recalls.
That fascination drove him to begin a new career,
starting in the art department as a freelance assistant.
Along the way, he taught himself how to use design
programs to keep up with the latest developments in
filmmaking.
“As time went by, I went from packing up the
art trucks to doing props and dressing, to doing art
direction in TV commercials,” he says, summarising
the earlier part of his career.
93 JULY/AUGUST 2020 | TM