KIRSTEN & BENJAMIN TAN

There is something intriguing about seeing film-maker Kirsten Tan in front of the camera. For one, she is mostly seen on the other side, scrutinising the actions and expressions of her cast. Then, there is the quiet confidence she exudes despite the role reversal. Perhaps she is part of the growing crop of film directors who are comfortable being in front of the camera. Or perhaps being in the company of her older brother Benjamin is helping her feel at ease. After all, he has been her strongest supporter since she began dreaming of telling stories through film as a child. Benjamin, a senior vice president at Qantas Airways, calls Kirsten a trailblazer—a title she humbly declines—for numerous reasons, but most notably for achieving several firsts as a Singaporean film-maker. Her debut feature film Pop Aye, which she wrote and directed, won the World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award for Screenwriting at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival 2017. It was the first Singapore film—and Kirsten, the first Singaporean—to win a prize at the largest indie film festival in the US. The siblings sit down to talk about gender diversity in the film industry.

When did you realise you wanted to make films?

I knew from a very young age. I loved books, comics and imagining alternate worlds. When I first discovered film-making, I decided to dabble in it, albeit with much uncertainty. I still have doubts about myself sometimes, but with each day, I’ve become surer of who I am as a film-maker—i know if I weren’t making films, I’d be a miserable person. Have you ever felt you were taking the wrong path? For the longest time, I felt like the black sheep of the family because we’re from a pretty traditional, conservative Chinese family with Papa and Mama wanting us to go into science, economics or business. Maybe that was why I had to fight for what I wanted to do. Now when I’m at work, I’m just really happy that I get to do what I do. Is there a female film-maker that you look up to? There are some, like Jane Campion and Lynne Ramsay. And then there is German chancellor Angela Merkel. These are women I admire not because they are women, but because of what they’ve done. One day, if I do make it big, I want people to like me as a film-maker without considering my gender. True, but do you feel that being a woman in your field, you face certain barriers that a man wouldn’t encounter? Yeah. I’ve been on film panels, screenings, and even on sets where I’m the only woman, or one of only five. I guess I’d need one or two more days more than a man would require to gain people’s trust. But once they’re familiar with me, things are pretty much the same. How do you feel about the sexual harassment scandals unfolding in Hollywood right now? The thing about the film industry is that so much of it is centred on this idea of power, and most of the power players are men. But the onus isn’t just on men to stop any of these inappropriate behaviours. Both men and women should speak up when they see such things happening. In a way, what’s happening in Hollywood now is great. People are starting to speak up about individuals such as Harvey Weinstein, and hopefully this ripples across the world. Things like sexual harassment and abuse won’t stop overnight, but at least now, a would-be abuser would think twice before doing anything. Agree. But there is no easy solution here. It is the same when it comes to power players. There are just not enough women at the top. You can legislate, but you may end up with token actions. For example, “Let’s promote this lady, bring her out to events and put her in front of the cameras, so people can’t criticise us.” Is that truly sincere? I think over time, situations will inevitably improve, but it’d help if the gatekeepers and decision makers are aware of these unacceptable behaviours, and that they also hire people based on their abilities and not gender. It would help, too, if there were more women in leadership positions, because a leader affects the culture of their workplace, and this affects how the women in it are being treated. Yes, and trailblazers need to be celebrated, even if they don’t think of themselves as one or they might not want to talk about their achievements. Also, we talked about legislation earlier, which I’m not in favour of because it could lead to tokenism and deepen the gender divide. If say, you’re mandated by law to have women make up 50 per cent of the boardroom, but for whatever reason, your company doesn’t have enough women in senior leadership positions, then you end up with a mediocre board of directors. It’s a result of needing to make up the numbers, which I think is never a good thing. You’re right. So do you think that women can one day rule the world? I don’t see why not. We talked about Merkel earlier, right? If a woman can rise into a very important and influential position like hers, then it shows that there’s nothing stopping other women from doing the same.