"Cornwall is a magical place. Especially for me"

A Place We Call West is Winston Tjia’s love letter to Cornwall, filmmaking and friendship.

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“What inspired it was that Cornwall is a magical place. Especially for me. Travelling here, it’s really a nice place that you feel at home,” he tells D&CFilm, and it’s a sentiment he extends to the South West in general.

The short, short film, that is packed full of wandering and wistful power, took three months to write.

Magical faraway land

“About a month just to think of the idea!” says Winston. “The idea of it was that people all the way from the East would have travelled and traded with the West. It’s been like that for a very long time, and people always tell stories of travel – it’s really nice to experience this magical faraway land.”

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A Place We Call West had a screening at the Riviera Film Festival at Torquay Museum, an event that attracted filmmakers and film fans from throughout the South West for an audience full of creativity and appreciation. It was the fourth time Winston had seen his film on the big screen.

It holds a special place

“It still feels weird,” he says. “I’m not used to having something that I’m that involved in with on screen – it’s quite nerve wracking. But people seem to like it. And I’m happy that people enjoy the film. It’s one of the first films that I’ve written. I’m happy that it’s done so well. It holds a special place.”

Winston made the film in support of close friend Henry Austwick’s inaugural Cornwall Monologue competition.

“I wanted to show support and create something really nice,” says Winston, who, while leaning into his strengths in shooting and editing, also wanted to make something personal and stretch himself creatively.

Fairy tale feel

The film features a sunset and silhouette, which had a fairy tale feel, but the artistic choice had practical considerations. It was actor Zhang Shi’s first time on screening.

“I wanted him to feel comfortable,” says Winston, who gave the actor the reassurance that the mood allowed. Zhang’s spoken word was the focus. “He has never acted in his life, but he was someone I knew could emulate Mandarin the language, as he’s from Beijing, it’s easy to understand his accent. So it’s really nice to have him speak that language.”

Dreamy storytelling

The silhouette, surrounded by a glow of warmth with Falmouth’s Pendennis Castle in the background, added to the sense of dreamy storytelling, like when ‘your grandfather told you stories of fairy tales and fantasy’ says Winston. “It all ties together.”

All that is very different to Winston’s current project, Inner Thoughts, a collaboration-based mixed-media animation combined with live action.

“It’s towards the experimental side of filmmaking – more abstract,” says Winston, who puts the impetus of the project as to keep him and his friends making work and sharpening skills.

“It’s just a different path for us, making something else together,” he says.

That togetherness in the South West filmmaking world is something that Winston has immersed himself in.

“It’s a lot more interconnected than you realize,” he says, and he should know, he’s worked on plenty of films throughout the region. He’s been building experience, as well as professional and personal relationships.

Everyone’s encouraging each other

“Everyone here is supportive, everyone’s encouraging each other. It always comes from a place of passion, and it cultivates the passion from within yourself. I wouldn’t be doing all of these projects if I didn’t have such a nice community down here that encourages me. A Place You Call West was never meant to make it past Henry’s monologue competition, but people liked it that much that they asked me to submit to festivals.”

Winston has been capturing some of that community in his A.I.R Podcast (Artisans, Impressions and Resonance).

“The podcast was meant as a project to keep a track of people I’ve met. And to see what people do. There are so many jobs – that’s one thing that it’s nice to inform people about,” he says. The podcast also inquires into what inspires people to do what they do. “It brings that connectivity and creativity together.”

And what is it that drives Winston?

“I call myself someone who does post-production by trade – it’s a blend of technical skills and creativity to help someone achieve their dreams. That’s my inspiration: using that creativity, feeding the passion, and multiplying it to create something amazing for people to enjoy. That was always the core of why I wanted to do post-production – to help someone achieve their dreams and make people happy.”

See more from Winston Tjia on his website.