CAPTURING THE WORLD AROUND

Jamin Tasker, (32), Filmmaker / Creative Director, Australia.

Jamin works for Hillsong Church in the Film / TV department. Having a passion for film since his teen years, his expertise stretches almost a decade, working as both a freelance artist and in structured roles for organisations. Currently, Jamin directs projects for the Hillsong Channel, church campaigns and creative moments for international conferences.

How did you start working in the film industry?

For me it was a hobby. In my mid teens I started messing around in photoshop and did more graphic design stuff first. I always played around with the family video camera making silly videos. As a teenager I was involved in our youth group, making student videos for youth events and various things. When I finished high school I started doing some work for the church I was at. At the time they didn’t really do any videos for church, it was pretty basic powerpoints etc. at the weekend, so I came on and tried to start a film department. It was great. I had a lot of free creative reign to try things out and be experimental. Thankfully I had some older guys who had a little bit more creative agency that I tried to glean what I could from them. It was very much a hobby that became my work.

"I'm a big believer in having a wide net of inspiration. Looking outside of the field that you're working in and trying to expand your interests will help you get fresh ideas."

What is your main source of inspiration?

I'm a big believer in having a wide net of inspiration. Looking outside of the field that you're working in and trying to expand your interests will help get fresh ideas. I watch a lot of films but music has always played a big role in inspiring me, as well as fine art, reading books and listening to podcasts. Even looking way beyond the arts, at science and physics etc. helps you come up with the best ideas. The good thing about film is that you're capturing the world around you and there's so many interesting things going on that you can thread into a film.

'NOW WITH NATALIE' Trailer by Hillsong Channel

What would you say your creative process would be?

The general process depends on whether I’m either coming up with an idea or there’s a specific brief. I'll ask myself: ‘What is the overall big picture? What are we trying to achieve? Who is the audience? What is the overall message that we’re trying to convey?’ In that stage, you want to have that open mindset to open yourself up to a wider range of possibilities for the project. I'll jump on Pinterest, researching around the topic, collecting articles, going to YouTube etc. Once you do that, you see where things can connect and you can refine the idea. You can put reference images, films, videos or music down into a PDF or other text treatment together to pitch the idea. We’ll then type up a rough script or draft of the overview of the project, giving an idea of what the project will look like. Once that's done and you get the green light, you go ahead with it. We head into pre-production, organising things for shoots, who is going to get involved and then we go out and film what we need, collect assets that we need, or create visual effects lights. Then, there is the post-production phase where we bring everything together including elements like the music. We get our composers involved in creating the music.

"Artists present the world as it is and as we have hoped it would be... "

How do you understand your role as an artist for God?

I have a unique role within the church world. A friend of mine often says that artists can be similar to the prophets. They sometimes bring ideas that aren't widely accepted at the time but it's actually kind of the truth. It depends on the situation but I think there is some truth to that. Artists present the world as it is and as we have hoped it'd be. My favourite films are the ones that resonate with me, that are authentic and hit on an aspect of humanity we can all relate to. That’s something I always try to go for with my work. In our Christian context, bringing to light the truth of scripture, church and others, I aim to communicate in a way that's unique and accessible. It’s a role that I love and definitely don’t take lightly as I see the impact my work can have on others as it draws them closer to Jesus.

"Church is still happening. People are still connecting. There is a channel of hope no matter how it looks like."

How could your art be used to help during this pandemic?

We made a video for Easter this year. It was a unique time to create a film. It's an interesting project in how we were going to outwork it initially because we were all at home, no one was venturing out at that stage of COVID-19. The challenges with how we would work were that it was all going to be digitally. We had this Philippians verse where Paul is talking to the Church in Philippi and we connected that to the current situation; that even though we're all kind of separated and isolated we can still hold on to that hope. We had that idea as the basis. We connected that idea of a voiceover showing the current situation, of places around the world, empty streets, but still see that life going on behind the walls of buildings and homes, and people still can connect even though it is digitally over Zoom. Church is still happening. People are still connecting. There is a channel of hope no matter how it looks. Most of the footage that was used in the video were sent to us by some guys from Hillsong Church in Paris, and they filmed people in the streets, they clanged together and they celebrated the nurses and doctors doing their part in the hospitals at that time. We are connected even though we are separated. There's still this beautiful connectedness between everyone.

'The Christ Hymn — A Letter From Apostle Paul' by Hillsong Film and Television

"You are not going to make your best work in your first video, it's always a journey to get there."

What word of advice would you give to an aspiring filmmaker?

Get involved, have a go. Most people have access to a video camera or a phone. What I find is missing a lot of the time is a good idea and having a film worth making. We have all seen our fair share of videos that aren’t worth our time watching. So there’s enough average ideas going around. I think some of the best documentaries I have watched may not be glossy in the way that they have been filmed, but if there is a great story it is like you are glued to your seat. There's a lot of different scope for a lot of different types of things. I think it's working out what connects with you as a person? What do you watch that moves you? What kind of work inspires you that you would like to do? And then it’s going out there and giving it a go. You are not going to make your best work in your first video, it's always a journey to get there. But yeah, it’s seeing what tools you have available, giving it a go and finding people who will give you good feedback. Find people you trust who can give you honest feedback. When someone says “This part didn't really resonate with me..” -- that’s how you really learn. We tend to find a filmmaker or a type of film that we really like and replicate that, which is part of the learning process, but the ongoing revelation is to have interests outside of your field.

Check out more of Jamin's works on:

Website: jamintasker.com

Instagram: @jamintasker