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Uzair Merchant Vancouver’s Local A Multi Facet Celebrity
Uzair Merchant Vancouver’s Local, Multi-Facet Celebrity In the World Of Filmmaking. Uzair has a style in everything he does. He holds a little magic and uses his creativity to make things happen. While representing diversity in Hollywood, Uzair Merchant amazes everyone with his phenomenal work! Let’s know him more in an interview!…………. Here is Our very own Uzair
A kreativ junkie and spiritual traveler, Uzair is multiple award-winning filmmakers, designer, and the founder of bkreativ productions based in Vancouver, BC, and the co-founder of Kri8.labs – The Kreativ Lab – in Vancouver, Dubai, and Delhi.
Alumni of Nottingham Trent University, and the New York Film Academy, “Uzi” is a product of the world; with Indian roots, he was raised in Dubai, which was followed by his living in London, New York, and is currently a resident of Vancouver.
Our guest Uzair Merchant doesn’t need an introduction. He is a Multiple
Award-Winning Filmmaker & Production Designer. Uzair tell us how all this
started.
Professionally, 14 years ago … spiritually, my mom was on a set pregnant with me, so I guess this business chose me first ☺. My dad ( May his soul rest in peace) was an Interior designer, so I kind of grew in between the worlds of building, designing, and watching my mom run an events side. I took on both in my own kind of way …. All starting with VR game testing in Dubai at like 10 years old, and then Music from 13 onwards. The way I see it, all the elements, skills, and ways of creating I was able to explore, somehow all dial into one point: Filmmaking. My route was via the art department, so I went down the route to study Production Design for Film and TV in the UK at Nottingham Trent university and then filmmaking at the New york film academy. Both these places, cities, and people around me really helped push me toward being ‘an artist’. I’ve been an artist my entire life, but to be able to be accepted as one, in your form and art is I think truly special to me… my journey has only just begun 🙂
You are also a founder of bkreativ productions. Please talk about some of your projects.
Bkreativ is my Arc into the ocean of visual artistry. I’ve been lucky to have had the opportunity to do some wild amazing projects ranging from Designing and building theme parks in Dubai ( Global Village ) to designing the first Hollywood Feature fully shot in Abu Dhabi – Misfits with pierece brosan directed by Renny Harlin. With that, we’ve done work with Sony PlayStation, Du which is a semi-government cell network, and then had the opportunity to create and house my own universe which is a web3 character-powered world. I’ve been working on that for about 13 years now, so I’m excited I get to take this world from my head to people hoping it inspires someone else to want to live in it, and in return build their own someday.
You have worked on many Hollywood projects like Star Trek and Fast And Furious. How was your experience?
Life changing in more ways than you can imagine. This is not from the ‘oh my god the names and stars etc point of view’ but more so because you grow up watching these films that are iconic to shape pop culture and to be able to live within it and shape the next version of it, to me is special. Keeping in mind, I grew up in the desert in the 90s of Dubai which wasn’t what it is today, so to the world of ‘Hollywood’ on that scale was something of a dream in another reality.
Share one of your favorite moments while working as a filmmaker and a production designer.
As a production designer, it was one very specific moment I cherish closely. We were standing on the of our main sets of Misfits, a fully loaded vault with gold bars in an underground bunker, and Renny Harlin the director told Pierce Brosnan the story of how he got me onto that film, and the events leading up to it. That moment was the purest creative full circle because my first feature was Skyfall (bond) at the interview I presented a paper on semiotics analyzing every single bond logo. Pierce was the bond I grew up on …. It was such a moment. And then you snap back to reality and realize a film has to be made.
As a filmmaker me shooting Stardust with a group of friends more than crew through covid and being able to channel all of that with my personal life, my dad’s passing away, and bring that out via the Art. I’ll always hold that close to me.
How is it working in an industry with such a diverse background? Can you share something special that made an impact?
I think having skill is the one thing my parents always pushed me towards and I truly believe is the way to build what and who you are as a person. I like challenges, that’s my martial arts mindset. I’ll take anything on knowing a way will present itself and that I think is the impact. To make a film you have to dream and then have the courage to bring that forth to reality. My background always pushed me to dream, and my journey has added the skills to make it a reality. Each job is special, and each project is unique and that’s the greatest thing, loving what you do like it was the first time you were doing it.
If you must choose a city to live in the whole world, which one that would be?
I’ve only really called Vancouver, Canada home, Dubai was where I grew up and India is where I’m from… but my soul has a place in BC. Having said that I’m a citizen of the world, and I want to experience as much of this planet as I can. I like the pulse of big cities like London and NYC too, but the beauty of nature in a city is why Vancouver has my heart.
What other things does Uzair enjoy doing in his leisure time?
Ahh … I create. In any shape, form, or way I can. I’ve trained Okinawan Shorin Ryu Seibukan karate for over 25 years and that’s my go-to thing. But I love being in nature and so hiking or road trips are my biggest party moments 😉 – I like being around music, either making it, listening to or writing and of course cinema! I go to the movies a lot which usually ends up with the arcade LOL. I enjoy being around genuine friends and simple nights with some laughs are most rejuvenating to my soul.
What advice would you give to the newcomers?
The world is changing fast, so don’t try to be someone else today, instead, be inspired by people that help you find your inner self. Be inspired to learn to make a difference because at the end of the day that’s all this journey is about, we are spiritual beings having a human experience. Don’t do it for anyone else but the honest true intention of why you do what you do…. Because at some point, you will have to answer that to yourself, time is testing and the ability to be kind and help your people grow with you can take you a long way. Please don’t taint the art with bad karma, each individual artist holds the responsibility of how we treat our fellow artists, use your craft to help spread some love and peace, and along the way some truth.
