The film bug caught the attention of Nandan Lawande early on. After acquiring a Bachelor's in Fine Arts in filmmaking, he chased his dreams to New York Film Academy in Los Angeles to get his Masters in
Cinematography.
Since then he has been working in Hollywood on several projects. "My main motive to deliver stories in the visual medium is awareness," Lawande tells us. With a strong belief that a film holds the power to greatly influence people, Lawande's body of work includes films that echo important issues around the globe. These include 'Fear of Darkness,' which is a based on the killing of George Floyd and revolves around the theme of agoraphobia. His film 'Bare,' meanwhile is a drama based on breast cancer and was screened at the Awareness Film Fest in Los Angeles.
Speaking about how he got inclined towards cinematography he says: "When I visited a film set in sixth grade, I liked how everyone was working around the cinematographer and the numeric language he was communicating in," recalls Lawande. Having worked at three editions of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) also motivated him to do something in the film line. And so he kept researching about this art form and kept practicing it with digital and film photography before he enrolled for his master's degree.
He says that work in this field is always fascinating, though the process is lengthy. "The part where a story from a paper gets to the screen is very interesting. Cinematography is an art form I believe that involves different aspects to it. You have to be a team player, an artist and a technical person, all at the same time."
"I am enjoying the work I am currently doing. There is so much to learn out there," he adds, while emphasising on the need to keep up with the technological advancements in
filmmaking.
His dream is to get into ASC (American Society of Cinematographers) and work on larger scale productions like Marvel, Century Fox, Paramount, and so on. "I am also looking forward to working on Indian movies," he says.
Lawande has also been doing work in the music industry and worked on projects that have involved several local artistes from the US as well as international artistes. He worked with Diljit Dosanjh for his latest music video 'Lover,' alongside director Rahul Dutta. "It was a wonderful experience working on this," he says.
Lawande's upcoming projects include two feature films this year. His latest film 'Retrieval,' which has been produced by Armaan Lucknowala and Arnav Kasbekar, was nominated at BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts). "With Advait Dewasthlee's insightful direction this heart-felt story raises awareness about a motor neuron disease. It is an amalgamation of striking visuals and an emotionally rich story," he says.
What's noteworthy however, he reveals, is that 'Retrieval' almost wasn't made. "It was filmed during the peak of COVID-19. The set had run into COVID-19 complications and hence had to shut off filming," he says. The production then started four months after the initial lockdown and the team then saw it to completion. The film's first achievement came in August when it was officially selected for the Lift off Film Festival. This was followed by few more festivals. "And now with BAFTA in the list of laurels, the team is looking forward to other prospective festivals in the coming future," says Lawande. The film has been also selected for Golden State Film Festival and will be playing at the historic Grauman's Chinese Theatre on Walk of Fame in Los Angeles. "Film festival appreciation is something that every filmmaker looks forward to, nothing is more valuable as it helps us to learn and improve," he tells us.
Eligible now for the artists visa that allows him to work in the US after meeting the criteria due to work done and accolades received; Lawande is clear in his mind, that he wants to gain more exposure and experience and come back to work in India. "USA is a destination where one can learn so much, but I don't want to spend my life there. I want to contribute to cinema in India, and bring back new learnings," he says.