April 16, 2025 • 34 mins
Evolve Magazine Podcast Launch – Featuring Cole Walliser
Welcome to the premiere episode of the Evolve Magazine Podcast, where transformation meets inspiration! We're kicking things off with a blockbuster guest , the incredibly talented Cole Walliser, Canadian filmmaker, celebrity content creator, and the creative force behind those viral slow-motion glamBOT moments on Hollywood’s biggest red carpets.
In this episode, Cole opens up about his inspiring journey from Vancouver to Los Angeles and how he not only broke into Hollywood but thrived in one of the most competitive creative industries in the world. From directing music videos for superstars like Miley Cyrus and Pink, to becoming a staple on awards show carpets, Cole shares what it really takes to evolve, adapt, and live with purpose in the fast-paced entertainment world.
Whether you’re an artist, entrepreneur, or someone navigating change, this podcast is packed with powerful insights on:
- Embracing change and making bold transitions
- Staying grounded and authentic in high-pressure environments
- Building a meaningful, purpose-driven life and career
Get ready to be inspired by Cole’s contagious energy, creativity, and real talk on what it means to evolve and how YOU can do it too!
Subscribe now and join us as we explore what it means to evolve with intention, one story at a time.
For inquiries: info@evolvemagazine.ca
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_00 (00:07):
All right, welcome to the very first episode of
Evolve Magazine podcast.
I'm your host, Christina Carpio.
For today's inaugural episode,we're thrilled to have a very
special guest with us, aCanadian filmmaker, director, a
familiar face on the biggest redcarpets, best known for
capturing the glitz and theglamour with his glam bot.
(00:29):
Please join me in welcoming theone and only Cole Walser.
How are you?
SPEAKER_01 (00:35):
Hello, I'm doing fantastic.
How were you?
SPEAKER_00 (00:37):
Oh my goodness.
Thank you so much.
Thank you.
I'm so glad that you joined us.
First episode, this is that wewanted to pick someone really
special and we're so grateful tohave you, Cole.
SPEAKER_01 (00:48):
Awesome.
Yeah, I'm happy to be here.
SPEAKER_00 (00:49):
So the goal of this podcast, Cole, is to help, you
know, for us to help peoplenavigate change.
And we want to inspire ourlisteners, give valuable
insights into what it takes tonot only survive, but thrive.
And I would love to do a deeperdive into your experiences,
perspectives and growth in life.
And you have a very inspiringjourney.
(01:13):
And we want to learn all aboutyou today.
So let's get right into it.
So you're originally fromVancouver.
And you were actually apsychology major before diving
into filmmaking and creativework.
So let's talk about how you gotinto or how do you think your
(01:34):
psychology background kind ofinfluenced your creative process
as a filmmaker?
SPEAKER_01 (01:39):
Yeah, that's an interesting question because I
think it actually does a lot.
Like, yeah, I was in I grew upin Vancouver.
And so I went to UBC.
And I studied psychology.
I think I took away a couple ofthings from that experience.
One is like work ethic.
You know, I think if I moved toL.A.
like out of high school, Iwouldn't know how to work hard.
(01:59):
Like I really discovered how tohow to work hard sort of during
final season going to school.
Right.
Midterms and things you learnhow to buckle down.
So that was super valuable.
But then the idea of psychologyis really how people learn.
perceive and understand theworld around them.
And this includes being exposedto different sort of media,
different stories, storytelling,how people understand things,
(02:20):
perceive things and like feelabout things.
So I use the information I learnand just sort of generally like
how to think about communicationand perception.
I use those things in a subtleway to my advantage as a
director.
So it's not like super tangibleone-to-one, but I do think a lot
of the ideas about how peopleact and how people behave and
how we understand the worldaround us is really applicable
(02:41):
to my work as a director.
SPEAKER_00 (02:44):
So when you were in school in psychology, you
already had a passion forfilmmaking.
Is that what it was?
And then you decided to justfinish your program and...
SPEAKER_01 (02:54):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Filmmaking and passionstarted...
at a young age, I had a camerain my hand.
I learned how to edit like ontwo VCRs back in the day.
And this is sort of like whatgot me, what got me interested.
I was like, oh, this is reallycool.
I really, I discovered that Ienjoyed creating things and I
enjoyed sharing them, right?
Which is funny because this is20 years before social media,
but that's basically what itwas.
(03:15):
Like I liked making stuff and Ilike sharing it, you know?
And so I just kept, learning andlike shooting stuff with my
friends and like making littlevideos.
And this is just always like aside thing.
But as I was in university, Iwas working and I saved that
money and I bought a good cameraand I got a computer.
And I started really like withthe intention of maybe doing
like little jobs, like, okay,like I want to like I know I
(03:38):
like this enough to like spendsome time and energy like
learning.
And so I got the equipmentduring university and would just
shoot little jobs, shoot funlittle things with my friends
and just slowly tried to likebuild a career.
And then I got to the point as Iwas graduating, I was like,
okay, I can stay here inVancouver and like try to break
into the industry here or moveto LA.
And I sort of realized that theydon't really hire directors from
(04:01):
Vancouver.
And I sort of wanted to affordmyself all the opportunity I
could.
So I was like, okay, I think atthis point I need to go to LA.
So that's sort of like when Imade the decision to move to LA.
SPEAKER_00 (04:09):
Interesting.
And speaking of LA, what was theturning point when you realized
that you had, you know,obviously it's been a journey
for you to get from Vancouver toLA.
Was there a turning point inyour career that you had truly
realized that you made it inHollywood?
Was there a specific moment thatsolidified your place in the
industry?
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (04:26):
Not really.
I think the one thing that Ikind of realized is that
everybody always feels like anoutsider, no matter what level
you're at.
You know what I mean?
So I think that for a long time,it takes a while.
I think it just takes a whilefor you to feel that way.
And even so, like...
it's not like I feel like I'm aninsider now, but it's more like
(04:49):
I feel like I have job security.
Like, okay, like I can keepdoing this.
It feels like I'll probably keepdoing this for a little while.
So it's been 16 or 17 years.
But there was a point at which Ibought a house in LA based off
like making videos.
And I was like, okay, like thismust mean something.
Like this is a sort of amonumental moment that I was
(05:09):
able to like move to the Statesand find enough success to like
buy property buy land so thatwas definitely a big moment yeah
but it's always sort of likeevolving and changing and
moments of feeling really groundzero like at the Oscars and then
moments of feeling where you'rekind of like out of the loop,
you know what I mean?
(05:29):
You get all the experiences,
SPEAKER_00 (05:31):
right?
Oh, we'll get it right into thatfor sure.
Well, now many people dream ofworking, you know, with A-list
celebrities and, you know,you've done a lot of amazing
projects even before, you know,your GlamBot career.
What were some of the earlychallenges you faced in your
career that you can share withus and how did you stay
motivated and push?
I mean,
SPEAKER_01 (05:50):
early challenges is probably just finding work as a
creative freelancer, like thatis a big challenge, right?
Finding work.
I'm trying to think more likebroadly like that.
Yeah, it's just always likegrowing the career and like
trying to get it to take thetrajectory that you want.
This is always a challenge,right?
And I guess the one thing that Ilearned is that like along the
(06:10):
way, I, I am still, I'm facedwith the exact same challenge I
was a long time ago, because I'mstill trying to get jobs that
are good for me at this phase ofmy career.
I'm still trying to do otherthings that are, that I've never
done before at this stage of mycareer.
And this is in some level,exactly the same.
Now I may be further ahead fromwhere I was, but I'm still
(06:32):
trying to make the bestdecisions to get along my path.
And I realized that the It'sreally a direct line.
It's not like I'm like, oh, I'vedone like these Hollywood DGA
jobs and now everything'sdifferent.
It's still the same thing.
I just have more experience andmore time and more resources
now.
But the idea of like, I'm tryingto position myself to make the
(06:52):
best decision for my career isexactly the same as like
literally day one showing up inLA, you know?
SPEAKER_00 (06:57):
Right.
And I didn't know that you werea hip hop, uh, dance and break
teacher.
Like, I didn't know that.
That's amazing.
You were also a DJ.
You played in clubs in Vancouverand LA.
I mean, where did you even fitthat in your life?
And speaking of constantlyevolving, like, how do you
ensure that you're constantlyevolving in your career?
You've obviously gone to manydifferent directions.
SPEAKER_01 (07:20):
Yeah, I've always been someone that sort of, like,
chases my interests, you knowwhat I mean?
And I guess I kind of havebelieved that, like, if there's
something that, if you're goodat something, you can find a way
to sort of like monetize it,right?
So if I'm good enough at likeDJing, I can get a job DJing a
party or a club or whatever.
If I'm good enough at dancing, Ican either perform or I can
(07:42):
teach.
If I'm good enough at directing,I can get someone to like hire
me to make something for them.
And if these are things that Ienjoy, the time it takes to get
good will be an enjoyableprocess for the most part, you
know what I mean?
So I've always sort of decidedto kind of just like chase my
passion my interests and mypursuits.
And this started early, thisstarted early actually with
(08:03):
skateboarding.
Like I used to be a sponsoredskateboarder and snowboarder
when I was younger.
And I think that this reallyafforded me the idea that if I
do something well, I can getthings from it.
So, because I was quite young, Ithink I was sponsored when I was
12 maybe, by like a local skateshop in Richmond.
(08:24):
And then I got other sponsorsthroughout being like 13, 14,
15.
And at school, you know, like I,I would get recognition and sort
of notoriety because I was agood skateboarder and I would do
tricks.
You would be impressed.
And yeah, And I kind of realizedthat I could do something kind
of out of the system.
Like I wasn't like starbasketball player or like star
academic, but I was getting theattention in the same kind of a
(08:46):
way.
You know what I mean?
And I think I kind of likeplanted the seed that like, oh,
I can go do something and do itwell.
And then like cool things canhappen.
Like who knows what, but likesomething could happen.
Cause I think I learned thatfrom skateboarding.
And so I think I just sort ofapplied that to everything that
I did as my interests change.
as I started dancing and DJingand doing music and stuff, I
just figured if I do well atthis, then maybe there's some
(09:09):
opportunity there.
And there was.
And then the thing withfilmmaking is just like, I've
just never lost interest.
And that's just the thing that Ikeep doing to this day.
SPEAKER_00 (09:17):
I'm curious on your family background, because for
me, I came from the Philippinesto escape poverty.
And, you know, I came here, Ididn't speak, you know, English
that well, I wanted to be abroadcaster, I read the English
dictionary repeatedly to learnthe language, you know, it was
quite a journey.
And, you know, I wanted to livea different life coming here.
(09:39):
So my drive was different when Iwhen I came here.
So I worked really hard, youknow, so I'm wondering what your
background was like, you grew upin Vancouver.
And did you have strong familysupport?
Is that where, you know, thismotivation came from?
Like you're so driven to just gofor it.
SPEAKER_01 (09:58):
Yeah.
I don't, I don't know.
I mean, I mean, my familydefinitely supported me in the
sense of the, like both myparents encouraged me to, to do
what I enjoyed and to, and to bepassionate and to try hard and
to work hard at what I'm doing.
And I think I had a bit of whatyou're mentioning when I moved
to the States, because like,That was like, well, not only
(10:20):
did I have to get a lawyer andthere was a huge expense and
there was a time limit, like myvisa was for three years, I had
a time limit at which I had tosort of quote unquote prove
myself.
So there's a lot of pressurethere, which I think was in some
regard helpful.
But I don't know.
Yeah, I don't know where likeinherently it came from.
My family, my mom has expressedto me all of her reservations
(10:41):
about me moving to anothercountry to pursue the arts later
in life, in which she wasobviously quite nervous,
rightfully so.
UNKNOWN (10:48):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (10:48):
But the thing that I really appreciate that she did
was she was like, she made it apoint to not let me be aware of
it for, I think like just acouple years.
I don't know what it was.
I think she told herself, she'slike, I'm going to give him like
two years.
I'm not going to say when hecoming home or like anything
that would like, make me doubtmyself, I guess, or like
SPEAKER_00 (11:11):
make me wonder.
She was pretty trusting.
Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (11:14):
But you know, she was freaking out every month,
you know, whether I earnedenough money to live out here.
But the thing that she did thatI really do appreciate was her
just not letting me be privy tothat.
So I could go like discover myown thing.
And so that was super helpful.
But my parents have always beenhugely supportive in my
endeavors back then.
And then of course, now it'sjust
SPEAKER_00 (11:33):
like
SPEAKER_01 (11:33):
this thing now.
SPEAKER_00 (11:34):
Oh, I'm sure they're so proud of you.
Oh my goodness.
Now let's get into networkingand building relationships.
Relationships you've obviouslyworked with.
Some of the biggest stars inHollywood, not only you see them
on the red carpet, you'veactually worked with them and
collaborated with them likeMiley, Selena, Pink, Katy Perry.
Very impressive, Les Cole.
What is your approach tobuilding meaningful
(11:56):
relationships in an industrywhere networking is key and how
do you maintain them?
SPEAKER_01 (12:03):
That's a tricky and interesting question.
I think that I've always justfelt that like, if you are a
good person to work with, likewe've all worked with a bunch of
individuals and in the number ofpeople that you've worked with,
there's probably a handful thatyou would go, I will work with
(12:24):
them anytime.
I love this person, this person,like maybe not this person so
much or whatever, but there's afew people like in everybody's
orbit that they go like,whatever they want, I'm down.
Cause I know they like workhard.
They're like trusting, they'recreative.
And it's like, they don't cutany corners and they're just
like good people that work hard.
So understanding that I'm like,okay, if I can be that person to
(12:44):
everybody or the best I can,then it's like, I don't see, I
don't see why I wouldn't be ableto like build these connections.
Right.
So just this idea of likeworking hard, being good to work
with, being mindful, it justinherently I think is going to
have your network kind of extendand hopefully be people that you
(13:05):
kind of grow together with andhave long term working
relationships with.
That was kind of the intent.
And then, you know, just beinglike authentic to you and.
Right.
Right.
(13:38):
Um, yes and no periods where Ihave, you know, it's like, I've
definitely made, I'll say this.
I believe in manifestation in sofar, like not in the, in the, in
the woo woo sense.
SPEAKER_02 (13:56):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (13:56):
Right.
But in the sense of like, if I'mreminded of my goals and sort
of, if I can, if I have cuesaround me in my life that tap
into the feeling and the drivethat I'm those goals create in
me that is a tangible thing thatcan keep you on track motivated
and focused right so in thatsense something like a vision
(14:17):
board is super tangiblybeneficial because you're
looking at it going that's whati want and you're reminded and
you're like i'm gonna work andbecause because i think
fundamentally like your life isdetermined in your in your
minute decisions.
It's what you make on theselittle tiny decisions day to
day.
Because yes, I can decide tolike pursue some big dream, but
(14:37):
if I don't make the dailydecisions to get myself there,
like it's not happening, right?
So manifesting now be it avision board or sort of like
meditation, reciting mantras,things that keep you sort of
your goals in mind, I think arevery, very beneficial.
I'm not counting out the woo-woostuff, but I do know they
(14:58):
tangibly help.
in that regard.
So I do think that it's, thatit's beneficial.
I've gone through phases where Ido this.
I typically will review goalsaround the new year all the time
and I'll make a big list careerwise, personal wise, health
wise.
Like I write down sort ofdifferent goals, um, and
actually pin an alarm, uh, in mycalendar at the first of every
(15:20):
month, kind of like just gothrough them and read them.
Sometimes I don't read them whenthey pop up.
Sometimes I do.
Um, But I think keeping yourselfaccountable is a good way.
Yeah, and then I check them offat the end of the year and I
write new ones, basically.
SPEAKER_00 (15:35):
Sounds good.
And speaking of vision boards,did you...
ever had the glam bot in yourvision board or did that just
like happen?
SPEAKER_01 (15:43):
Yeah, no, I never had the glam bot in my vision
board.
I don't think I would have knownwhat it was at any time.
I didn't know what it was untilI started doing it really,
SPEAKER_00 (15:51):
right?
Let's make it clear that youdidn't invent the glam bot.
The glam bots exist becauseyou're the glam bot
SPEAKER_01 (15:59):
guy.
the camera system existed andthe robot arm existed and the,
and the system we use to shoottalent existed, but the fact of
shooting talent on the redcarpet, I guess, didn't exist.
Right.
But the system is a system usedin like film production all the
time.
Right.
So that system is used.
The glam bot is actually an Eterm because they sort of
(16:20):
invented the application on thered carpet.
Yeah.
But yeah, Yeah,
SPEAKER_00 (16:27):
it's sort of a- It wasn't on your vision board.
It wasn't on
SPEAKER_01 (16:30):
my
SPEAKER_00 (16:30):
vision board.
Now, let's go back to the redcarpet.
So I know you get asked this alot, like your most memorable or
favorite, a glam bot moment onthe red carpet.
SPEAKER_01 (16:43):
There's a couple, but one that really stands out
is the one with Brad Pitt in2020.
Because like, for me, I grew upwatching his movies.
Like, as big as celebrities aslike Ariana Grande and like
Billie Eilish are, I didn't likegrow up listening to their
music, but Brad Pitt, I grew upwatching his movies.
(17:04):
So for me to meet him and forhim to do an awesome glam bot
and for him to be super cool,this was like a, a big moment
for younger Cole.
You know what I mean?
So that one definitely standsout.
And then I do think that thefirst Ariana Grande, the Grammys
that same year, I think 2020 wasone of the best glam bots I've
ever shot.
So that's a,
SPEAKER_00 (17:23):
And I love how I love when you're when they're
there, like, you don't, youwouldn't necessarily think that
it's going to be like a wowmoment.
But for example, Billie Eilish,the smallest movements, just
made made a big difference, likewatching the in at the Oscars in
2022.
Her glam bought, I was justlike, she didn't do much.
She was just like, and then, youknow, The glam bot was just
(17:45):
phenomenal.
I was like, holy cow.
I
SPEAKER_01 (17:48):
use that one as an example of that.
You don't have to do much.
Cause I do tend to try to pushfor bigger movement.
Right.
Cause like it is easier in asense, if you have this big
dress, it's like flowing, that'salways going to be cool in slow
motion.
So that's sort of like a highprobability of it being cool.
But as Billie Eilish and a fewothers have demonstrated, like
sometimes like the smallestmovement can be the most like
(18:09):
magical glam bots.
So you never really know.
That's kind of what makes itfun.
SPEAKER_00 (18:12):
We see you directing them right before the shot.
Do they actually listen to you?
Like actually take?
I don't know.
You tell me.
I mean, you guys
SPEAKER_01 (18:20):
see the footage too.
So you tell me.
SPEAKER_00 (18:21):
I mean, they're all amazing like at the end.
But, you know, we can see youdirecting them, you know, how to
move and things like that.
But do you see them actuallyfollowing through?
It
SPEAKER_01 (18:32):
depends.
I think it's kind of like...
Yeah, it's kind of like 50-50.
I think a lot of the times, Ithink actually a lot of the
times, talent doesn't actuallyknow what they're going to do
until I call action.
Right.
So, like, I'll be like, oh,maybe this, maybe that.
And they're like, yeah, okay,okay.
Like, and I know, sometimes Iknow they don't know.
Like, I know they're going like,yeah, yeah, yeah.
(18:53):
Because I know that, but to me,that tells me that they're
confident enough to, like, whipout something.
Like, whatever comes out isgoing to be cool.
Yeah.
I know that they know that likewhatever is going to happen is
going to be cool.
So it's like I get the sensethat like, okay, let me not push
them to like for them to tell meexactly what it's going to be.
Let's just like roll it becauseI can sense that they know
(19:13):
they're going to do something.
And then I call action and thenthey do something and it's
almost always really cool,right?
So a lot of my job is like kindof trying to suss out what– Like
when to push, when not to push,when we're just going to roll
the dice and see what happenskind of a thing.
That I think is sort of likemore my job rather than
prescribing a specific move,which I generally tend not to
(19:34):
do.
Because like if I tell you toput your arm a certain way, it
might be foreign in your body.
It might look weird.
So I try not to do that toomuch.
SPEAKER_00 (19:40):
Yeah.
At the end of the day, you guidethem and then it's up to them
like what to do.
And you know as well if theyhaven't done it before, right?
If it's their first time, thenyou give them a little bit of
direction.
But going back to wellness– Youmentioned wellness earlier.
How do you maintain a healthywork-life balance?
You're obviously a very busyperson.
And how do you ensure thatyou're taking care of yourself
(20:02):
physically and mentally?
SPEAKER_01 (20:03):
It's always a balance trying to...
A
SPEAKER_00 (20:07):
balance in a battle, wouldn't you say?
Yeah, a
SPEAKER_01 (20:10):
balance in a battle in trying to maintain a level of
sustainability in your work-lifebalance.
So the thing that I think hashelped, because yeah, it's
always a battle.
It's always these things aresomewhat in opposition where
you're like, I could work, but Ineed to chill or I need to take
a break or I could work harder.
And recognizing that you'll gothrough phases.
(20:33):
And I think both of these phasesare really important where
you're like reallyhyper-focused, really driven,
putting a lot of things to theside to like achieve the thing
that you want to achieve.
And then there's moments where,you know, you're taking a step
back.
You're like either overwhelmedor you need some time and you're
really like taking whatever thetime is.
This could be an hour in a dayor two weeks or like two months
(20:55):
where you're kind of just like,I am just taking a break.
I'm not going to stress overlike all these things I want to
accomplish.
Like knowing that you will getback to a phase of like really
pushing hard.
I think sometimes you do need tokick yourself in the butt if
those periods last too long.
But I do think it's valuable torecognize that it's going to ebb
(21:16):
and flow.
And the idea that you're alwayshammering it to get accomplished
what you want to accomplish isnot a good way of thinking, nor
is it that you're always goingto try to nail that perfect
work-life balance and hit thatexactly on the dot all the time.
Cause that I think isunachievable.
I think just sort of recognizingthat you're going to ebb and
(21:37):
flow in between like pushingreally hard and then sitting
back and kind of just taking a,taking a moment.
I think that that's all fine.
You just sort of, maybe youshould set like duration
periods.
Cause you also don't want tolike grind for too long.
You don't want to chill for toolong, whatever that means to
you, if it's in a day or like aweek or a But just, yeah,
understanding that those ebb andflow and then try not to go too
(21:57):
far in one direction.
Right.
SPEAKER_02 (21:59):
I
SPEAKER_01 (21:59):
don't want to go too far chill mode or too far like
grind mode.
SPEAKER_00 (22:03):
Yeah,
SPEAKER_01 (22:04):
I think I think then it's hard to it's hard to
re-steer the ship a little bit.
SPEAKER_00 (22:07):
So finding the balance for sure.
Yeah, because I don't likegetting too comfortable.
And then, you know, it's yeah, Ilove what you said there.
Now, looking back in yourcareer, Cole, was there any like
biggest risk that you rememberthat you took and then it paid
off?
SPEAKER_01 (22:25):
I'm moving to LA.
That
SPEAKER_00 (22:28):
was quite a process, wasn't it for you?
SPEAKER_01 (22:30):
It was a process.
The whole immigration was aprocess.
I do think it paid off in theend.
So that is, I can confidentlysay that now.
Other than that, I mean, there'smoments where I've shifted my
career.
You know, where I do think thissort of end result still is kind
of like, because it always triedto get getting me to where I am
(22:53):
today.
But there was no like.
There was no like, let meremortgage my house to buy like
a camera.
Like there was
SPEAKER_02 (22:59):
nothing
SPEAKER_01 (23:00):
like that.
But it was sort of like, youknow, when I first moved to LA,
I was editing a lot becausethose are the jobs I could get.
And then there was a momentwhere I was like, hey, look, I'm
going to try to not edit becauseI'm going to try to pay money to
someone who can edit so I canfocus on like my next directing
job.
And this was like, in essencecosting me money because I'm
(23:20):
working less and I'm paying outsomeone but it sort of afforded
me time and energy to like buildthe directing career so that was
like a risk you know what I meanlike I could either keep you
know you always when you'refreelancers like you want to
work as much as you can but I'mtrying to position myself to get
to where I want to get to andsometimes you sort of have to
like let some things go to likeopen up time or energy to focus
(23:41):
on something else so even smallthings like that of like okay
I'm going to stop editing tolike focus more on directing or
I'm going to stop DJing justcompletely to just focus on like
editing and directing.
So those types of decisions, Ithink, were some forms of risk.
And then, I mean, I definitelyhave like invested in camera
gear and stuff where at the timeyou're like, oh, geez, it's a
(24:01):
lot of money, you know, andsomewhat of a risk.
But I think it's all sort ofpaid off in the end.
SPEAKER_00 (24:06):
And did you envision yourself being in front of the
camera?
Because you were always behindthe camera.
SPEAKER_01 (24:12):
Oh, really?
No, no, I never envisioned that.
SPEAKER_00 (24:14):
How do you like it?
Because I know some people arejust not, you know, a fan of
being on camera.
Are you?
I mean, obviously, it's such afun job.
Like, are you loving it?
SPEAKER_01 (24:25):
Yeah, I am definitely loving it.
But it definitely it takes timegetting used to, you know what I
mean?
UNKNOWN (24:29):
Like,
SPEAKER_01 (24:29):
Being on camera is a thing that it's a skill that
like you can improve at and youcan do better at it.
And I think what happens a lotof the time is that people see
other people like thrive oncamera, be natural, have fun.
And like, it looks like it'senjoyable.
SPEAKER_02 (24:44):
And
SPEAKER_01 (24:45):
then when someone turns the camera on themselves
for the first time, you feelsuper anxious, super
self-conscious, and youessentially hate it.
Like guaranteed you hate it.
I mean, you know, some peopledon't, but vast majority of
people hate it.
And then I think all too oftenpeople are like, it's not for
me.
Like, I don't like it.
I don't embrace it.
And then they see people thatlike have been doing it for a
long time and like really relaxthem and find they're like, I'm
(25:05):
not that, I'm not like that.
And they cut themselves off.
So, you know, it was a thingthat I had to get used to and a
period of it being awkward, butlike sort of recognizing like,
okay, I know this is going to beawkward.
I know it's going to be, it'sgoing to feel cool.
But if I want, again, if I wantthe career that I want, you
know, I need to figure out howto embrace this.
SPEAKER_00 (25:25):
Yeah.
You really have to be open toanything, right?
So, especially things that youweren't really so comfortable
with.
And it just, you never know, itopens doors, right?
So just go for it.
SPEAKER_01 (25:34):
Yeah, especially now in the way like media works.
It's like, I think we allbasically...
an entertainer is on all sidesof the camera now.
It's like they're making theirown content on social, they're
being in it, they're producingstuff.
And so it really is beneficialto share your personality in the
work that you do.
So there was a good reason toget comfortable in front of the
(25:56):
camera.
SPEAKER_00 (25:57):
So lastly, Cole, my question is very simple, but
sometimes difficult to answer.
Are you happy?
SPEAKER_01 (26:05):
Yes, I will say I am happy.
This is a question that evensomeone like myself, who from
the outside looking in is like,oh, everything, you know,
there's so much going on andthis is true and this is all
great.
But it's a thing that we'realways sort of like, again,
navigating, you know what Imean?
(26:26):
It's like, well, what you'realways faced with the question
of like, okay, well, what trulybrings me happiness?
And I think there's so muchgoing on in my life that I'm
like truly thankful for.
And I do think that sort oflike, I do think in some sense,
like, It's just going to sound,I don't know.
It's going to sound notpretentious, but like, like I do
think that like happiness issomewhat of a choice.
(26:48):
And I do, I did believe thissort of before I found success,
where it is a bit of a functionof looking at your life and sort
of appreciating what there isthat is there that you can be
thankful for.
You're happy that you have and,and trying to navigate that.
And that isn't to say like,while I do say, yes, I am happy.
(27:08):
It isn't to say that everymoment of my life is like full
of joy.
There's moments that are quitedifficult and, you know,
whatever's going on from a cutestandpoint or like from the
broader standpoint that arechallenging.
And just like everything we'vebeen talking, it's all a
balance.
And I also think that likehappiness is sort of like a bit
of a yin and yang where like itexists because there's also
(27:28):
these other moments that are theopposite of that.
You know what I mean?
Like feeling truly happy andsort of appreciating it only
really has context in moments oflike, that are in opposition to
it, right?
So I kind of believe that weshould just like flow through
those and experience like thehighs and lows.
You just want to kind of be onthe...
(27:50):
happy side at least 51% of thetime, you
SPEAKER_00 (27:52):
know?
Right.
Yeah.
You can't be always a hundredpercent happy.
There's just no way it'simpossible.
SPEAKER_01 (27:58):
And if you see someone like that, I'm like,
they're faking it.
SPEAKER_00 (28:01):
It's not real.
I'm
SPEAKER_01 (28:02):
something serious back there,
SPEAKER_00 (28:03):
you know?
So true.
Well, thank you so much for yourtime before I go.
I typically do like rapid firequestions at the end.
Do you mind just very quickly?
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (28:12):
I'll try to answer succinctly here.
SPEAKER_00 (28:15):
Rapid fire questions.
Here we go.
Top three albums on Spotify.
SPEAKER_01 (28:19):
Well, I'm Apple Music, so
SPEAKER_00 (28:21):
start there.
Or Apple Music.
SPEAKER_01 (28:23):
Man, of all times.
See, I'm just going to laborthis.
I will say I've been listeningto the new Drake and Party Next
Door album.
That's been fun.
That just came out a couple daysago.
But other than that, likelong-time playing albums is
like, oh, man, John MayerContinuum.
That album has been always athing.
And I'll say Beastie Boys'Paul's Boutique, an old, old
(28:45):
album that still gets rotation.
SPEAKER_00 (28:47):
Okay.
And three things that you missthe most in Canada?
SPEAKER_01 (28:52):
Oh, aside from family and friends.
SPEAKER_00 (28:56):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (28:57):
The grouse grind.
SPEAKER_00 (28:59):
Oh my gosh, I've done it.
It's so fun.
SPEAKER_01 (29:02):
I mean, there are hikes out here in LA, but I
don't know.
There's just something about thecold mountain air in Vancouver
that I appreciate.
And
SPEAKER_00 (29:09):
when you get to the top, there's a bar.
SPEAKER_01 (29:12):
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
And then you just take the tramdown and you're good.
So that is quite the experience.
I miss that.
I miss good fish and chips inSteveston, in Richmond, where
I'm from.
And well, I guess with food,poutine.
There's no good poutine outhere.
SPEAKER_00 (29:28):
Now, have you been to the Fishman restaurant in
Richmond?
SPEAKER_01 (29:33):
Fish man?
No.
Where is that?
SPEAKER_00 (29:35):
It's in Richmond.
I'll hook you up.
I know the chef.
But that is a place that youhave to visit.
Like the best seafood.
It's incredible.
Okay.
Your favorite restaurant.
Speaking of restaurants.
Your favorite restaurant inToronto and Vancouver.
One each.
SPEAKER_01 (29:51):
Oh, Vancouver?
Yeah.
Oh, well, Vancouver is easy.
It's Ban Lau.
So Ban Lau's fine dining.
SPEAKER_00 (29:57):
Yes.
You were there recently, ChefLucia.
SPEAKER_01 (30:01):
Yes, yes.
And it's unbelievable.
So highly, highly recommend.
SPEAKER_00 (30:05):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (30:05):
I don't, man, Toronto, I don't really think I
have one that's like a go-to, tobe honest.
I don't think I go there enoughto really be like, oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (30:15):
Okay, then.
So what would be your top two inVancouver?
SPEAKER_01 (30:19):
Ban Lau...
And then...
A
SPEAKER_00 (30:21):
little bit more casual.
What's like a casual place?
SPEAKER_01 (30:24):
Pajo's Fish and Ships on the water.
SPEAKER_00 (30:26):
Oh, yeah.
Okay.
Love it.
And your biggest pet peeve?
SPEAKER_01 (30:31):
My biggest pet peeve?
I mean, I don't know if I'mbeing annoying, but like what
annoys me?
I guess sort of like there'sdefinitely things.
SPEAKER_00 (30:44):
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (30:44):
There's definitely things.
I can't even think of them.
I mean, there's, I don't know.
There's so many things thatannoy me.
What can be one?
I mean, like super, I mean,like, like I guess dishonesty.
That's okay.
SPEAKER_00 (30:57):
For me, for me, it's someone putting their feet up on
the plane with bare feet.
SPEAKER_01 (31:03):
That's
SPEAKER_00 (31:04):
gross.
SPEAKER_01 (31:06):
Well, it was like, Oh, I was getting annoyed at
the, I was, I was deboarding aplane and people were not paying
attention in the thing.
And I was like, Like, we'redone.
Like, go.
Yeah,
SPEAKER_00 (31:17):
pay attention.
And so going from, you know,what annoys you, but what would
you say that people would saythat annoys them about you?
Do you have an annoying habitthat bothers people?
SPEAKER_01 (31:35):
I'm sure.
I'm not going to sit here andsay I don't.
I know I can be like, like,stubborn in the way I can be
sort of like adamant orpersistent to an to a fault to
an annoying level kind of likeit's kind of stubborn but like
(31:55):
the very specific thing that Ido I don't think actually falls
under stubbornness but it'ssimilar whereas like if I sort
of like decide, I think aboutsomething in a certain way.
I mean, this does sound likestubborn, but like, I'll just be
very adamant of, of the decisionthat I'll make that I've made.
And it can be annoying for sure.
SPEAKER_00 (32:14):
And lastly, a celebrity that you would want to
work with next for a dreamproject.
SPEAKER_01 (32:22):
Oh, I mean, I just want to shoot Beyonce and the
glam bot.
That's
SPEAKER_00 (32:25):
all right.
All right.
No, no, not just glam Bob, butlike actual like collaboration.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (32:32):
I mean, well, then Beyonce on a
SPEAKER_00 (32:33):
non-Global
SPEAKER_01 (32:36):
event.
That's true, the Beyonce.
SPEAKER_00 (32:39):
Okay, well, thank you so much again, Cole, for
being our first guest on ourpodcast.
Really appreciate you supportingand good luck with everything.
Thank you.
Of
SPEAKER_01 (32:48):
course, thank you for having me.
SPEAKER_00 (32:49):
Thank you.
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Thank you so much for watchingand listening in.
I hope you enjoyed it and Ican't wait to share with you our
next guest.
But for now, I hope you canfollow and subscribe.
Thanks for your support.
All right, welcome to the very first episode of
Evolve Magazine podcast.
I'm your host, Christina Carpio.
For today's inaugural episode,we're thrilled to have a very
special guest with us, aCanadian filmmaker, director, a
familiar face on the biggest redcarpets, best known for
capturing the glitz and theglamour with his glam bot.
(00:29):
Please join me in welcoming theone and only Cole Walser.
How are you?
SPEAKER_01 (00:35):
Hello, I'm doing fantastic.
How were you?
SPEAKER_00 (00:37):
Oh my goodness.
Thank you so much.
Thank you.
I'm so glad that you joined us.
First episode, this is that wewanted to pick someone really
special and we're so grateful tohave you, Cole.
SPEAKER_01 (00:48):
Awesome.
Yeah, I'm happy to be here.
SPEAKER_00 (00:49):
So the goal of this podcast, Cole, is to help, you
know, for us to help peoplenavigate change.
And we want to inspire ourlisteners, give valuable
insights into what it takes tonot only survive, but thrive.
And I would love to do a deeperdive into your experiences,
perspectives and growth in life.
And you have a very inspiringjourney.
(01:13):
And we want to learn all aboutyou today.
So let's get right into it.
So you're originally fromVancouver.
And you were actually apsychology major before diving
into filmmaking and creativework.
So let's talk about how you gotinto or how do you think your
(01:34):
psychology background kind ofinfluenced your creative process
as a filmmaker?
SPEAKER_01 (01:39):
Yeah, that's an interesting question because I
think it actually does a lot.
Like, yeah, I was in I grew upin Vancouver.
And so I went to UBC.
And I studied psychology.
I think I took away a couple ofthings from that experience.
One is like work ethic.
You know, I think if I moved toL.A.
like out of high school, Iwouldn't know how to work hard.
(01:59):
Like I really discovered how tohow to work hard sort of during
final season going to school.
Right.
Midterms and things you learnhow to buckle down.
So that was super valuable.
But then the idea of psychologyis really how people learn.
perceive and understand theworld around them.
And this includes being exposedto different sort of media,
different stories, storytelling,how people understand things,
(02:20):
perceive things and like feelabout things.
So I use the information I learnand just sort of generally like
how to think about communicationand perception.
I use those things in a subtleway to my advantage as a
director.
So it's not like super tangibleone-to-one, but I do think a lot
of the ideas about how peopleact and how people behave and
how we understand the worldaround us is really applicable
(02:41):
to my work as a director.
SPEAKER_00 (02:44):
So when you were in school in psychology, you
already had a passion forfilmmaking.
Is that what it was?
And then you decided to justfinish your program and...
SPEAKER_01 (02:54):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Filmmaking and passionstarted...
at a young age, I had a camerain my hand.
I learned how to edit like ontwo VCRs back in the day.
And this is sort of like whatgot me, what got me interested.
I was like, oh, this is reallycool.
I really, I discovered that Ienjoyed creating things and I
enjoyed sharing them, right?
Which is funny because this is20 years before social media,
but that's basically what itwas.
(03:15):
Like I liked making stuff and Ilike sharing it, you know?
And so I just kept, learning andlike shooting stuff with my
friends and like making littlevideos.
And this is just always like aside thing.
But as I was in university, Iwas working and I saved that
money and I bought a good cameraand I got a computer.
And I started really like withthe intention of maybe doing
like little jobs, like, okay,like I want to like I know I
(03:38):
like this enough to like spendsome time and energy like
learning.
And so I got the equipmentduring university and would just
shoot little jobs, shoot funlittle things with my friends
and just slowly tried to likebuild a career.
And then I got to the point as Iwas graduating, I was like,
okay, I can stay here inVancouver and like try to break
into the industry here or moveto LA.
And I sort of realized that theydon't really hire directors from
(04:01):
Vancouver.
And I sort of wanted to affordmyself all the opportunity I
could.
So I was like, okay, I think atthis point I need to go to LA.
So that's sort of like when Imade the decision to move to LA.
SPEAKER_00 (04:09):
Interesting.
And speaking of LA, what was theturning point when you realized
that you had, you know,obviously it's been a journey
for you to get from Vancouver toLA.
Was there a turning point inyour career that you had truly
realized that you made it inHollywood?
Was there a specific moment thatsolidified your place in the
industry?
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (04:26):
Not really.
I think the one thing that Ikind of realized is that
everybody always feels like anoutsider, no matter what level
you're at.
You know what I mean?
So I think that for a long time,it takes a while.
I think it just takes a whilefor you to feel that way.
And even so, like...
it's not like I feel like I'm aninsider now, but it's more like
(04:49):
I feel like I have job security.
Like, okay, like I can keepdoing this.
It feels like I'll probably keepdoing this for a little while.
So it's been 16 or 17 years.
But there was a point at which Ibought a house in LA based off
like making videos.
And I was like, okay, like thismust mean something.
Like this is a sort of amonumental moment that I was
(05:09):
able to like move to the Statesand find enough success to like
buy property buy land so thatwas definitely a big moment yeah
but it's always sort of likeevolving and changing and
moments of feeling really groundzero like at the Oscars and then
moments of feeling where you'rekind of like out of the loop,
you know what I mean?
(05:29):
You get all the experiences,
SPEAKER_00 (05:31):
right?
Oh, we'll get it right into thatfor sure.
Well, now many people dream ofworking, you know, with A-list
celebrities and, you know,you've done a lot of amazing
projects even before, you know,your GlamBot career.
What were some of the earlychallenges you faced in your
career that you can share withus and how did you stay
motivated and push?
I mean,
SPEAKER_01 (05:50):
early challenges is probably just finding work as a
creative freelancer, like thatis a big challenge, right?
Finding work.
I'm trying to think more likebroadly like that.
Yeah, it's just always likegrowing the career and like
trying to get it to take thetrajectory that you want.
This is always a challenge,right?
And I guess the one thing that Ilearned is that like along the
(06:10):
way, I, I am still, I'm facedwith the exact same challenge I
was a long time ago, because I'mstill trying to get jobs that
are good for me at this phase ofmy career.
I'm still trying to do otherthings that are, that I've never
done before at this stage of mycareer.
And this is in some level,exactly the same.
Now I may be further ahead fromwhere I was, but I'm still
(06:32):
trying to make the bestdecisions to get along my path.
And I realized that the It'sreally a direct line.
It's not like I'm like, oh, I'vedone like these Hollywood DGA
jobs and now everything'sdifferent.
It's still the same thing.
I just have more experience andmore time and more resources
now.
But the idea of like, I'm tryingto position myself to make the
(06:52):
best decision for my career isexactly the same as like
literally day one showing up inLA, you know?
SPEAKER_00 (06:57):
Right.
And I didn't know that you werea hip hop, uh, dance and break
teacher.
Like, I didn't know that.
That's amazing.
You were also a DJ.
You played in clubs in Vancouverand LA.
I mean, where did you even fitthat in your life?
And speaking of constantlyevolving, like, how do you
ensure that you're constantlyevolving in your career?
You've obviously gone to manydifferent directions.
SPEAKER_01 (07:20):
Yeah, I've always been someone that sort of, like,
chases my interests, you knowwhat I mean?
And I guess I kind of havebelieved that, like, if there's
something that, if you're goodat something, you can find a way
to sort of like monetize it,right?
So if I'm good enough at likeDJing, I can get a job DJing a
party or a club or whatever.
If I'm good enough at dancing, Ican either perform or I can
(07:42):
teach.
If I'm good enough at directing,I can get someone to like hire
me to make something for them.
And if these are things that Ienjoy, the time it takes to get
good will be an enjoyableprocess for the most part, you
know what I mean?
So I've always sort of decidedto kind of just like chase my
passion my interests and mypursuits.
And this started early, thisstarted early actually with
(08:03):
skateboarding.
Like I used to be a sponsoredskateboarder and snowboarder
when I was younger.
And I think that this reallyafforded me the idea that if I
do something well, I can getthings from it.
So, because I was quite young, Ithink I was sponsored when I was
12 maybe, by like a local skateshop in Richmond.
(08:24):
And then I got other sponsorsthroughout being like 13, 14,
15.
And at school, you know, like I,I would get recognition and sort
of notoriety because I was agood skateboarder and I would do
tricks.
You would be impressed.
And yeah, And I kind of realizedthat I could do something kind
of out of the system.
Like I wasn't like starbasketball player or like star
academic, but I was getting theattention in the same kind of a
(08:46):
way.
You know what I mean?
And I think I kind of likeplanted the seed that like, oh,
I can go do something and do itwell.
And then like cool things canhappen.
Like who knows what, but likesomething could happen.
Cause I think I learned thatfrom skateboarding.
And so I think I just sort ofapplied that to everything that
I did as my interests change.
as I started dancing and DJingand doing music and stuff, I
just figured if I do well atthis, then maybe there's some
(09:09):
opportunity there.
And there was.
And then the thing withfilmmaking is just like, I've
just never lost interest.
And that's just the thing that Ikeep doing to this day.
SPEAKER_00 (09:17):
I'm curious on your family background, because for
me, I came from the Philippinesto escape poverty.
And, you know, I came here, Ididn't speak, you know, English
that well, I wanted to be abroadcaster, I read the English
dictionary repeatedly to learnthe language, you know, it was
quite a journey.
And, you know, I wanted to livea different life coming here.
(09:39):
So my drive was different when Iwhen I came here.
So I worked really hard, youknow, so I'm wondering what your
background was like, you grew upin Vancouver.
And did you have strong familysupport?
Is that where, you know, thismotivation came from?
Like you're so driven to just gofor it.
SPEAKER_01 (09:58):
Yeah.
I don't, I don't know.
I mean, I mean, my familydefinitely supported me in the
sense of the, like both myparents encouraged me to, to do
what I enjoyed and to, and to bepassionate and to try hard and
to work hard at what I'm doing.
And I think I had a bit of whatyou're mentioning when I moved
to the States, because like,That was like, well, not only
(10:20):
did I have to get a lawyer andthere was a huge expense and
there was a time limit, like myvisa was for three years, I had
a time limit at which I had tosort of quote unquote prove
myself.
So there's a lot of pressurethere, which I think was in some
regard helpful.
But I don't know.
Yeah, I don't know where likeinherently it came from.
My family, my mom has expressedto me all of her reservations
(10:41):
about me moving to anothercountry to pursue the arts later
in life, in which she wasobviously quite nervous,
rightfully so.
UNKNOWN (10:48):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (10:48):
But the thing that I really appreciate that she did
was she was like, she made it apoint to not let me be aware of
it for, I think like just acouple years.
I don't know what it was.
I think she told herself, she'slike, I'm going to give him like
two years.
I'm not going to say when hecoming home or like anything
that would like, make me doubtmyself, I guess, or like
SPEAKER_00 (11:11):
make me wonder.
She was pretty trusting.
Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (11:14):
But you know, she was freaking out every month,
you know, whether I earnedenough money to live out here.
But the thing that she did thatI really do appreciate was her
just not letting me be privy tothat.
So I could go like discover myown thing.
And so that was super helpful.
But my parents have always beenhugely supportive in my
endeavors back then.
And then of course, now it'sjust
SPEAKER_00 (11:33):
like
SPEAKER_01 (11:33):
this thing now.
SPEAKER_00 (11:34):
Oh, I'm sure they're so proud of you.
Oh my goodness.
Now let's get into networkingand building relationships.
Relationships you've obviouslyworked with.
Some of the biggest stars inHollywood, not only you see them
on the red carpet, you'veactually worked with them and
collaborated with them likeMiley, Selena, Pink, Katy Perry.
Very impressive, Les Cole.
What is your approach tobuilding meaningful
(11:56):
relationships in an industrywhere networking is key and how
do you maintain them?
SPEAKER_01 (12:03):
That's a tricky and interesting question.
I think that I've always justfelt that like, if you are a
good person to work with, likewe've all worked with a bunch of
individuals and in the number ofpeople that you've worked with,
there's probably a handful thatyou would go, I will work with
(12:24):
them anytime.
I love this person, this person,like maybe not this person so
much or whatever, but there's afew people like in everybody's
orbit that they go like,whatever they want, I'm down.
Cause I know they like workhard.
They're like trusting, they'recreative.
And it's like, they don't cutany corners and they're just
like good people that work hard.
So understanding that I'm like,okay, if I can be that person to
(12:44):
everybody or the best I can,then it's like, I don't see, I
don't see why I wouldn't be ableto like build these connections.
Right.
So just this idea of likeworking hard, being good to work
with, being mindful, it justinherently I think is going to
have your network kind of extendand hopefully be people that you
(13:05):
kind of grow together with andhave long term working
relationships with.
That was kind of the intent.
And then, you know, just beinglike authentic to you and.
Right.
Right.
(13:38):
Um, yes and no periods where Ihave, you know, it's like, I've
definitely made, I'll say this.
I believe in manifestation in sofar, like not in the, in the, in
the woo woo sense.
SPEAKER_02 (13:56):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (13:56):
Right.
But in the sense of like, if I'mreminded of my goals and sort
of, if I can, if I have cuesaround me in my life that tap
into the feeling and the drivethat I'm those goals create in
me that is a tangible thing thatcan keep you on track motivated
and focused right so in thatsense something like a vision
(14:17):
board is super tangiblybeneficial because you're
looking at it going that's whati want and you're reminded and
you're like i'm gonna work andbecause because i think
fundamentally like your life isdetermined in your in your
minute decisions.
It's what you make on theselittle tiny decisions day to
day.
Because yes, I can decide tolike pursue some big dream, but
(14:37):
if I don't make the dailydecisions to get myself there,
like it's not happening, right?
So manifesting now be it avision board or sort of like
meditation, reciting mantras,things that keep you sort of
your goals in mind, I think arevery, very beneficial.
I'm not counting out the woo-woostuff, but I do know they
(14:58):
tangibly help.
in that regard.
So I do think that it's, thatit's beneficial.
I've gone through phases where Ido this.
I typically will review goalsaround the new year all the time
and I'll make a big list careerwise, personal wise, health
wise.
Like I write down sort ofdifferent goals, um, and
actually pin an alarm, uh, in mycalendar at the first of every
(15:20):
month, kind of like just gothrough them and read them.
Sometimes I don't read them whenthey pop up.
Sometimes I do.
Um, But I think keeping yourselfaccountable is a good way.
Yeah, and then I check them offat the end of the year and I
write new ones, basically.
SPEAKER_00 (15:35):
Sounds good.
And speaking of vision boards,did you...
ever had the glam bot in yourvision board or did that just
like happen?
SPEAKER_01 (15:43):
Yeah, no, I never had the glam bot in my vision
board.
I don't think I would have knownwhat it was at any time.
I didn't know what it was untilI started doing it really,
SPEAKER_00 (15:51):
right?
Let's make it clear that youdidn't invent the glam bot.
The glam bots exist becauseyou're the glam bot
SPEAKER_01 (15:59):
guy.
the camera system existed andthe robot arm existed and the,
and the system we use to shoottalent existed, but the fact of
shooting talent on the redcarpet, I guess, didn't exist.
Right.
But the system is a system usedin like film production all the
time.
Right.
So that system is used.
The glam bot is actually an Eterm because they sort of
(16:20):
invented the application on thered carpet.
Yeah.
But yeah, Yeah,
SPEAKER_00 (16:27):
it's sort of a- It wasn't on your vision board.
It wasn't on
SPEAKER_01 (16:30):
my
SPEAKER_00 (16:30):
vision board.
Now, let's go back to the redcarpet.
So I know you get asked this alot, like your most memorable or
favorite, a glam bot moment onthe red carpet.
SPEAKER_01 (16:43):
There's a couple, but one that really stands out
is the one with Brad Pitt in2020.
Because like, for me, I grew upwatching his movies.
Like, as big as celebrities aslike Ariana Grande and like
Billie Eilish are, I didn't likegrow up listening to their
music, but Brad Pitt, I grew upwatching his movies.
(17:04):
So for me to meet him and forhim to do an awesome glam bot
and for him to be super cool,this was like a, a big moment
for younger Cole.
You know what I mean?
So that one definitely standsout.
And then I do think that thefirst Ariana Grande, the Grammys
that same year, I think 2020 wasone of the best glam bots I've
ever shot.
So that's a,
SPEAKER_00 (17:23):
And I love how I love when you're when they're
there, like, you don't, youwouldn't necessarily think that
it's going to be like a wowmoment.
But for example, Billie Eilish,the smallest movements, just
made made a big difference, likewatching the in at the Oscars in
2022.
Her glam bought, I was justlike, she didn't do much.
She was just like, and then, youknow, The glam bot was just
(17:45):
phenomenal.
I was like, holy cow.
I
SPEAKER_01 (17:48):
use that one as an example of that.
You don't have to do much.
Cause I do tend to try to pushfor bigger movement.
Right.
Cause like it is easier in asense, if you have this big
dress, it's like flowing, that'salways going to be cool in slow
motion.
So that's sort of like a highprobability of it being cool.
But as Billie Eilish and a fewothers have demonstrated, like
sometimes like the smallestmovement can be the most like
(18:09):
magical glam bots.
So you never really know.
That's kind of what makes itfun.
SPEAKER_00 (18:12):
We see you directing them right before the shot.
Do they actually listen to you?
Like actually take?
I don't know.
You tell me.
I mean, you guys
SPEAKER_01 (18:20):
see the footage too.
So you tell me.
SPEAKER_00 (18:21):
I mean, they're all amazing like at the end.
But, you know, we can see youdirecting them, you know, how to
move and things like that.
But do you see them actuallyfollowing through?
It
SPEAKER_01 (18:32):
depends.
I think it's kind of like...
Yeah, it's kind of like 50-50.
I think a lot of the times, Ithink actually a lot of the
times, talent doesn't actuallyknow what they're going to do
until I call action.
Right.
So, like, I'll be like, oh,maybe this, maybe that.
And they're like, yeah, okay,okay.
Like, and I know, sometimes Iknow they don't know.
Like, I know they're going like,yeah, yeah, yeah.
(18:53):
Because I know that, but to me,that tells me that they're
confident enough to, like, whipout something.
Like, whatever comes out isgoing to be cool.
Yeah.
I know that they know that likewhatever is going to happen is
going to be cool.
So it's like I get the sensethat like, okay, let me not push
them to like for them to tell meexactly what it's going to be.
Let's just like roll it becauseI can sense that they know
(19:13):
they're going to do something.
And then I call action and thenthey do something and it's
almost always really cool,right?
So a lot of my job is like kindof trying to suss out what– Like
when to push, when not to push,when we're just going to roll
the dice and see what happenskind of a thing.
That I think is sort of likemore my job rather than
prescribing a specific move,which I generally tend not to
(19:34):
do.
Because like if I tell you toput your arm a certain way, it
might be foreign in your body.
It might look weird.
So I try not to do that toomuch.
SPEAKER_00 (19:40):
Yeah.
At the end of the day, you guidethem and then it's up to them
like what to do.
And you know as well if theyhaven't done it before, right?
If it's their first time, thenyou give them a little bit of
direction.
But going back to wellness– Youmentioned wellness earlier.
How do you maintain a healthywork-life balance?
You're obviously a very busyperson.
And how do you ensure thatyou're taking care of yourself
(20:02):
physically and mentally?
SPEAKER_01 (20:03):
It's always a balance trying to...
A
SPEAKER_00 (20:07):
balance in a battle, wouldn't you say?
Yeah, a
SPEAKER_01 (20:10):
balance in a battle in trying to maintain a level of
sustainability in your work-lifebalance.
So the thing that I think hashelped, because yeah, it's
always a battle.
It's always these things aresomewhat in opposition where
you're like, I could work, but Ineed to chill or I need to take
a break or I could work harder.
And recognizing that you'll gothrough phases.
(20:33):
And I think both of these phasesare really important where
you're like reallyhyper-focused, really driven,
putting a lot of things to theside to like achieve the thing
that you want to achieve.
And then there's moments where,you know, you're taking a step
back.
You're like either overwhelmedor you need some time and you're
really like taking whatever thetime is.
This could be an hour in a dayor two weeks or like two months
(20:55):
where you're kind of just like,I am just taking a break.
I'm not going to stress overlike all these things I want to
accomplish.
Like knowing that you will getback to a phase of like really
pushing hard.
I think sometimes you do need tokick yourself in the butt if
those periods last too long.
But I do think it's valuable torecognize that it's going to ebb
(21:16):
and flow.
And the idea that you're alwayshammering it to get accomplished
what you want to accomplish isnot a good way of thinking, nor
is it that you're always goingto try to nail that perfect
work-life balance and hit thatexactly on the dot all the time.
Cause that I think isunachievable.
I think just sort of recognizingthat you're going to ebb and
(21:37):
flow in between like pushingreally hard and then sitting
back and kind of just taking a,taking a moment.
I think that that's all fine.
You just sort of, maybe youshould set like duration
periods.
Cause you also don't want tolike grind for too long.
You don't want to chill for toolong, whatever that means to
you, if it's in a day or like aweek or a But just, yeah,
understanding that those ebb andflow and then try not to go too
(21:57):
far in one direction.
Right.
SPEAKER_02 (21:59):
I
SPEAKER_01 (21:59):
don't want to go too far chill mode or too far like
grind mode.
SPEAKER_00 (22:03):
Yeah,
SPEAKER_01 (22:04):
I think I think then it's hard to it's hard to
re-steer the ship a little bit.
SPEAKER_00 (22:07):
So finding the balance for sure.
Yeah, because I don't likegetting too comfortable.
And then, you know, it's yeah, Ilove what you said there.
Now, looking back in yourcareer, Cole, was there any like
biggest risk that you rememberthat you took and then it paid
off?
SPEAKER_01 (22:25):
I'm moving to LA.
That
SPEAKER_00 (22:28):
was quite a process, wasn't it for you?
SPEAKER_01 (22:30):
It was a process.
The whole immigration was aprocess.
I do think it paid off in theend.
So that is, I can confidentlysay that now.
Other than that, I mean, there'smoments where I've shifted my
career.
You know, where I do think thissort of end result still is kind
of like, because it always triedto get getting me to where I am
(22:53):
today.
But there was no like.
There was no like, let meremortgage my house to buy like
a camera.
Like there was
SPEAKER_02 (22:59):
nothing
SPEAKER_01 (23:00):
like that.
But it was sort of like, youknow, when I first moved to LA,
I was editing a lot becausethose are the jobs I could get.
And then there was a momentwhere I was like, hey, look, I'm
going to try to not edit becauseI'm going to try to pay money to
someone who can edit so I canfocus on like my next directing
job.
And this was like, in essencecosting me money because I'm
(23:20):
working less and I'm paying outsomeone but it sort of afforded
me time and energy to like buildthe directing career so that was
like a risk you know what I meanlike I could either keep you
know you always when you'refreelancers like you want to
work as much as you can but I'mtrying to position myself to get
to where I want to get to andsometimes you sort of have to
like let some things go to likeopen up time or energy to focus
(23:41):
on something else so even smallthings like that of like okay
I'm going to stop editing tolike focus more on directing or
I'm going to stop DJing justcompletely to just focus on like
editing and directing.
So those types of decisions, Ithink, were some forms of risk.
And then, I mean, I definitelyhave like invested in camera
gear and stuff where at the timeyou're like, oh, geez, it's a
(24:01):
lot of money, you know, andsomewhat of a risk.
But I think it's all sort ofpaid off in the end.
SPEAKER_00 (24:06):
And did you envision yourself being in front of the
camera?
Because you were always behindthe camera.
SPEAKER_01 (24:12):
Oh, really?
No, no, I never envisioned that.
SPEAKER_00 (24:14):
How do you like it?
Because I know some people arejust not, you know, a fan of
being on camera.
Are you?
I mean, obviously, it's such afun job.
Like, are you loving it?
SPEAKER_01 (24:25):
Yeah, I am definitely loving it.
But it definitely it takes timegetting used to, you know what I
mean?
UNKNOWN (24:29):
Like,
SPEAKER_01 (24:29):
Being on camera is a thing that it's a skill that
like you can improve at and youcan do better at it.
And I think what happens a lotof the time is that people see
other people like thrive oncamera, be natural, have fun.
And like, it looks like it'senjoyable.
SPEAKER_02 (24:44):
And
SPEAKER_01 (24:45):
then when someone turns the camera on themselves
for the first time, you feelsuper anxious, super
self-conscious, and youessentially hate it.
Like guaranteed you hate it.
I mean, you know, some peopledon't, but vast majority of
people hate it.
And then I think all too oftenpeople are like, it's not for
me.
Like, I don't like it.
I don't embrace it.
And then they see people thatlike have been doing it for a
long time and like really relaxthem and find they're like, I'm
(25:05):
not that, I'm not like that.
And they cut themselves off.
So, you know, it was a thingthat I had to get used to and a
period of it being awkward, butlike sort of recognizing like,
okay, I know this is going to beawkward.
I know it's going to be, it'sgoing to feel cool.
But if I want, again, if I wantthe career that I want, you
know, I need to figure out howto embrace this.
SPEAKER_00 (25:25):
Yeah.
You really have to be open toanything, right?
So, especially things that youweren't really so comfortable
with.
And it just, you never know, itopens doors, right?
So just go for it.
SPEAKER_01 (25:34):
Yeah, especially now in the way like media works.
It's like, I think we allbasically...
an entertainer is on all sidesof the camera now.
It's like they're making theirown content on social, they're
being in it, they're producingstuff.
And so it really is beneficialto share your personality in the
work that you do.
So there was a good reason toget comfortable in front of the
(25:56):
camera.
SPEAKER_00 (25:57):
So lastly, Cole, my question is very simple, but
sometimes difficult to answer.
Are you happy?
SPEAKER_01 (26:05):
Yes, I will say I am happy.
This is a question that evensomeone like myself, who from
the outside looking in is like,oh, everything, you know,
there's so much going on andthis is true and this is all
great.
But it's a thing that we'realways sort of like, again,
navigating, you know what Imean?
(26:26):
It's like, well, what you'realways faced with the question
of like, okay, well, what trulybrings me happiness?
And I think there's so muchgoing on in my life that I'm
like truly thankful for.
And I do think that sort oflike, I do think in some sense,
like, It's just going to sound,I don't know.
It's going to sound notpretentious, but like, like I do
think that like happiness issomewhat of a choice.
(26:48):
And I do, I did believe thissort of before I found success,
where it is a bit of a functionof looking at your life and sort
of appreciating what there isthat is there that you can be
thankful for.
You're happy that you have and,and trying to navigate that.
And that isn't to say like,while I do say, yes, I am happy.
(27:08):
It isn't to say that everymoment of my life is like full
of joy.
There's moments that are quitedifficult and, you know,
whatever's going on from a cutestandpoint or like from the
broader standpoint that arechallenging.
And just like everything we'vebeen talking, it's all a
balance.
And I also think that likehappiness is sort of like a bit
of a yin and yang where like itexists because there's also
(27:28):
these other moments that are theopposite of that.
You know what I mean?
Like feeling truly happy andsort of appreciating it only
really has context in moments oflike, that are in opposition to
it, right?
So I kind of believe that weshould just like flow through
those and experience like thehighs and lows.
You just want to kind of be onthe...
(27:50):
happy side at least 51% of thetime, you
SPEAKER_00 (27:52):
know?
Right.
Yeah.
You can't be always a hundredpercent happy.
There's just no way it'simpossible.
SPEAKER_01 (27:58):
And if you see someone like that, I'm like,
they're faking it.
SPEAKER_00 (28:01):
It's not real.
I'm
SPEAKER_01 (28:02):
something serious back there,
SPEAKER_00 (28:03):
you know?
So true.
Well, thank you so much for yourtime before I go.
I typically do like rapid firequestions at the end.
Do you mind just very quickly?
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (28:12):
I'll try to answer succinctly here.
SPEAKER_00 (28:15):
Rapid fire questions.
Here we go.
Top three albums on Spotify.
SPEAKER_01 (28:19):
Well, I'm Apple Music, so
SPEAKER_00 (28:21):
start there.
Or Apple Music.
SPEAKER_01 (28:23):
Man, of all times.
See, I'm just going to laborthis.
I will say I've been listeningto the new Drake and Party Next
Door album.
That's been fun.
That just came out a couple daysago.
But other than that, likelong-time playing albums is
like, oh, man, John MayerContinuum.
That album has been always athing.
And I'll say Beastie Boys'Paul's Boutique, an old, old
(28:45):
album that still gets rotation.
SPEAKER_00 (28:47):
Okay.
And three things that you missthe most in Canada?
SPEAKER_01 (28:52):
Oh, aside from family and friends.
SPEAKER_00 (28:56):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (28:57):
The grouse grind.
SPEAKER_00 (28:59):
Oh my gosh, I've done it.
It's so fun.
SPEAKER_01 (29:02):
I mean, there are hikes out here in LA, but I
don't know.
There's just something about thecold mountain air in Vancouver
that I appreciate.
And
SPEAKER_00 (29:09):
when you get to the top, there's a bar.
SPEAKER_01 (29:12):
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
And then you just take the tramdown and you're good.
So that is quite the experience.
I miss that.
I miss good fish and chips inSteveston, in Richmond, where
I'm from.
And well, I guess with food,poutine.
There's no good poutine outhere.
SPEAKER_00 (29:28):
Now, have you been to the Fishman restaurant in
Richmond?
SPEAKER_01 (29:33):
Fish man?
No.
Where is that?
SPEAKER_00 (29:35):
It's in Richmond.
I'll hook you up.
I know the chef.
But that is a place that youhave to visit.
Like the best seafood.
It's incredible.
Okay.
Your favorite restaurant.
Speaking of restaurants.
Your favorite restaurant inToronto and Vancouver.
One each.
SPEAKER_01 (29:51):
Oh, Vancouver?
Yeah.
Oh, well, Vancouver is easy.
It's Ban Lau.
So Ban Lau's fine dining.
SPEAKER_00 (29:57):
Yes.
You were there recently, ChefLucia.
SPEAKER_01 (30:01):
Yes, yes.
And it's unbelievable.
So highly, highly recommend.
SPEAKER_00 (30:05):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (30:05):
I don't, man, Toronto, I don't really think I
have one that's like a go-to, tobe honest.
I don't think I go there enoughto really be like, oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (30:15):
Okay, then.
So what would be your top two inVancouver?
SPEAKER_01 (30:19):
Ban Lau...
And then...
A
SPEAKER_00 (30:21):
little bit more casual.
What's like a casual place?
SPEAKER_01 (30:24):
Pajo's Fish and Ships on the water.
SPEAKER_00 (30:26):
Oh, yeah.
Okay.
Love it.
And your biggest pet peeve?
SPEAKER_01 (30:31):
My biggest pet peeve?
I mean, I don't know if I'mbeing annoying, but like what
annoys me?
I guess sort of like there'sdefinitely things.
SPEAKER_00 (30:44):
Okay.
SPEAKER_01 (30:44):
There's definitely things.
I can't even think of them.
I mean, there's, I don't know.
There's so many things thatannoy me.
What can be one?
I mean, like super, I mean,like, like I guess dishonesty.
That's okay.
SPEAKER_00 (30:57):
For me, for me, it's someone putting their feet up on
the plane with bare feet.
SPEAKER_01 (31:03):
That's
SPEAKER_00 (31:04):
gross.
SPEAKER_01 (31:06):
Well, it was like, Oh, I was getting annoyed at
the, I was, I was deboarding aplane and people were not paying
attention in the thing.
And I was like, Like, we'redone.
Like, go.
Yeah,
SPEAKER_00 (31:17):
pay attention.
And so going from, you know,what annoys you, but what would
you say that people would saythat annoys them about you?
Do you have an annoying habitthat bothers people?
SPEAKER_01 (31:35):
I'm sure.
I'm not going to sit here andsay I don't.
I know I can be like, like,stubborn in the way I can be
sort of like adamant orpersistent to an to a fault to
an annoying level kind of likeit's kind of stubborn but like
(31:55):
the very specific thing that Ido I don't think actually falls
under stubbornness but it'ssimilar whereas like if I sort
of like decide, I think aboutsomething in a certain way.
I mean, this does sound likestubborn, but like, I'll just be
very adamant of, of the decisionthat I'll make that I've made.
And it can be annoying for sure.
SPEAKER_00 (32:14):
And lastly, a celebrity that you would want to
work with next for a dreamproject.
SPEAKER_01 (32:22):
Oh, I mean, I just want to shoot Beyonce and the
glam bot.
That's
SPEAKER_00 (32:25):
all right.
All right.
No, no, not just glam Bob, butlike actual like collaboration.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (32:32):
I mean, well, then Beyonce on a
SPEAKER_00 (32:33):
non-Global
SPEAKER_01 (32:36):
event.
That's true, the Beyonce.
SPEAKER_00 (32:39):
Okay, well, thank you so much again, Cole, for
being our first guest on ourpodcast.
Really appreciate you supportingand good luck with everything.
Thank you.
Of
SPEAKER_01 (32:48):
course, thank you for having me.
SPEAKER_00 (32:49):
Thank you.
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