We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Max Pearce a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Max, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. If you could go back in time do you wish you had started your creative career sooner or later?

If you start later you bring more maturity and experience to your work, but if you start earlier you have more time to hone your craft. There is so much out of our control when it comes to timing. I started in earnest in 2013 when I was twenty-two. I’m glad I’ve been able to hone my craft since then.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I am a graduate of the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts, holding a Master’s Degree in film production. I got into storytelling when I was in high school where I was a member of the drama club, writing and performing in a number of plays. After spending a year abroad, I studied acting where I met my first creative community. Together we shot small projects trying to hone our acting chops for film and television. Making these small projects made me realize I enjoyed being behind a camera more than in front of one. I did my undergrad at Capilano University, obtaining my BFA in motion picture arts. I worked in the film industry for a few years as an assistant director and dolly grip before getting into USC.

At USC I met my wife and creative partner Maria Sara, with whom I started Bantam Bears Productions. Together, we aim to make grounded sci-if, fantasy, and adventure films with a focus on properly representing mental health issues, internationally diverse casts, and LGBTQ+ characters.

We recently finished producing our first feature film, Jack & Lou, which comes out next year. We are also currently in development on several projects all based on original IPs.

Our USC thesis film, Apotheosis, is on track to get 250k views on DUST in its first year of streaming. It will also soon be available on the Prime video channel ShortsTV.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

A desire to connect with those on the same wavelength, so that those lonely souls too feel seen. Through this desire is a hope to make the world more empathetic and embracing for all people, while instilling a deep respect for nature, offer a means of exploring spirituality, and inspiring benevolent progress.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

Our society is obsessed with monetizing and capitalizing everything. It is the dream to be able to make a living off your art and creativity, but not everything needs to make money in order to be worth doing. This monetization leads to a false sense of what we value when it comes to creative expressions. People create now to chase fame and fortune rather than creating as a pure expression of their human experience. It is a reality that all art forms have been made into businesses, and those that seek to make a living from it need to ensure that their recent project does well enough so they can finance their next project. Imagine if we could create just for the sake of expressing ourselves.

Society needs to reevaluate how it values artistic expressions, whether they be films, music, or artwork. Entertainment is important. But so are works that make us feel sorrow. So are works that make us question or deeply held views. Just like a diverse diet of food is good for the body, a diverse diet of art is good for the soul.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.bantambears.com
• Instagram: @maximus_pearcius
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/XlcuKadMBlE?si=Qp25okaBaabJdDcj

Image Credits
Amber Jones Rielle Oase