We were lucky to catch up with Chak Hon Rex Wong recently and have shared our conversation below.

Rex, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did  you learn to do what you do? Knowing what you know now, what  could you have done to speed up your learning process? What skills  do you think were most essential? What obstacles stood in the way  of learning more?

The biggest obstacle that stood in the way of learning is time. Learning to be an  assistant camera and cinematographer is an ongoing process of trial and error. I often  learn by observing, then implement them into my workflow and see what works and  what doesn’t. Staying humble and open-minded are the most crucial in film, there are  always something I don’t know and areas that I can do better in. I wish I had watched  shows and been on more sets to have a better view of what’s new and good in the  industry.

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?

Of course! My name is Rex Wong, I’m a camera assistant and cinematographer based in  Atlanta, GA. Born and raised in Hong Kong, studied Film and Photography at the  Savannah College of Art and Design. I first started doing small-scale photography and  videography back in Hong Kong shooting a variety of subjects. When I moved to the  States this year to finish my degree, I was introduced to the narrative world and film  world, the workflow on set, and being a director of photography in general. I enjoy  working with crew a lot since everyone can focus on doing one job only and excel in  their position. Unlike videography where you have to be in charge of everything on a  shallower level, you just can’t dial everything in. Looking at the outcome of the  collaboration with my team always made me proud. I aim to maintain a high level of  professionalism at work, no matter what level of production it is, I always give them my A-game. That is something I am most proud of and trying to maintain throughout all  the projects.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

My film life has always been on a rollercoaster. Long story short, I failed Chinese in Hong  Kong’s public exam and could not get into any local universities that offer film programs. I  was so upset and thought my future is gone, I might just end up working as a lifeguard for  the rest of my life. Luckily with my parent’s support, I ended up applying for SCAD Hong  Kong to do Photography. It is a great major to start with, I had a great time learning  different aspects of photography with professors and classmates. I enjoyed competing with  each other and getting pushed by my peers and professors to create a better body of work.  My end goal for my professional career is still film, I wish I can work professionally in film  and do fine art photography projects on the side. 

I decided to switch my major to Film right when COVID hits the world and did most of the  film classes online. During my time in Hong Kong, I was taking online classes, freelancing,  and working three intern jobs on the side. I was first introduced to the film world when I  moved here for class this year, I tried to be on set every weekend in my first quarter here  

just to put myself out there to meet more people and to see how sets are run, they were all  very new to me. I was fortunate enough to meet some very talented people and to be  invited to join different productions as assistant cameras and cinematographers. In just 8  months, I had my first ever set, shot my first ever narrative project, shot my thesis projects,  and graduated. I like the film and production scene here and just wish I have more time at  school to work on more projects to learn from my mistakes and to build a more  comprehensive portfolio. 

At this point, I thought I would never go back to the videography world because I am so  used to working with crew, having bigger setups, well-organized productions, and so on,  working on projects with higher production values is just way more satisfying. After graduation, I moved to Atlanta with my friends in film and recently started working as  a full-time Cinematographer/Videographer for a company to meet my visa requirements. So  I guess life sometimes won’t go exactly where I wanted it to be but I believe it will get me  somewhere close eventually if I keep learning and stay humble. 

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Just like a lot of cinematographers, I hate most of my work. There is just way more to improve on every shoot. But I guess the most rewarding aspect of being a creative is to  have someone critique my work and give inspirational suggestions. Getting opinions  from a new perspective always helps me in thinking and it helps bring my work to a  better level. I am super grateful for those who offered me a chance to work with them  along the way.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.rexwch.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rex_wch/
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/rex-wch

Image Credits
@courtneysawitch_photo @jacobho__ @katie.e.lecluyse @pingpong_matcha @shadow69qm  @zackgrella