We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tyler Ham Pong. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Tyler below.
Tyler, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to go back in time and hear the story of how you came up with the name of your brand?
People ask about our name all the time, so it’s definitely a conversation starter. At its heart, Kill the Pig Productions is a reference to “Lord of the Flies” — and like those lost boys in the novel, we’re independent, we’re scrappy, and we do it ourselves. In that way, our name is also a battle cry against the establishment. Filmmaking is a competitive industry, and both my wife and I have had to make our own opportunities to level-up and be heard amongst the noise.
Anecdotally, I also wanted to name my company after pigs because of my last name: Ham Pong. So the meaning is slightly self-deprecating.
Tyler, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I got into the industry as an actor/writer from Canada who had moved to New York to study theatre. There, I wrote and produced two Off-off-Broadway plays before making my first film under the newly-minted Kill the Pig Productions. Afterwards, I moved to Los Angeles and continued making award-winning films, including “Leap” and “CLUB RAT$,” both now streaming on Amazon Video Direct. Given my background as an actor who has self-generated opportunities, I expanded my production company to offer the same services to other actors. We photograph headshots, we film and edit audition and films, we’re actor advocates through-and-through. And we’re always so proud when one of our clients books a project from our headshots, auditions, or short films.
We also offer general photography and videography services, and have had the pleasure of providing production services for San Francisco Opera, Petipa Heritage Foundation, Red Curtain Addict, Asian American Film Lab, Anthony Meindl’s Actor Workshop, social media influencer Rahul Rai, musician Chikk, and more.
How’d you meet your business partner?
My wife helps me run the production company, and we actually met on set when she was making one of her first films. I was cast as one of the lead roles opposite her, and we hit it off onscreen and offscreen. But don’t worry, we were professional! I asked her out after the wrap party. Since then, we’ve helped each grow so much as actors and filmmakers.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
The most rewarding part of being a filmmaker is knowing the joy that it brings the actors and on-screen talent. When they know they’re in good hands because I’ve got them covered technically, but can also personally relate and guide them through the stressors of being on camera. Many clients have told us about how they have fun and feel comfortable working with us, and we work very hard to cultivate a positive and productive set environment.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.killthepigproductions.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/ktpproductions
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/killthepigproductions
- Youtube: www.youtube.com/@killthepigproductions
Image Credits
Michael Sung Ho