CULTURE

Glitter talks TIFF Next Wave with Winnie Wang

Winnie Wang - Photo by Geoff Gunn for TIFF

Winnie Wang

Age: 16

Spirit Animal: Britta Perry

The Movie that Changed Everything: The Social Network

Something no one knows about me (until now):

I love typography and have about a hundred variants of Helvetica.

Dragons or Unicorns: Unicorns

Pirates or ninjas: Pirates

“I’ve always loved watching films but I had never done anything about it. When I realized that I lived in a city that hosts a major film festival annually, I thought it would be a great opportunity to learn and get involved with the community, and especially people of my age. Outside of Next Wave, my interests include typography, TV, and trivia. After high school, I’d like to get into the field of biology or psychology.”

GLITTER: Can you tell us about TIFF Next Wave?

WINNIE: The TIFF Next Wave Committee is a group of twelve teens who help plan the TIFF Next Wave Film Festival that takes place every February. We’re a group of young people who are passionate about films in different ways: some of us want to write them, some want to direct them and others, like me, just love watching them. The festival we help to plan is specially programmed for youth and it’s a good starting point for teens who want to be more exposed to cinema.

GLITTER: How can others get involved in TIFF Next Wave?

WINNIE: The TIFF Next Wave Film Festival takes place in Toronto. People can spread the word and bring their friends to the festival. Teens also have the opportunity to volunteer during the TIFF Next Wave Film Festival, and the best part is that they can get their community service hours. Those that have a keen interest in film can apply to join the committee to plan next year’s festival.

GLITTER: Do you know what you want to do outside of high school?

WINNIE: I’d love to study biology in University and get a career in that field. I watched House MD growing up and as silly as it may sound, I want to become a physician because of the show. I would also love to get involved with graphic design somehow.

GLITTER: The movie that changed everything for you is The Social Network. Can you tell us why?

WINNIE: When I watched it I was at the age where a good film could have a really big impact on me, so The Social Network was a formative influence to my appreciation for film. When I walked out of the theatre that day it was the first time I thought, “Wow, I can’t wait to see that again.” The film had beautiful cinematography that framed actors who could deliver performances that did justice to the writing– everything about it was perfect.

GLITTER: What’s one thing that people don’t know about you but should?

WINNIE: One of the extra-curriculars I look forward to every week is Trivia Club at Don Mills Collegiate Institute.  I love getting obscure questions that I know the answer to because of completely unrelated past experiences. It makes me feel like Jamal Malik from Slumdog Millionaire.

GLITTER: If you could have dinner with anyone alive or dead, who would it be and why?

WINNIE: I would work with Jessica Hische, my idol. Not only is she an incredibly talented letterer and illustrator who created the typeface for Moonrise Kingdom, but she’s also a pop culture junkie. We would relate on so many levels because of our mutual love for design and TV. She’s the best of both worlds.

GLITTER: If you could work with anyone at all, who would it be and why?

WINNIE: Wes Anderson. As well as being a director, he also writes and produces most of his films so I know he’s multi-talented and I have faith that whatever he makes will turn out great. He has a very distinct visual style that I admire and I’d love to collaborate with him to get across his vision, or even work with him on a different medium, like print.

GLITTER: What advice do you have for teens who are scared to go for it in life?

WINNIE: Don’t be afraid of rejection or failure. You have nothing to lose because the worst thing that can happen is not getting it right the first time, but with that you still gain experience. Seek out opportunities and get involved in what you love because you won’t get anything done just sitting around.

GLITTER: You love typography. Can you tell us how you became interested in typography?

WINNIE: My love for art, design and film stem from being a very visual person, and typography is where those things overlap. Typography’s interesting because the history goes farther back than most people think and it affects us on a daily basis without us knowing, so being consciously aware of it can be rewarding.

GLITTER: We understand you love pirates over ninjas so do you love Jack Sparrow? We do. 🙂

WINNIE: Of course, who doesn’t love Johnny Depp?!

GLITTER: Do you have a celebrity crush on anyone?

WINNIE: Ezra Koenig, for sure. He can be eloquent and string together great lyrics full of metaphors when he’s writing songs for Vampire Weekend, or use wordplay to compose witty to nonsensical tweets online. I love that he describes his style as “preppy Hamlet.”