EP #18: Thusy Suntharam – Montreal Filmmaker Pursuing Big Screen Dreams While Working A 9-to-5

Thusy Suntharam is a Montreal-based filmmaker and the founder of T-Factory Entertainment. He joins Ara to discuss his film “Love at First Swipe” (which has over 150,000+ YouTube views), creating stories for the Tamil Diaspora, balancing a full-time job while working on passion projects, the power of taking small but consistent steps, the impact of Rajinikanth on Tamil cinema, and much more. Follow Thusy - https://www.instagram.com/thusyse/Timestamps00:54 - Introducing Thusy Suntharam02:05 - How social media connected Thusy & Ara04:55 - Music videos launched Thusy's directorial experience06:56 - The inception of T-Factory Entertainment08:09 - Balancing a full-time job with his passion of filmmaking10:34 - The power of consistency and taking small steps12:49 - Why showing up is the victory14:24 - The importance of having a team16:58 - How "Love At First Sight" came to be19:35 - The Montreal Tamil community’s support for Thusy’s first in-theatre premiere22:30 - Normalizing conversations about previously taboo subjects through film25:05 - Why Thusy spent money and paid vacation to work on a film project27:08 - The power of investing in yourself28:35 - Learning is free if you just put in the effort31:25 - Responsibilities of immigrant children33:21 - Impact of COVID on Thusy from a creative perspective36:36 - Failure that Thusy learned from40:06 - Thusy's future plans42:31 - Wanting to tell the stories of the Tamil disapora44:45 - Better human means better storyteller46:46 - The impact of Rajinikanth50:41 - Work on delaying gratification52:22 - Would you Rather?55:40 - The Wrap UpSupport the show