Fostering Connections - an interview with Olivia Griselda
Embark on a captivating exploration with Olivia Griselda, a Singapore-based writer, director, and producer hailing from Indonesia.
Olivia, an active member of Uncommon, shares her insights on fostering genuine connections in bustling city environments.
Through personal anecdotes and reflections, Olivia unveils the essence of authentic interaction and its transformative power in urban landscapes.
Join us in unraveling the uncommon wisdom that shapes Olivia's perspective on connection and community in her featured blog.
From your experience, how do you manage to foster authentic connections with others in a bustling city environment?
I remember a saying along the line of: “People may not remember your name, but they remember how you made them feel.” I think it was a Maya Angelou quote. This saying often rings in my head whenever I interact with strangers, and it reminds me of how important it is to be present when forming any new connections or deepening any existing connections.
I also learnt that being curious and open-minded makes forming new connections easier, even with people from different backgrounds. It’s hard not to make quick assumptions of others, and I have to stop myself from doing that and jumping into conclusions. I try to better understand the other person’s stories by asking questions or paraphrasing what they had shared. I often find that when conversation parties are genuinely curious about each other, the connections tend to form more quickly and more authentic as both parties become more comfortable in exchanging stories and perspectives.
More often than not, when I share a story of my failure or struggle, the other party would usually share interesting stories and perspectives as well. On the other hand, when people share an issue that they’re facing, I tend to steer clear from providing them any advice or fixes, unless they ask for my perspectives. My tendency is to listen more and speak less.
Could you describe a key personal learning that had a significant impact on you and your ability to connect with people?
Around ten years ago, I went to a Zespri morning rave exercise party with my friend and her friend. The three of us had fun dancing, and I noticed two boys of similar age who were dancing close to us, but we didn’t exchange any words. Later, I posted about the party on Instagram. About six hours later, I received an Instagram direct message from a stranger. The person turned out to be one of the two boys, and he wanted to reach out to my friend’s friend. I didn’t observe anything suspicious about the two boys during the party, so with my friend’s help, I managed to pass the boy’s phone number to my friend’s friend. Lo and behold, the two of them started dating, and they married each other four years later!
This funny experience made me ponder what if I had ignored the boy’s message and not connected the two people? They wouldn’t have gotten married to each other! It shook me to think that I was a link within a chain of events. The experience taught me a lot about trusting my gut when introducing two people who don’t know each other, but whom I think would sync well as friends or collaborators. I’d always check in with the two parties if they’d be comfortable with me introducing them. Although sometimes I fear that the introduction may not work out, I think I’d regret more about the missed connections!
What is uncommon about 'Uncommon'?
Through Uncommon, I had the opportunities to connect with many women of various backgrounds and experiences that I may have not met otherwise. The members are mostly very encouraging and supportive of each other. I enjoy the Uncommon dinners because they provide a safe space to discuss a topic and exchange stories in a small group setting. After hearing other members’ stories, I often feel reassured and less alone in facing my struggles or dilemmas.
About Olivia:
Olivia Griselda is a Singapore-based, Indonesia-born writer, director, and producer. She co-directed animated comedy short film “She and Her Good Vibrations” with animation filmmaker Sarah Cheok. The project was featured on VICE.com and successfully crowdfunded through Kickstarter, raising more than USD8.5K. The project also won the Best Pitch Award on the Animated Visions Story Development Lab 2020 organised by *SCAPE and Cartoons Underground. Olivia had also produced the short film “Last Call” (dir. Eysham Ali), which was commissioned by Changi Airport Group and selected by Oscars-qualifying festivals including Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia 2022 (Japan), Show Me Shorts 2022 (New Zealand) and Flickers’ Rhode Island International Film Festival 2022 (United States). Over the last ten years, Olivia has worked on publicity and digital marketing campaigns for BBC StoryWorks and Asian Food Channel, as well as developed Indonesian films and series for Amazon Studios. She’s currently producing an upcoming animated short film “Bocor” by Indonesian director Novella about a middle school student who tries to get rid of her period leak while in class, but instead, the leak ruptures into blobs that swallows her into her own uterus.
