Good Shot Indonesia,
RASA Show Eps. 09 X Kelly Tandiono
Actress/Supermodel, Asia’s Next Top Model S4 Mentor and Founder of @covermenot.co
Di bulan Agustus ini adalah bulannya Indonesia merayakan hari kemerdekaan, Good Team dan RASA Show nggak bisa lebih bangga lagi bisa ngobrol dengan Kelly Tandiono, yang sudah menjadi representasi Indonesia di Asia’s Next Top Model TV Show sebagai salah satu juri dan mentor.
Kelly nggak hanya handal menjadi ‘killer catwaker’, tapi juga seorang ‘assasin’ di sebuah film, triathlete, dan… salah satu perempuan Indonesia cantik yang juga seorang business woman.
RASA Show (RS): (Udara) Sedikit flash back, we’ve met for the first time in 2010 or 2011 when we were both hosting an event in Kemang. But I think back then you weren’t living in Jakarta, though. Masih bolak-balik Jakarta-Singapore?
Kelly Tan (KT): I think so, yaa… I just got back from London at that time. Also still back and forward to Hongkong. Kayaknya baru bener-bener tinggal di Indo around 2011 or 2012.
RS: (Udara) 2013 aku baru ketemu kamu lagi untuk Jakarta Fashion Week. But during 2011 – 2013, what made you decide to actually moved to Indonesia dan berkarir di bidang modelling especially in Jakarta?
KT: Jadi waktu balik dari London itu sebetulnya untuk re-new my work permit untuk balik ke UK. Tapi ternyata banyak tawaran gitu di Indonesia termasuk film, so I was like, “You know what I’m just gonna postpone my trip, and I’m just gonna work a little bit in Indonesia”, and then akhirnya I also met my husband now, and decided to work and live here. The first two years memang masih focus di modelling but then banyak movies juga.
RS: For the industry itself, sempet ada jetlag atau perbedaan yang mencolok banget nggak sih dari waktu di London sama pas balik ke Indonesia?
KT: Pastinya beda ya, I mean back in the days, everybody was trying to copy what other countries doing, right? Especially New York, Milan, Paris… so it was just really nice when I worked in London that I actually worked with, let’s say, the Toni&Guy himself doing my hair, some shows where I was working with Kelly Osbourne, I did TVC and met Elle MacPherson, jadi ada moment dimana I don’t think I could have that experience if I live in Indonesia during my modelling time. Bisa ketemu sama pakar-pakarnya langsung kalau disana, gitu. Tapi kalau cara kerja, menurut aku kira-kira sama ya.
RS: Tapi pas disana, aim nya apa sih? Kalau di Indonesia kan model of course punya goal untuk jadi supermodel and go international, but you already there!
KT: Well, at the first time my aim was to go international and had an experience, tapi setelah balik ke Indonesia nggak pengen jadi supermodel juga sih. I just wanna work because I love fashion and I love what I do. I’m just thankful that it became pretty good. I went into movies which I fell in love as well. Jadi semuanya kayak ada proses-prosesnya gitu sih.

RS: Yang aku inget waktu ngerjain Jakarta Fashion Week kan back then first face nya lagi jaman-jamannya Kimmy (Jayanti) tuh… but it took you not too long to become the first face, after that karir kamu menanjak terus sampai ke movies and you became a Celebrity in Indonesia. Tips untuk yang mau jadi model nih, first face itu kan seperti achievement, right? Jadi brand ambassador dari banyak prestigious designers. How to get there? Untuk jadi model kelas A.
KT: Pertama adalah mental sih, hahahaaa… Don’t be afraid of rejection. Karena terus terang aku juga dulunya nggak segampang itu. I went through lots of rejection, castings, during that time I was living in Singapore and all over the world, casting-nya gila-gilaan sih. I did casting for London Fashion Week sehari 12 casting, dari pagi sampai malam, and back then we don’t have GPS kan. Jadi pake busway, or train station, and then when you were there you walked with a map. Jadi tipsnya kalau mau jadi model atau strive to be in entertainment, siapin mental aja sih and you guys gotta work hard because there’s no such thing as short cut, semuanya butuh proses. I’ve been modelling since I was 16, now I’m 33. Udah 17 tahun, so you could’ve imagined how much time I did dan prosesnya berapa lama to get where I am. Enjoy the process aja sih…
RS: Di era digital soalnya banyak yang instan ya, nggak mengalami proses itu, so sedikit banyak pasti ada perbedaan. Tapi balik lagi ke mental ya, nggak boleh baper…
KT: Ya beda jaman juga sih ya… There wasn’t really social media like Instagram. Now, everybody can be a model, everybody can be an influencer. Kalau di sekolahku, I have a modelling school called Supermodels Project, where we can help new faces to join us, jadi jembatan ke mereka untuk belajar, to share our experience, kalau dulu kan nggak seperti itu, semuanya ya we have to do it our self. Dulu lebih challenging to get where you are, tapi bikin jadi punya strong mind, strong mental saat ngadepin rejection.
RS: Ngomong-ngomong soal rejection, orang berfikir dunia fashion itu glamour with beautiful people, padahal… jangan salah… mulut silet ya kaak… jangan harap bisa dapat spotlight kalau nggak bener-bener deserved. Kalau sekarang mungkin lebih ke comment netizen ya kan… Tapi ada nggak sih mungkin dulu yang paling berkesan, designer atau siapa yang kayaknya jahattt banget tapi justru jadi pemicu motivasi?
KT: Kalau rejection banyak banget. When I was in London, misalnya… pernah di reject karena tinggi nya nggak mencapai yang mereka mau, terus jaman dulu itu kan model harus kurus banget ya. So I was striving myself to be so skinny, I was suffering. I didn’t really eat that much, and keep doing this detox thing selama 2 minggu sebelum show. Udah kayak tengkorak. Dan walaupun designer nggak bilang secara langsung, tapi pressure nya itu lho I think mentally and emotionally could be damaging LOL
RS: Kalau sekarang trend nya lebih banyak campaign about accepting yourself, inner beauty and healthy campaign…
KT: Iya bener, now is really good, mereka nggak terlalu campaigning skinny models. They just wanna have healthy, fit models. It’s getting better these times.
RS: Sebelum ngomongin acting, let’s talk about your modelling school.
KT: Yes, Supermodels Project. Lebih kayak character building school sih. So we teach not only just modelling, but also public speaking, acting, health, nutritionist, sampai psychologist, table manner semua ada. Because I think it’s important how we know how to groom our self, to know who we are, so it’s kinda summarises everything.
RS: Iya karena dalam 1 show bisa ada 12 – 30 model, so it is important to stand out among others ya, in terms of personality.
KT: It’s true! Model is not just a pretty face, but how you work with people, how you also have a team work, product knowledge of what you wearing, misalnya if you are working with the brand, you have to know what it is, you need to represent yourself well, you need to have brain as well sebenernya sih.
RS: Ok sekarang kita lanjut ngobrolin acting. Film pertama?
KT: It was a short movie with Timo (director) for Toronto Film Festival I remember, itu pertama kalinya I fell in love with movies, with acting. I got a character as an executioner. So I was killing people. Mungkin sesuai muka kayaknya ya. Hahahaa… I want a romantic film, but I’m not that girl next door kinda look, jadi memang susah mungkin untuk mendapatkan peran yang kayak Chelsea Islan do LOL
RS: Udah gitu Timo kan style nya gitu yaa…
KT: Iya. Timo is one of my favorite directors sih, he’s just crazy!
RS: Pertama di tawarin agak shock dong ya? Emang nggak ada peran jadi putri gitu buat gue, atau jadi sandera nya deh gitu…
KT: I was like, just give me whatever character, I just want the experience, I don’t care if it’s main character or not, sebenernya di film ini I don’t even have to speak. I just have to express myself, all in my eyes and gesture. I think with my modelling skills, I am able to express myself quite well, so I can implement it into the movies. From there aku dapat tawaran film lagi, Loe Gue End, my character was a drug dealer, sebenernya ada juga filmnya MD I became a Japanese girl. It was a drama, thankfully I was not a killer, disitu quite dramatic dan filmnya sedih gitu sih. Terus ada juga Negeri Tanpa Telinga, so that movie was one of the reasons why I wanted to go more into acting because I won Best Actress. I was a politician, jadi Angelina Sondakh. It was pretty awesome.
RS: Jadi muse dari film-filmnya Lola Amaria juga ya, kemarin ada yang ke Labuan Bajo…
KT: Iya, ada yang jadi ibu dua anak, Japanese Geisha, jadi badminton player juga di film Susi Susanti, jadi hero di film Gundala, so acting is kinda fun, I can be a bit different and not be myself for a while.
RS: Di film action bisa or punya fighting skills juga? Punya basic nya atau khusus latihan buat film itu?
KT: You know what, aku kan dari kecil emang udah pecicilan banget ya, dan semua sport kayaknya I’m doing it. Since I was a kid I did Karate, Silat, Taekwondo, ya emang orangnya nggak bisa diem. Jadi when I get action movies, latihannya nggak se-intense yang diperlukan, karena I actually have the basic, dan latihan every week. Jadi everytime ada movie, I am ready, dan kalau ada koreo, akan lebih gampang.
RS: Kalau untuk film drama, ada latihannya juga nggak?
KT: Ada! Kemarin sebelum main di film Susi Susanti, walaupun jadi badminton player, kan Sarwenda orangnya very lemah gemulai sebenernya, aku belajar dansa. Belajar tarian Jawa biar badannya nggak terlalu kaku, karena aku kan kayak laki banget ya. Jadi harus balance.

RS: Untuk sementara mungkin belum bisa karena kamu juga masih aktif jadi triathlete ya…
KT: Iya, itu juga. I’m only doing races like 3 – 5 times a year, and also depending on my shooting schedule juga kan… but I try to do it at least 3 times a year. Dan training nya 1 bulan sebelumnya sih. Kalo nggak ntar aku jadi terlalu kayak laki banget. There is one point aku pernah dibilangin sama mas Sebastian Gunawan (designer) during my action movie terus aku ada show sama dia, “Kelly kamu kok kayak tukang pukul sih” berotot semua gitu kaan… itu lucu sihh… hahahaa…
RS: Which version you like the most? Karena as a triathlete kan you have to be very fit.
KT: Of course I like my version of being fit. Because it makes me happy. At one point when I have to put on a dress where I have to go back to size zero tuh kayak… aarghhh effort banget siih… oh my God do I really need to go on a diet again… I’m like, “Aahh cape dehhh”… I’ve done all of this when I was on my teen, when I was in my London doing Fashion Week and all that, but now, if the designer likes me, they gotta take me who I am… hahahahh…
RS: Udah bisa ngomong begitu sih kalo sekarang ya… Sudah jadi Kelly Tandiono kan…
KT: Eh but still, I am not gonna make myself so big but paling nggak I’m fit, bajunya masih tetep muat, but I don’t want to be like killing myself, I wanna feel good about myself, I wanna do show and photoshoot that make me happy.
RS: Cukup di film aja jadi killer ya, di kehidupan nyata jadi princess…
KT: Nah iyaa… kalau di film aku nggak mesti jadi kurus, justru aku dibilangnya, “Kelly kamu kok kurus banget sihh”… hahahaa… but you know what? Being a model is much harder than being an actor. Karena modelling they already have standards. Your look, certain shape of model should look like, kalau di acting, you don’t need to have that kind of criteria, semua orang beda-beda, dan bisa masuk di film apapun. Kalau model, you just need to have one look. It’s all the same.
RS: Mungkin itu juga yang perlu diinget kalau datang ke casting, nggak usah baper kalau ditolak karena mungkin dia nggak nyari yang kayak kita aja saat itu…
KT: This all rejection you should take it in a good way. Don’t overstressed or become depressed. Learn from it aja sih sebenernya.
RS: A very good advice from a model mentor. Let’s talk about Asia’s Next Top Model.
KT: I was just very lucky at that time. Jadi lucunya, they contacted me through Facebook. At first I thought it was a hoax. So I contacted them to see if it’s real or not, because it’s Asia’s Next Top Model, I mean like… Akhirnya aku ngobrol sama orangnya from the production, and then we met actually, it was in Singapore, I met with the FOX team as well, sedikit casting, banyak banget kandidat-kandidat yang udah mereka pilih, supermodel dari perwakilan semua negara, I was like wow, okay! So I was very happy and honoured. I could be the judge to representing Indonesia after Nadya Hutagalung kan, and be the first model mentor after Joey Mead King.
RS: Also your acting skills complimented because it’s a TV Show…
KT: Ya they were looking people with experience, jadi pas casting aja mereka ngomong, “Experience kamu udah dimana aja, where have you work before, how many covers have you done”, trus ngobrol-ngobrol I did tv shows and movies.
RS: Mind if we ask, kemarin juga sempat bikin aplikasi monster sampah, what happened?
KT: Sedih sih sebetulnya, I developed this with my partner from Paris, he’s French, we kind of realized sedih aja ngelihat situasi sampah di Indonesia. Why we started this because we want to have a cleaner Indonesia. Itu salah satu misi kita sebenernya. Tapi karena kemaren pandemic seperti itu, I think people are not focusing on this issue, jadi kita agak susah untuk puterin duitnya sebenernya. Ini sebetulnya kita ke rumah-rumah mereka, kemarin sih udah sekitar 40-an rumah, and then we’re gonna pick up their trash, but karena corona ini banyak orang kehilangan pekerjaan, mereka juga harus cari makan so maybe the last thing they want is to pick up sampah gitu kan.
RS: But your bikini is a hot stuff! Orang kan banyak di rumah, ootd di swimming pool tetap jalan… bentar lagi sudah bisa liburan juga. Ke Bali nggak bawa bikini tuh salah banget kaann…
KT: Bener, bener. Actually… I’m not sure if I’m a good business woman now hahahaaa… Jadi, salah lagi gitu kan, buka kantor di tahun ini, di masa pandemic, aku udah down payment itu rental office, terus di bulan Maret I was about to die, tapi untungnya everybody’s at home, shopping on line, this time I can actually running the money, I can pay the salary of my staffs, the office operation.
RS: So this office is more to like?
KT: It’s actually kantor untuk fashion line aku Covermenot. Three of my team, jadi satunya admin, satunya marketing, sama operation manager.
RS: Kamu buat brand ini kan udah agak lama, berarti ini sebuah bisnis yang cukup menjanjikan ya?
KT: Because these past three years, kan aku tadinya ada partner kan, you know Simona for sure, she’s going back to Czech. Usually dia yang ngerjain admin at home, because she left and then now I’m alone, so I’ve decided to open a small office, and hired few team, walaupun off line store nya sales nya zero, tapi online nya going pretty well… jadi lumayan kebantu banget tuh, tadinya kan stress banget, udah monster sampah tutup, covermenot kantornya baru buka, gimana nih kan. Tapi thankfully berjalan, dan aku lagi bikin new collection untuk covermenot hopefully it’ll come out soon.
RS: The excitement when preparing the campaign!
KT: Yes, true. Cuma karena new normal, kita juga nggak bisa melibatkan terlalu banyak orang kan, jadi hopefully lebih something virtual, at least the cost is also much better. Kalo event kan mahal banget ya.
RS: Who is the designer of your brand?
KT: I actually have kind of all the idea, I kinda design it in a very ugly way, but then I have designers so they will do it nicely. The size is from S/M/L but also custom. So you just send to us your measurement and we will make it for you. I also selling the mask, and 20% of it I actually donating it for pekerja seni, karena sekarang mereka sangat terkena dampak covid lumayan parah juga, karena lebih banyak kerja by project. It takes time to heal, though. Walaupun sekarang juga syuting udah mulai bisa normal lagi, memang nggak skala besar, tapi kalo less than 50 crew masih bisa jalan lah. Atau webseries.
RS: Next project?
KT: Ada sih, actually August I’m supposed to leave to Batam. Ada produksi buat HBO. But because this production is quite huge and requires a lot of people, and people from all around the world to come to Batam, jadi di pending. I can only tell you it’s HBO and it’s an international production!
***
RASA – Udara & Tisa
Udara Yarri is currently working as Events & Promotions Manager at The Mulia, Mulia Resort & Villas – Nusa Dua, Bali. His experience in media include broadcaster at Hardrock FM Bali, UFM Jakarta (ex-Femina Group), Show Manager Jakarta Fashion Week (also part of Femina Group), and Marcomm at Fashion TV Indonesia.
Tisa Pattiasina is a Marketing & Public Relation at TS Suites Bali in Seminyak. She was a Guest Personal Officer, and Marketing Promotion at Univ. Pelita Harapan in Surabaya. Besides being a new mother, she also manage an AirBnB property.
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