Fireside Chat with the Kandell Brothers

image from Hawaii Business Magazine

Aaron and Jordon Kandell – identical twin screenwriters from Honolulu – are probably most famous in Hawaiʻi for writing the Disney movie Moana. Aaron Kandell also trained with Nainoa Thompson on the Hokulea.

Born storytellers, the brothers grew up reading, writing and letting their imaginations run wild. At this year’s Hawai’i Business Magazine Leadership Conference they sat down for an intimate chat with chief officer of the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism's Creative Industries Division Georja Skinner. Skinner also shared her own fascinating life story, which includes producing her first award-winning film in high school. The conversation wrapped around the intersection of embracing the stories of Hawai’i to share with the world and embracing one’s own curiosity.

Here were our takeaways:

• We all have the power to transport people to magical places and change culture through storytelling.

• You have to marry business with your creative work. (It doesn’t sell itself!)

• Push past failure. Don’t let fear stop you. Go towards the seemingly impossible.

• The journey is long, arduous, and often painful. But, it will allow you to find out who you really are through the challenges you face, which allows you to reach your true potential.

• Focus on the daily practice of navigating your own life, not the destination (Lots of Joseph Campbell references in this chat).

• Get quiet and listen to what comes up. What is the thing you’ve always been interested in? What terrifies you, but also makes you feel alive?