THE CREW
ALEX JIANG
DIRECTOR/WRITER/PRODUCER
Born and raised in China, Alex Jiang is a freelancing writer/director/producer. She gained her BFA degree from USC School of Cinematic Arts and is now pursuing her MFA degree in NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Alex’s short films have gone to multiple domestic and international festivals such as Palm Springs International ShortFest, LA Shorts, Taiwan Queer International Film Festival, etc. She is eager to tell stories that center around the topics of identity, gender, and culture.
XINYU ZHAO
PRODUCER
Ciao is a LA-based Chinese producer with experience in narrative shorts, documentaries and commercials. Her short documentaries garnered millions of views online, and her narrative works have been selected at various festivals including Dances With Films, WorldFest Houston, CanadaShorts & LA Asian Film Festival. She’s currently working at the feature team at Rideback while looking to get involved in high-concept stories with heart.
VAL TAN
PRODUCER
al is an international filmmaker that calls Singapore, New York, and Los Angeles home. Val is not an actor, dancer, singer, or vegetarian, but saw how many filmmakers try to portray themselves as multifaceted artists and wants to add those words to her bio. Val IS an optimist and risk-taking filmmaker, and hopes to make films that showcase different voices in the community and bring a positive message.
CHAOCHEN LI
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Chaochen Li is from Beijing, China. He has worked as a cinematographer for numerous narrative and commercial works, receiving awards from US and European film festivals. He recently got his MFA from USC School of Cinematic Arts, majoring in Film Production. The thesis film he shot, Mr.ThisForThat, earned him a nomination from the ASC Heritage Award. With more than 8 years of filmmaking experience both in the US and in China, he believes he can always bring a distinctive vision into his works.
JOY TAN
PRODUCTION DESIGNER
Joy received her undergraduate degree at Chapman University, and is currently pursuing an MFA degree in Film & Television Production at University of Southern California. She was the production designer for two USC thesis films, and has participated in a lot of Chapman and USC film productions as a part of the art department.
VALEN ZENG
EDITOR
Currently studying at American Film institute for her Editing MFA degree, Valen is a writer, director, and editor. Her thesis film We Are Turning into Regular People has been selected and awarded at multiple international film festivals including LAFA, Rome Independent Prisma Awards, Venice Shorts, etc. She's currently studying with ACE member Christopher Cooke.
THE CAST
ANDY SUN
AS CHANG DONG
Andy Sun was trained as a professional solo dancer at Tianjin Song and Dance Theater before immigrating to America in 1996. He launched his acting career in 2017, and has starred in dozens of narrative shorts, music videos and commercials. He received an Honorable Mention at Top Shorts for his leading role in Grandpa’s Long March (2020), and another movie he starred in, Magician: Game of Detective (2019) won awards at Asian Film Festival, Chinese American Film Festival and Indie Short Fest.
JUNRU WANG
AS JANICE
Junru Wang is from Wuhan, China. She started her acrobatic training in China at the age 4. At the age of 9, she started touring as a solo hand-balancer with Cirque Du Soleil's Dralion. After 5 years with Cirque du Soleil, Junru went on to win China's Got Talent season 4, and the same year she created a Guinness World Record for hand balancing which she still holds. In 2015, Junru starred in a feature film produced by China and Austria. She moved to the U.S. as an extraordinary alien in 2016 and was accepted by University of Southern California where she majored in Film & TV Production. During her school year, Junru starred in some short films, for which she won Hollywood North Film Awards for Best Performance and Best Actress in Beirut International Women Film Festival. In 2021, Junru performed as an ensemble cast and a soloist in Dear San Francisco - a circus show by the leading contemporary circus company 7 Fingers.
