CHING CHONG BLUES Original Music now available online — Proceeds benefit Asian Americans Advancing Justice

My friend and collaborator Matt Orenstein's absolutely stellar original score from my web series Ching Chong Blues is available to stream and purchase over on Bandcamp. Proceeds are going to the LA Chapter of Asian Americans Advancing Justice.

I made CCB in 2017 to explore Asian stereotypes and micro-aggressions in several arenas (the media, the workplace, romantic relationships). I'm figuring out what a show about micro-aggressions means in this new era of macro-aggressions against the AAPI community that are maddening more so with each incident and every day.

I do think that having conversations, creating art, giving money and time to social justice orgs like AAAJ can be part of the solution.

Stream / Purchase on Matt’s Bandcamp here.

PMJ Pop-up: Sweet Child 'o Mine

I hate G ‘n R but I thoroughly enjoyed this rendition while making the graphics for this new series for Postmodern Jukebox — a throwback to the classic VH1 music video show “Pop-Up Video” that I watched many Saturday mornings…

K. Campbell — "Chords Come Easy"

Happy to share this animated lyric video for K. Campbell’s track “Chords Come Easy.” This was by far my most extensive foray into animating with After Effects, and also my first opportunity to collaborate with my sister Jordan. I’ve always admired her drawings, sense of humor, and weird ideas, and I’m grateful for the chance to distill just some of that magic into a film.

Silent but Deadly

Editing + Film marketing + my immature sense of humor = this stupid project that made me very happy.  Please watch at your discretion.

The Anti-Job in the Studio

Had a lot of fun documenting my pals The Anti-Job as they recorded their latest EP in the studio.

This was my first time hand-animating titles as well, which definitely took some time but was fun in a weird way as well!

35mm education

In an effort to make myself a more visual person, I got a 35mm camera (Konica BigMini 302) and have dabbled in some still photography in the last half of 2017.  Here are some of my favorite shots. 

MEN DON'T WHISPER

I've been trying to conquer a long-standing fear of getting in front of the camera - I have a little background part in the beginning of Jordan Firstman and Charles Rogers' short MEN DON'T WHISPER, which stars Cheri Oteri along with Firstman, Rogers, Bridey Elliott and Clare McNulty.  Watch it here.

November 8th

I feel super fortunate to edit this PSA / video art piece by a dear friend and collaborator, Olivia Sandoval.  It's a poetic and moving reaction to Donald Trump's election, and a reminder to not go silently, but stay vigilant and make your voice heard.  I really believe in the power of art, that art can increase awareness and move people politically as well as emotionally.  As Roger Ebert said, cinema is a machine that generates empathy.  I think we can all be a bit more empathetic in the years to come.

Meet Postmodern Jukebox

In December, I had the pleasure of directing and editing several doc-style interview pieces with Scott Bradlee, mastermind behind the viral music project Postmodern Jukebox -- a group that takes modern pop hits and transforms them via various vintage styles such as 20s ragtime, 40s big band, 50s doo-wop, and more.

There are eight videos in total, aimed at filling in folks who are new to the Postmodern Jukebox projects, as well as answering specific questions about their upcoming tour.

Find the first video below, and the rest on their website here.

IT'S HERE!

Finally available for your viewing pleasure - HERE, a short film written by myself, directed by Lisa Bass, performed by Matt Porter (also from Man in Ceiling) and Eleanore Pienta (if you haven't seen See You Next Tuesday, do yourself a favor and watch it ASAP).

I'm super proud of this film and how it turned out.  Take 6 minutes out of your day and give it a watch!