Jessica Lindall
“This is a zine I created for Com Arts 418: Gender and Sexuality in the Media while discussing female Asian American filmmaking and queer Asian American representation by Alice Wu. This connects to Asian American Studies as I discuss some of the expectations and experiences Asian American female filmmakers face while within the industry. Although they work to bring up issues of intersectionality, the industry may want to change APIDA filmmakers’ visions to fit into what they think audiences enjoy. With more limiting experiences with production in her film Saving Face (2004), in Alice Wu’s The Half of It (2020), she works to create a story that aligns with what story she wanted to tell. Something that I’ve learned in my Asian American Studies classes that influenced this project is the idea of how our community works through diversity. We have so many perspectives and experiences that unite the Asian American identity and so I wanted to include my friends who I met through Asian American Student Union (AASU) on campus within the project in examining their perspectives on film. I centered on one primary friend who identifies within both the LGBTQ+ and Asian American community and interviewed her thoughts on how The Half of It has connected with her intersectional identity. I also included small quotes or words throughout the piece that were responses to a community survey that I did on Asian American representation in coordination with the project goals. By bringing in a community perspective on this issue, my project works to include the unique perspectives which are essential for acknowledging intersectionality. I hope that this project is introspective for those who view it to recognize how the queer Asian American identities coincide in intersectionality to create an understanding in the power of representation for these identities.”