HIDDEN TALENT: Karin Chien, a Chinese American film producer, is determined to bring more independent Chinese films to the United States.
Karin Chien literally began her film career on the bottom floor sweeping and mopping floors as a lowly intern at a filmmaking company in New York some eight years ago. Little did she know, one day she herself would not only become an independent film producer but also start a venture to bring her fellow filmmakers' productions from China, the homeland of her parents.
Chien has long been mulling over a bold but by no means irrational idea: to unite a growing interest in Chinese films among Americans with contemporary, independent Chinese filmmakers who have little access to markets and capital.
Chien has been very engaged in the independent film industry since she started to produce films on her own over six years ago. Graduating from University of California, Berkeley with a B.A. degree in English, Chien said that she left her campus with a "very politicized consciousness," and in her mind, film is a medium of representation of politics and film producing is a viable career.
As a Chinese American, Chien said she is especially interested in films containing Chinese themes and elements. Independent Chinese films produced outside the movie studio system, which usually tell stories about daily lives and social problems, are good channels for Americans who know little about the country but would like to know more about life there, said Chien.
But she soon learned that it's not a simple task to bring independent Chinese films to the United States. Chien told Beijing Review U.S. audiences are now exposed to only a small number of independent Chinese films due to lack of distribution channels. "There are really good films made by independent Chinese producers. We should be able to see these films here," Chien said.
Chien said she was somewhat disappointed by the lack of channels for presenting those independent Chinese films to the United States, but that she did find a good business opportunity to build up those channels. And she is determined to do so.
