We were lucky to catch up with Lily Ni recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Lily, thanks for joining us today. Can you tell us the backstory behind how you came up with the idea?

The story was inspired by my friend. I had always thought of them as my gay friend, until they told me they were actually intersex. At that time, I didn’t even know what “intersex” meant, so I started searching the term online right away. I found out that there are so many cases around the world of intersex children, and even babies, undergoing sex reassignment surgery. I couldn’t help but wonder if my friend were the lucky one in the intersex community. They didn’t go through the surgery, and their parents were understanding enough to accept them as they are. At the same time, however, I also wondered what if my friend were Chinese. What if they had been born and raised in a traditional Asian cultural background? Would their story be different? With these questions in mind, I started writing the script for “Born to be Human”.

Lily, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Hi I’m Lily Ni, the writer and director of Born to be Human. Please find the award-winning film on my YouTube channel, which includes both English and Chinese subtitles. Why am I sharing the full movie for free? Because Hewes Pictures, the sales agency, took all the money and rights from me and my film producer, and has NOT paid us anything in 3 years.

Since September 2, 2021, my Producer signed a contract agreement with Hewes Pictures, which was granted the exclusive rights to sell, promote, market and distribute the film in all formats and through various channels worldwide. Hewes did not pay me or my Producer at all, but instead guaranteed to include at least a limited theatrical run in North America, which never happened. They agreed that “All revenues will be split as follows: 75% to the Licensor / 25% to HEWES PICTURES, LLC.” Hewes also set an “Agency’s Fee” at 25% of all revenues. The film was released in Korea and Japan, and Hewes committed to annual audit reports and a royalty split from Amazon and other platforms. My Producer should have been paid “no later than 30 days after these revenues are received by Hewes Pictures.” However, Hewes kept all revenues and royalties to themselves. Until now, Hewes has not paid us a penny, as well as not sharing any audits or financial report openly. They continue to ignore me and my Producer when we reach out for any due payments.

The contract lasted for 3 years, which means that the agreement expired a month ago, on September 2, 2024. Recently, I found out that Hewes sold my film to Tubi and Plex so now everyone can watch it for free. It was so unfair that I was not allowed to share my own movie for 3 entire years. That’s why I’ve decided to share my film on my own YouTube channel from now on. Although it’s a Chinese film about intersex, I believe it deserves equal respect and recognition.

Please feel free to watch the full movie and subscribe to my YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/@lilynifilms

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

The film was originally intended to be produced in mainland China, but for some reason we had to move the shoot to Taiwan. I grew up in mainland China, and actually, my first visit to Taiwan was in 2020 for location scouting for “Born to be Human.” Because of the cultural and linguistic similarities, I discovered there was no better place to film. Then the pandemic hit, and I ended up stuck in Taiwan. I am truly grateful, however, that I was able to complete the filming and production of “Born to be Human” in Taiwan during the pandemic.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

When I was writing and directing the movie, I never considered taking it in the direction of a horror film, so I was quite surprised to hear some audience describe it that way. I guess it’s because I’ve always loved horror films since I was a kid, and my favorite director growing up was Tim Burton. Perhaps the music and visuals of my film were influenced by his work. However, I never intended to make “Born to be Human” a horror film. I see the protagonist as an ordinary person just like us, but with very unique experiences.

The color palette of the movie was inspired by the American tradition of “gender reveal parties,” where everyone guesses the baby’s gender, revealed through the color of a cake or balloons—blue for a boy and pink for a girl, with correct guesses winning prizes. I found it both interesting and a bit ironic. Why do we follow these conventions? So, from the very beginning of writing and directing the film, I wanted to focus on blue and pink. To highlight these colors, we limited the use of other colors, like red (for blood) and green (before and after the surgery), which only appear in specific scenes.

All female characters in the movie have their own profession. Tianqi’s mother is a traditional Taiwanese opera performer, and Dr. Lee’s mother is a sculptor. I decided to make Tianqi’s mother an opera performer after I learned something interesting when I arrived in Taiwan: originally, all Taiwanese opera actors were male, and even female roles were played by men. During the war in 1940s, however, there was a shortage of men, and women got more opportunities to perform, making cross-dressing a mainstream practice. This history of Taiwanese opera fits well with the themes of “Born to be Human.” The aria I chose for Tianqi’s mother to perform is from “The Butterfly Lovers,” a classic story about a woman who disguises herself as a man, which serves the plot of the movie perfectly.

As for Dr. Lee’s mother, making her a sculptor who specializes in the human body serves the character development of Dr. Lee. Having grown up with a mother who views the human body as a work of art, Dr. Lee doesn’t see the protagonist’s body as merely natural, but rather as something that can be shaped or crafted, much like art.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://imdb.com/name/nm8697522
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/lilynifilms
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@lilynifilms
• Other: TikTok:
  tiktok.com/@lilynifilms