We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Vince Li a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Vince, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

I am working on a story that emphasizes cultural empathy and racial justice.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I came to the U.S. for college from China when I was 18. My first step was Syracuse, a snowy, isolated world in upstate New York. Initially, I didn’t have a vision of how my future would unfold. The first year was a pre-college program, and I didn’t do much besides improve my English, so I just indulged myself in this lack of direction and confusion.

However, one day, I was driving around aimlessly. My friend Luke, who sat on my co-pilot, rolled down the window and filmed random footage with his iPhone. I was confused because there were no damn things to shoot. Whereas he just did this day after day. I was puzzled. One day, back to the dorm, he showed me “the film” he had been making. It was so impressive; the meaningless footage from our daily drives, when put together, was so poetic. At that moment, an idea sparked in my mind: This is some goddamn thing I want to do.

Through friends’ introduction, I met a girl in film program, K and she became my DP. I became a screenwriter and director and kind of the producer. Luke is the editor and he helps me to produce as well. We used natural light, and our shooting location was just around the campus. I shamelessly asked my classmates and even my teachers to be actors in my film. Many are shy and stressful; sometimes, they look directly into the camera. However, eventually, I finished it, and in the final hours before the deadline, I submitted my application to the Syracuse University Film program. A week later, I received a confirmation from the chair, and that’s how I began my studies in Film..

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

I want to highlight love as a powerful weapon to encourage empathy and acceptance.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I have learned to self-communicate and get along with the outside world. Through communication, I can gain peace and feel more confident dealing with outer activities.

Image Credits
these are my personal photos and the stills of my short films