Meet Li Mia | filmmaker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Li Mia and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Li, we’d love to hear about how you approach risk and risk-taking.
Hate to admit it, but the whole risk thing is almost inevitable in life. As a filmmaker, risk exists in every moment. Starting with the pre-production of the script, to the beginning of the shoot, there is a huge cost of time and money, and the post-production of a portion of the movie means an equally huge cost. These are all risks.
Of course we expect to get good feedback for every movie we make, but the fact is that very few of them get positive returns, and it’s a big risk to take in the process of presenting your work to the outside world. But those risks are worth it, they are necessary. They give me chance to show my thoughts to others, they let me take my work seriously.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I come from China, where I learned a lot about media and journalism, things that would lead me to understand society. Including the education I grew up with and the environment I grew up in, which is very different from here. I think this has a great influence on the stories I write.
After I started writing, I tried to see the cowardly, conservative part of my character, write it out and try to resonate with it.
For example, the first short script I wrote was about a boy who tries to rebel against exam-oriented education. Although he puts in a lot of effort, he doesn’t succeed, but the process brings him a lot of unexpected joy and makes him see society more clearly.
If I’m not so brave myself in the big picture, I hope my character will be courageous, no matter what the end result is, that’s what I hope to express.
I think more of the difficulties were financial, spiritually I became richer and fuller.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Yosemite in Winter, Santa Monica at sunset, and maybe take a drive up to Utah, the scenery is beautiful all the way. For me, these places not only impress me with the beauty of the scenery but also are wonderful places where I can regulate my mood.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
My parents.

I was born in an economically underdeveloped city in China. Like most of my parents, my parents were very optimistic about careers as doctors, teachers, or lawyers, and studying art was not part of their plans at first. But when I thought about it carefully, I was apprehensive about saying that I wanted to study film, and to my surprise, they agreed almost without hesitation.
When I first came here, it was inevitable that I would be mentally depressed and lonely, and my parents gave me a lot of moral support. I would discuss scripts with them and they would give me many new ideas. They also gave me a lot of financial support, and they wanted me to try to make my short films.
I think they gave me a lot of strength to face and overcome difficulties. All these make me very grateful.

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUfBgeSzNAya1q0RDtIf1qw

Image Credits
Mia Li