Meet RACHEL LIU | Filmmaker

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

Hi RACHEL, can you talk to us a bit about the social impact of your business?
My academic background is in bioengineering – I wanted to make an impact by finding solutions to the world’s problems in science. After working in the field I started to appreciate how incredible the work already being done was, and how much we already knew, but how difficult it was to translate to action in society because of breakdowns in communication – in the way this knowledge was being perceived and prioritized.

Realizing this I think fueled my transition into filmmaking.

As a filmmaker I’m always looking for ways to bridge that gap. I’m passionate about telling stories that haven’t had a chance to be told, that might shed light on a perspective, an issue, a solution – stories that might educate or inspire empathy and understanding.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?

When I was first starting out, my goal was just to work with as many interesting people as possible, so worked in a lot of different mediums and wore a lot of different hats – I’ve worked as a production designer, a producer, a line producer, a writer, a director… I even put my engineering degree to use and built the battery powered LED lighting setups we used on my first feature film. No matter what the job title was I’d do everything I could to lift the project up and make it better. Over time I built out a network of people I wanted to work with again, who wanted to work with me again, and who regularly recommend me for other projects. And that’s basically how I got started!

It definitely wasn’t easy – it was a lot of hard work and sleepless nights and often resulted in me feeling burnt out or disrespected. I’ve been learning how to get better about being honest with myself about what my priorities are, what different projects mean to me, and how to take a step back and walk away when I realize the people I’m working with aren’t people I can trust. As a result I feel so much better about the work I am doing, and my work life balance feels much more balanced.

Creatively I’m really attracted to experimentation. I love playing with blending styles and techniques, mediums and timing, and so on. One of my biggest influences is my educational background in engineering – there’s this mentality that I love where you’re always looking to solve problems in a very cross/interdisciplinary way, like solving biological problems with electrical and/or mechanical solutions.

Right now I’m most excited about my interstitial short for Cartoon Network’s Cartoon Cartoons program which is all about experimentation! For this project we tried to create a “new” animation style, centered around traditional Chinese XieYi watercolor paintings. It’s not an art style that necessarily lends itself easily to animation – XieYi all about expressionism and improvisation, whereas animation takes a lot of detailed planning to maintain the illusion of motion. We had to play around a LOT to figure out a technique that worked – combining digital manipulation and hand painted frame-by-frame animation in just the right amount to get the effect seamless. I’m really proud of how it came out and can’t wait until it’s out in the world!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I made this PowerPoint presentation called “things to do in LA”! It’s a living document – currently 31 pages – we keep adding things we like (or think people might like) along with pictures and running pros and cons lists for each. When my friends visit we narrow down the options based on their interests! Sometimes I’ll give them the full presentation which can take up to two hours with questions and distractions.

One of my favorite places I’ve visited with friends is the JPL in Pasadena! It houses the literal center of the universe – the point on earth from which the distances of all celestial bodies are measured.

Other highlights: Round 1, Switzer Falls, Universal Studios, Porto’s

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?
The support from my friends and my community have been everything! They’ve encouraged me to succeed, assured me that my voice is worth hearing, and made me feel valued and valuable every step of the way. I truly believe that a rising tide lifts all boats, and I’m so grateful to be surrounded by people who feel and act the same way.

Number one is my incredibly talented creative partner and life partner Jason Merrin. From the moment we met (freshman year of college!) he’s encouraged my voice and my artistic pursuits – and he gave me my first break by entrusting me to produce his first feature film. He’s an incredible person to work with I never want to do a project without him!

I also want to shout out my LA family that has consistently had my back and lifted me up: wonderful writers Michael Kraus, Jay Choi, Sam Pasternack and Octavia Bray, excellent editor/dance off partner Ivan Moutinho, and awesome actor and artist Ludi Lin.

Website: racheliu.com

Instagram: @umbrinom

Other: Check out/support some of my recent work! https://linktr.ee/inanewyorkminutefilm https://ko-fi.com/bountylight/shop https://geni.us/StudentBodyFilm https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ew8jKnliFZg