Conversations with Meredith Chin

Today we’d like to introduce you to Meredith Chin.

Hi Meredith, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up on the East Coast a little outside of Philadelphia, PA. After college (Penn State) I moved out to San Francisco where I started at a then very small company known as Facebook (now META). As one of its earliest employees, I helped to grow the company from a tiny startup to over a billion users. After 8.5 years there, I was interested in a new challenge and found my way first to New York and then to Los Angeles. I began working in the documentary space producing the feature documentary, Duty Free, which was distributed on PBS’s Independent Lens. That experience inspired me to move into the scripted space and over the last few years I have written and directed three of my own films: The Girl, A Thousand Cuts, and Retreat.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Transitioning from my first career in technology to where I am today has not been a straight shot. It’s come with a lot of trial and error of learning what it is I enjoy doing. For example, after Facebook, I worked for a few more very small tech-related start-ups in the hopes of finding something that I was motivated to help grow. Nothing felt quite right. Over the last several years, I’ve gotten more and more clarity about what it is about my work (previous and current) that I enjoy doing and therefore set myself up for opportunities that allow me to exercise those skills. Taking what I learned, I now feel most myself when I am directing.

I think anyone choosing a creative path in life has chosen one they know will come with some ups and downs. Not just monetarily or with regard to access in the industry, but the pure act of creation can come in fits and starts and that can often lead to self-doubt and discouragement. But ideas and making things can also come quickly, like lightning bolts, and the urgency can be exciting and exhilarating. Even on the best days though, I don’t think most artists would describe the road as “smooth.”

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m a filmmaker. I primarily write and direct. My stories often center queer characters and I am particularly interested in infusing an element of intersectionality, whether that is race, religion, age, etc. As a half-Asian, gay woman who presents in a very androgynous fashion, I can often feel like I do not belong to any particular group or space. That sense of isolation has informed a lot of my writing and perspective. My hope in sharing it in my writing and films is that others feel less alone. Additionally, writing from that place has helped me embrace and even celebrate the many lenses I can look through.

As much as I love to write, one of my favorite parts about filmmaking is the collaboration. Hiring a team of people to realize a vision is very fun. Being a leader of a team in my previous life in tech was something I really enjoyed and that skill was easily transferrable into filmmaking. I emphasize hiring mostly women and non-binary folks when and where we can and all heads of departments for all of my films so far have been women. I’ve been really proud of that.

Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
After I left Facebook, I was offered a job as CEO of a new media company. A large production company was starting a new arm and they asked me to get it off the ground. I moved to New York City to build it from scratch and pretty much everything that could go wrong, did. I decided to leave that job within 5 months. I felt so lost. It was one of the lowest points of my life. But while I was trying to start that company, I met with as many young, creative directors and producers I could, to see who I might want to work with. While that opportunity never panned out, I did maintain a lot of those connections. And a couple years later, after I had already moved to LA, I started working with someone I had met in New York and we eventually made a feature documentary called Duty Free that aired on PBS. That experience set me on the path of becoming a filmmaker myself. Had I not moved to NYC, who knows if I would be doing what I am doing now. There is always a little bit of good luck in the bad luck.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://meredithchin.com
• Other: https://vimeo.com/user47110622

Image Credits
Andrew Allen
Ruth Finch