Episode 8 – Hollywood and Storytelling with Justin Ching

Show Notes

On This Episode:

• This week in The SituAsian Room, Emilie and Zach welcome Justin Ching to talk about Asian and minority representation in Hollywood, Justin’s production company J-school, intersectionalism, storytelling, and more. Justin Ching is a filmmaker, Forbes 30 Under 30 in Media, and has worked for Disney/ABC, Fox, and Youtube. 

Introduction Topics:

• Mulan
• Disney’s Raya and the Last Dragon
• Lilly Signh’s NBC Sketch Comedy Series
• Stand Up for AAPI Youth During COVID
• #TheyCantBurnUsAll Rally

Key Topics of the Episode:

• The Mission of j-school and empowering underrepresented groups to tell their own stories
• The importance of diversity behind the camera
• How the 2016 election influenced the stories that get told in Hollywood
• Chadwick Boseman’s death
• The importance of not conflating the struggles of different communities
• Justin’s JAY-Z Quote reference

I do this for my culture, to let them know

What a brotha look like when a brotha in a roaster

Show them how to move in a room full of vultures

Industry is shady, it needs to be taken over

JAY-Z, Izzo (H.O.V.A.), The BluePrint

• Standing on the shoulders of those who came before us and rejecting the model minority stereotype
• Intersectionality
• Finding your own voice
• Being open to mentorship outside of your community and Justin’s mentors Tim McNeal and Rich Ross.

You don’t choose your mentor, your mentor chooses you.

Ryan Murphy

• Calling Asian Americans white and the challenges of being ethnically ambiguous
• Conflating Americanness with whiteness
• How Asian Americans can sometimes perpetuate that Asianness and Americanness are mutually exclusive when we reject something we don’t view as “Asian Enough” and call it white
• The newness of Asian America
• Not giving up on your dreams and taking risks to tell stories by rejecting what’s practical

Resources Mentioned, Suggested Readings, Social Media Handles:

• Social Media:
  • Justin’s Instagram @justinrching
  • Justin’s Twitter @justinrching
• j-school
• Z Dream
• Trevor Noah, Dave Chappelle and being interesting

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Produced and Hosted by Emilie Villaverde and Zach Ng

Edited by Kyle Hudson

Music by Eway Sounds

A Crimson Planet Media Production

Distributed by KeystoneDigital.tv