Director: Xiaoying Su Producers: Xiaoying Su, Justin Zimmerman, Yunhong Pu, Ashley Lam, Micah Fink, Yaakov Spelioties
Description:
Fighting Back follows Jessica Ng, a first-generation Hong Kong-Chinese American and internationally recognized Muay Thai fighter. Her self-defense classes empower Asian American and Pacific Islander women at a time of an alarming rise of Anti-Asian hate crimes in New York City in recent years. It explores themes of love, energy and growth as Jessica navigates her identity, public responsibilities and newfound motherhood.
Biography:
Xiaoying Su, known as Echo Su, is a young documentary filmmaker based in New York focused on women's rights and social justice. She actively engages with social justice organizations and the AAPI community. Using visual storytelling to drive positive impact and spark essential conversations on social justice is her passion, with a background in journalism. As the Director of Women in NAAAP-NY, Echo leads efforts to empower and educate Asian American women, encouraging their success and meaningful contributions to their communities and cultures. Echo's expertise shines through her roles as director, producer, and editor of some short documentaries like First Saké Brewery in New York and Christian Demarco, which were screened in differentfilm festivals. Her filmmaking journey began as a co-editor of the feature film Love Story in Xiangxi. She also worked as a film instructor for one year in Yunnan Province in China from 2018-2019.
Justin Zimmerman is a nationally recognized film director, producer, comic writer, and professor. His diverse projects have been broadcast on national public television and distributed globally. He is the recipient of multiple grants and fellowships, he contributed a story to the Eisner Award-winning graphic novel Love Is Love, and his script and comic work have been optioned on multiple occasions. He is also the founder of Bricker-Down Productions®. BDP’s narrative and documentary work has appeared in over 200 film festivals across the globe.
