Debbie Lum

Deborah Lum[1] is an American documentary filmmaker based in San Francisco.[2] Her projects frequently explore subject matters within the Asian and Asian American community.

Debbie Lum
Born (1969-03-14) March 14, 1969
EducationBrown University (1991)
San Francisco State University

She has had a long working relationship with ITVS.[3]

Career

Lum worked for several years as a film editor for documentary filmmaker Spencer Nakasako. She's been mentored by Nakasako and documentary filmmaker S. Leo Chiang.[4]

Lum's debut feature documentary is Seeking Asian Female, a film about an older American man seeking to marry a woman half his age from China that he met online. The film is centered around Lum's perspective as a Chinese American woman, who document's the journey and serves as translator.[5][6] The project was originally conceived due to Lum's interest in the real life complexities behind the "yellow fever" phenomenon.[4] Seeking Asian Female was an official selection at the 2012 South by Southwest festival.[5] It won "Best Documentary Feature" at the San Diego Asian Film Festival and Lum won "Best Documentary Director" at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival.[6]

Lum is the director and co-producer of the documentary Try Harder!, a film about five high school seniors at the competitive Lowell High School in San Francisco and their college admissions journeys.[7] Production began while Lum was working on a separate documentary about tiger parenting, My Tiger Mom, at Lowell High School.[3][8] Try Harder! made its world premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, which was held virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States.[9][10]

Personal life

Lum was born in Virginia and grew up in St. Louis, Missouri.[5][11] She graduated from Brown University in 1991.[12] She received her MFA in cinema from San Francisco State University.[1]

Lum is fifth generation Chinese American.[4] She speaks limited Mandarin Chinese.[4]

References
  1. SCAnews staff (July 25, 2002). ""A Great Deal!" - Deborah Lum in St. Louis Filmmaker's Showcase". St. Louis Chinese American News. Retrieved 2021-01-28.
  2. Woodworth, Kelsey (March 7, 2014). "Jule Collins to screen 'Seeking Asian Female'". Opelika-Auburn News. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
  3. Palmer, Claralyse (August 30, 2019). "Diverse Stories Resonate with Debbie Lum | ITVS". ITVS. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
  4. "Interview with Filmmaker Debbie Lum | Seeking Asian Female | Independent Lens | PBS". Independent Lens. PBS. May 2, 2013. Retrieved 2021-01-28.
  5. IndieWire Staff (March 3, 2012). "Meet the 2012 SXSW Filmmakers #9: Debbie Lum, 'Seeking Asian Female'". IndieWire. Retrieved 2021-01-28.
  6. Tseng, Ada (December 13, 2012). "American Man, 60, Seeks Chinese Bride: Interview with director Debbie Lum". asiapacificarts.usc.edu. Retrieved 2021-01-28.
  7. Sundance Institute (January 7, 2021). Meet the Artist: Debbie Lum & Lou Nakasako on TRY HARDER! (YouTube video).
  8. Kramer, Gary M. (2021-01-31). "In the grueling doc "Try Harder!" Asian American students strive to meet "unreasonable" expectations". Salon. Retrieved 2021-01-31.
  9. Veltman, Chloe (January 28, 2021). "Lowell High School Doc Premieres at Sundance While Campus Reels from Racist Incident". KQED. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
  10. Zack, Jessica (January 26, 2021). "Sundance in San Francisco: A guide to the 2021 virtual film festival". Datebook | San Francisco Arts & Entertainment Guide. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  11. Yang, Jocelyn (January 23, 2021). "3 Chinese-American Films at This Year's Sundance Film Festival". radiichina.com. Retrieved 2021-01-29.
  12. Watterson, William (July 7, 2016). "Camera Activists". Brown Alumni Magazine. No. July/August 2016. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
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