Help Bring This Intergenerational Story to Life

My name is Anna Chi, and I’m a Chinese-American writer and director. I’m making a short film called Leaving A Trace — a deeply personal story inspired by my mother’s silent legacy as a doctor in 1970s China during the one-child policy.

This is a story about family, memory, choice, and forgiveness — told through the quiet but emotionally charged bond between a jazz singer and her aging grandmother.

And I need your help to make it.

Project Summary

Leaving A Trace is a 15–20 minute narrative short film about reproductive legacy, intergenerational trauma, and forgiveness.

Told through the quiet yet emotionally charged reunion between a granddaughter and her grandmother, the story explores the impact of China's one-child policy across generations and geographies.

With a focus on Asian-American identity and the silence surrounding women's choices, this film bridges cultural divides and generations through ritual, memory, and music.

What It's About

When Samantha, a New York jazz singer, discovers she’s pregnant, she travels to Los Angeles to care for her estranged grandmother — a retired gynecologist from Mao-era China. Their reluctant reunion becomes a reckoning with secrets, guilt, and the painful echoes of reproductive trauma passed through generations.This film explores the space between silence and survival — where healing begins.

Starring Lisa Lu

We are honored to have the legendary Lisa Lu attached to play the grandmother.Lisa is turning 100 next year, and has been working nonstop since the 1950s. You may recognize her from The Joy Luck Club or Crazy Rich Asians. Her presence brings not just cinematic power, but a living legacy to this story — and we are so lucky to have her.

Why This Film Matters Now

In a time when reproductive rights are under attack and intergenerational trauma is rarely talked about openly — Leaving A Trace offers a powerful, tender lens on how women across cultures carry the weight of decisions that were never really theirs.

This film is a tribute to our mothers and grandmothers. To the voices they silenced to protect us. And to the ones we are just learning to listen to now.

Where Your Support Goes

We are aiming to raise $30,000 to bring this story to life. Every dollar helps cover:- Cast & crew payment- Equipment & lighting rental- Production design & wardrobe- Post-production (editing, sound design, music)- Festival submission fees- Accessibility & impact screeningsEven $10 brings us closer to the screen.

You Can Help Tell This Story

We believe in the power of story telling to heal, to remember, and to connect.

If this story resonates with you — as a daughter, a parent, an artist, or someone who believes in the importance of Asian-American voices and reproductive justice — please donate and share this campaign with your community.

We can't wait to share Leaving A Trace with the world — and with your help, we will.Thank you from the bottom of my heart.— Anna

Director Biography

Anna Chi is a Chinese-American writer and director whose work explores intergenerational memory, cultural identity, and women's interior lives. Her stories center on intimate, emotionally resonant experiences that bridge cultural silence and generational tension.

With roots in both Chinese and American culture, Anna seeks to tell nuanced, character-driven narratives that foster empathy and reflection.Leaving A Trace is her most personal film to date, inspired by her mother’s silent legacy as a physician during the one-child policy.

Anna is developing a slate of short and long-form projects focused on Asian female protagonists navigating identity, memory, and healing.

Cast

We are honored to have Lisa Lu attached to play the role of Gina.

With a career spanning over 70 years, Lu is known for her roles in The Joy Luck Club and Crazy Rich Asians. As she approaches her 100th birthday, her presence brings not only cinematic gravitas but living legacy to the story. She will embody the emotional soul of the film.

Producer

Zhang Ci, Hollywood screenwriter, producer, and investor. The film "To the Stars," invested in by Zhang Ci, won Best Short Film at the New York NYC Independent Film Festival. Zhang Ci was also involved in the production of the film "As If There Is Light," which was selected for screening in the "Raising Voice" category at the Tribeca Film Festival. She raised funds for the filming of "Come Away," starring Angelina Jolie, and for "Bill & Ted Face the Music," starring Keanu Reeves.

She currently serves as the chairperson of the American Overseas Writers Association and the executive director of the 4th International Chinese Original IP Film Festival in Los Angeles in 2026. (WeChat:americanmm)

Anna(Left) and Ci