Why Us

Our crew on Worthy is entirely female. We all know intimately the paralyzing insecurity of being a teenage girl and the deep desire for connection and belonging. We remember craving the autonomy of adulthood coupled with the conflicting fear of leaving childhood behind. And we know what it is to have our abilities questioned simply because of our gender. While we have worked alongside refugees for many years, we recognize that we have not lived the refugee experience. We have never had to run for our lives or to rebuild a new life as strangers in a strange land. This is where our personal stories diverge from Bawi’s. We don’t know what it is to experience such trauma, and this is why we built a team of people who do - we trained and hired local refugees to work on our crew.

Additionally, the film's editors, Monica and Stephanie, felt an instant connection to Bawi’s story. As the children of immigrants and immigrants themselves, they know what it’s like to feel caught between two worlds, between the countries their parents grew up in (Nicaragua, the Philippines and China) and their adopted home of America. It’s this feeling of in-betweenness that drew them to Bawi’s story, and it’s something they hope to illustrate in the editing process. They were also drawn to the story’s themes of sacrifice and duty to family. How do you create a life that’s all your own while also carrying the weight of your parents’ sacrifices? How do you offer intergenerational healing in a way that goes beyond material comforts and career success? Monica and Stephanie grapple with these questions in their own lives. In Bawi, they see their own struggles and experiences reflected, experiences that are worthy of attention, craft and care. They also see a dynamic young woman who defies every stereotype of what an Asian-American woman from the South should be.

Our Crew