About this submission
Homesick and lonely, two South Korean teenagers adjusting to college in the states spend the night together, roaming around their desolate campus while unearthing burdens from the past. Poetically photographed and sensitively performed, "To Cry On Moonlight Nights" is a semi-autobiographical drama that tackles the painful cycle of intergenerational trauma while celebrating the catharsis of a gently momentous connection. It presents a nuanced portrayal of Asian American masculinity and boyhood that we rarely see represented in modern coming of age films.
Creator
Christian Lee is a 43rd Annual Telly Award® winning commercial and documentary photographer and filmmaker whose work has been published in TIME Magazine, The New York Times, Vogue Italia, the Los Angeles Times, and the World Photography Organization, among others. He received international recognition from 50+ competitions and publications, and his ten short films premiered at the largest screening venues in the United States, ranging from the TCL Chinese Theatre in Hollywood to the AMC Empire Theatre in Times Square. He is a National YoungArts Winner with large-scale photo projects appearing in major gallery spaces throughout Los Angeles, New York City, Philadelphia, and London. He worked as a High School Insider Journalist for the Los Angeles Times and currently serves on the Board of Directors at The Lighthouse Initiative, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization supported by Microsoft, Canva, and Amazon Prime Video. Lee’s work explores themes of cultural assimilation, domesticity, and intergenerational trauma within immigrant communities. more...