Aaron Jin (any pronouns) is a queer, Asian-American actor and writer, known for bringing people together through humor and storytelling across mediums. In 2019, he produced the PNW-inspired, lesbian short film Stormy Skies that premiered at the National Film Festival for Talented Youth. Recently, he was seen in the feature film Potato Dreams of America (SXSW 2020) and produced the first three episodes of an independent web series. In September, he released his first new opera Together, a father-daughter story composed by Elise Winkler and commissioned by Seattle Opera as part of their inaugural Creation Lab program. A passionate activist trained through artEquity’s national facilitator training program, Aaron also serves on grant panels, leads activism-focused workshops, and markets for nonprofit arts organizations in Seattle. Through his work, Aaron hopes to bring joy and let people know that there is a place for everyone to be loved, cherished, and celebrated for who they are. www.theaaronjin.com
Screenwriting Resources/Inspirations:
The Art of Asking – What does it mean to be an artist in this commercialized, fast-paced modern age? Amanda Palmer links her personal experience as an artist with the spirit of generosity, humility, and general badassery that I aspire to as an artist.
Working on a Song: The Lyrics of Hadestown – The only thing worse than workshopping your work is workshopping your work multiple times for paying, ticket-buying audiences, which musicals often do. Listen to the album while you dive into the many changes that brought one of my musical obsessions to life. A modern Greek story never sounded so good.
Fleabag (TV Series) – Watch the stage performance first and then watch the TV series to see how a great personal story can turn into electricity when put on screen. You can also buy the script for the solo show (Fleabag: The Special Edition, TCG) or for the TV series (Fleabag: The Scriptures).
Story: Substance, Structure, Style and the Principles of Screenwriting – It’s everybody’s favorite screenwriting book for a reason.
The Artist's Way – A nice stepping stone for building a routine, opening your eyes to the world around you, and thinking about who you are as an artist or a creative person. Then get out and write!
Select Co//ab Courses:
Screenwriting: Writing Your First/Second Act – The workshop classes put your pages to the fire. You will learn a lot about who you are as an artist if you listen.
Directing: Visual Storytelling – This was the class that opened my eyes to the power of visual storytelling and the responsibility that we have as artists in the stories that we tell.
- Also see: Bruce Block’s A Visual Story
