Q&A with NYFA Alum Ziyu Luo

NYFA Alumni Network: Can you tell us a bit about yourself, where you're from, and what brought you to New York Film Academy? 

Ziyu Luo (Z.L.): I was born and raised in Sichuan, China and moved to the U.S. in 2020 to study Filmmaking at the New York Film Academy where I strengthened my craft and was able to focus on growing my knowledge of all aspects of film production. Before I came to NYFA my English was limited. I was searching for a film school where I could not only learn filmmaking but also build the language foundation. NYFA stood out because it offered a solid ESL program alongside a hands-on filmmaking education. As someone completely new to this environment, that combination is essential. My agency strongly recommended NYFA, but I also did my own research. What convinced me was how practical the training was. NYFA doesn’t just let you learn from books, you’re on set from day one, touching the camera, working with actors, solving problems in real time. For someone like me, who had to learn fast and learn by doing, that was invaluable. 

NYFA Alumni Network: What projects have you worked on since graduating? Have you won any awards or been showcased in any festivals or competitions? 

Z.L.: After graduating, my thesis film American Daydream screened at more than 19 prestigious film festivals such as the Oscar-qualifying film festival HollyShorts, and also won first place at the From Minutes To Movies ShortFest. 

NYFA Alumni Network: Tell us more about your experience winning 1st place at the Minutes to Movies Shortfest. What does this recognition mean to you? 

Z.L.:  It means so much to me! You know, I had already moved back to China to take care of my ill father when I learned I won this award. For a while, I thought " That's it, my filmmaking journey has come to an end." But then From Minutes to Movies ShortFest brought me back to the U.S., back to my dream. It has been a huge encouragement and has given me so much motivation to keep going!

They’ve provided a platform and guidance to develop my next project with Imagine Entertainment and Portal A, which I feel extremely honored by. I thought I wouldn’t return to the U.S. for a long time. I thought I had to put my filmmaking on hold. But now, I’m about to work with some incredibly talented filmmakers on my next project. I am incredibly grateful!

NYFA Alumni Network: What was the inspiration behind your film American Daydream? 

Z.L.:  This story is partially inspired from my own experiences as an immigrant, and as a Chinese daughter. I know what it feels like to live between two worlds, two cultures, two identities, and never fully belong to either. I know how it feels to be torn between personal ambition and family responsibility - two forces that shaped who I am. I grew up in a small town in Sichuan, China where pursuing filmmaking, especially in such a traditional place, felt impossible. This dream was so big that I didn’t even dare to imagine it. It wasn’t until I became an adult that I finally could choose for myself. But like many of us raised with Confucian values where filial piety is above everything (the idea that caring for your parents comes before everything else) leaving my parents behind to chase what I wanted only made things even harder. So when I decided to move to the U.S to do what I love. My mom was extremely against it because she is worried I have no friends, no family and no connection here. English was terrible too! She’d afraid I’d get bullied or taken advantage of. But I told my mom, “One day I’ll prove that a girl who started with nothing can still make her dream come true.” Driven by the promise of the American Dream, I came to the U.S. and started building my own version of the American Dream. 

But after moving here, the culture shock and language barriers made my life very difficult. Then I met a lot of people in Chinatown, especially this girl from an undocumented family who told me that she’s been translating everything for her family since she was 9 years old. They had a horrible thing happen to them, but they were hesitant to call the police due to their status. Later I learnt that there are so many others just like her family, parents sacrificing everything so that their children could stand on the other shore for a better future. But as we know the reality isn’t what we imagine, the cost of chasing the American Dream is immense. 

So I wrote this film, wrote down what I saw and how I felt. This film is to anyone who has ever stood at the crossroads between duty and desire, between home and possibility, between who they were and who they hope to become. 

NYFA Alumni Network: What did you learn at NYFA that you applied directly to this project and others? 

Z.L.: I learned how every part of filmmaking connects: writing, directing, producing, editing. This training helped me stay calm on set, and how to stay focused on the heart of the story even under pressure. I wasn’t confident to lead a whole team at the beginning, but towards the end I became comfortable while still being hands-on with the creative work. NYFA pushed me to look beyond plot and focus on emotion, character, and the small human details that make a film feel raw and honest. Those are the lessons I carried directly into my thesis film. Most importantly, NYFA taught me how to make films with limited time and resources, solve problems fast, and keep going even when things felt impossible. I will carry this mindset through out my whole career. 

NYFA Alumni Network: Are you working on any future projects? 

Z.L.: My work mainly focuses on marginalized communities and women navigating systems of power, told with empathy and honesty. I’m currently developing my first feature-length film, an adaptation of my short film American Daydream, about an undocumented immigrant mother and her American-born daughter - two American dreams intertwined by independence and destruction.