In New York City, a single Chinese office worker is tired of her repetitious life. One day on the train she finds a picture of a man with a phone number on the back, and her imagination begins to give her ideas about how her life could change. When she finally finds him in person, she secretly takes more pictures, and builds herself a new imaginary relationship through the photographs.
Peilin Kuo was born and raised in Taiwan. She studied Chinese literature in college, then earned a master's degree in drama from the National Institute of Arts in Taiwan.
In 1997, the last year of graduate school, Peilin got a job at a production company in Taipei that made commercials, music videos, and television programs. She worked there for four years, first trained as a production assistant and later as a director.
In 1999 --looking forward to the new century -- Peilin decided to quit her job and come to the United States because she desired something new and wanted to experience different cultures. In 2000 she began traveling back and forth between Taiwan and the United States. After establishing some friendships and getting married in the United States, she decided to move to New York in 2002 to pursue a career as a professional artist.
Beginning in 2001 Peilin attended the Art Students League in New York to study painting and drawing. Simultaneously she began writing scripts and making plans for her film career. In 2004 she completed her first short film in the United States. Currently Peilin is actively writing, directing, and producing her own films as well as painting and drawing.
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What inspired you to make this piece?
I take the subway every day. It is the best chance to watch people and imagine their stories.
Briefly tell us how you made your film or video: what camera and format did you use to shoot your piece, and what system did you use to edit it? What is your working process? Did you use any special techniques to make this work?
I took hundreds of still photos with my digital camera, then edited them in Final Cut Pro and After Effects to make them into a motion picture.
Do you have any interesting behind-the-scenes stories about the making of this particular work?
After I finished the movie, I was on the subway one day when I saw a colored ball rolling on the floor, just like in my movie. I picked it up and kept it.
What is the relationship between your work as a video/filmmaker and life in the New York metropolitan area?
All of my movies express what I think and I feel about living in New York.
If viewers are interested in obtaining copies of your work for rental or purchase, whom should they contact and at what address and phone number?
Pei-Lin Kuo:
www.peilinkuo.com
917.826.8072 / 31-60 33rd St. #D1, Astoria, NY 11106
