Canada has many talented actors, writers, producers, and other content creators. To help our industry grow, we would like to introduce you to some of those talented folks who have managed to capture that magic on screen.
This week, we spoke with Vancouver dialogue coach and producer, Lynne Lee.
HNMAG: Where did you grow up?
Lynne Lee: I was born in Hong Kong. I half grew up there and moved to Vancouver when I was a teenager.
HNMAG: Did your parents feel that Vancouver was reminiscent to Hong Kong but would be a better place to live?
Lynne Lee: This was in the 80s when a lot of people were moving away from Hong Kong. They wanted to find a new home, worried about the handover back to China. In our case, it was family-related because my Dad’s brother moved here with my grandfather a long time ago. They considered the US, but when they arrived, they really liked it and felt it could be their new home.
HNMAG: Have you been back to Hong Kong since you moved?
Lynne Lee: Yes, in fact, I left Vancouver and spent the next fifteen years in Asia.
HNMAG: Wow!
Lynne Lee: The moment I graduated from School, I moved back. It was very ironic. My parents moved here for my future, and the moment I could, I left. The economy was booming, and it was more exciting over there. I had an opportunity to stay with my uncle and look for work. I moved to Hong Kong with the ambition of getting into an ad agency.
HNMAG: Did you study marketing and business?
Lynne Lee: In university, I changed majors every year because I really couldn’t decide what I wanted to do. Originally, I was going to get a Bachelor of Fine Arts, but I didn’t think I could make a living with that. I moved on to Art History, because I had to pick a major or risk don’t graduating. It was, in fact, close to my graduation when I decided to take a night course at BCIT for a month or two, got a certificate in marketing, that helped land my job in advertising.
HNMAG: When did you first become interested in film and TV?
Lynne Lee: I was always interested. Growing up, I always loved movies and theatre. I did drama as a kid and then community theatre. Before I was born, my mother worked in the film industry in Hong Kong. When I was growing up, it was hammered into my head to never consider getting into the terrible world of film and TV. In Hong Kong, it was not unionized and was more exploitative. Working in advertising in Hong Kong, I was working on creating ads and overseeing the execution. I got exposure to the entire process.
HNMAG: When you came back to Vancouver, were you still working in advertising?
Lynne Lee: After five years of living in Hong Kong, I moved to Shanghai. For the next twelve years, I continued to work in ad agencies, and then in a media company before coming back to Vancouver. The year I left, they opened VFS in Shanghai.
HNMAG: Vancouver Film School?
Lynne Lee: Yes, it’s been there for ten years. I know people who have been sent there to teach. People around the world are interested in making films the Hollywood way.
HNMAG: Or more specifically, the Hollywood North way.
Lynne Lee: (laughs) Yes, that’s right. We follow the system so closely, we know it as well as anyone.
HNMAG: Why did you move back to Vancouver?
Lynne Lee: Family. My parents are getting older. My mother initially thought I would go to Hong Kong, suffer for a couple of years being independent, and then come running home. I was having so much fun, the pay was better and lower taxes.
HNMAG: Are you still working in advertising in Vancouver?
Lynne Lee: No. I never expected to work in the film industry. I saved my money in China. I anticipated that the opportunities for work would be limited in Vancouver. I was guessing that I would lead a semi-retirement lifestyle.
I kept noticing that there were always roads blocked for filming. I lucked out as I had a family friend who was an actor, who knew a casting director, and they were looking for a trilingual Producer’s Assistant.
HNMAG: English, Mandarin, and ?
Lynne Lee: Cantonese. The film had Chinese investors, Chinese actors, and stunt coordinators. My advertising background helped me.
HNMAG: Was this a feature film?
Lynne Lee: Yes, it was called Birth of the Dragon. It was released in 2016. I felt with my skill set and background that producing would be in my wheelhouse. Something that I could get into and get good at. I also found it inconceivable to become a producer. I figured out that I should learn about all the departments. After that, I worked in a non-union film as a 3rd AD (Assistant Director). Then I was the second, on a Chinese show shooting in Vancouver. I was a fast learner, and the experience turned out to be ok.
HNMAG: All those different experiences led to you becoming a producer?
Lynne Lee: I was getting discouraged. I felt it was such a big engine, I’ll never get to do this, but along came the Vancouver Asian Film Festival (VAFF). It was established twenty-nine years ago. That was the year that I left Vancouver. I didn’t know about it until I moved back here. It hit me when I moved back here that I wanted to leave because I felt like an outsider, and it wasn’t really my home. Being from Asia, I was part of a minority in Canada. That’s not true in China. I was drawn to helping with Chinese representation. There is pressure to go the extra mile to be accepted.
HNMAG: Your involvement in VAFF rapidly excelled.
Lynne Lee: VAFF is a volunteer organization. I met the festival director, Grace Chin, who was stepping down, and the board was looking for her replacement. I was able to take on that role in 2018. My experience was limited, but I was excited to be involved. Beyond the festival itself, VAFF also runs a short film-making competition called Mighty Asian Moviemaking Marathon (MAMM). This is a great way to build awareness and offer more mentorship. During COVID, we pivoted and brought the entire festival online. I also work as a dialect coach on union shows for actors who need help with Chinese.
HNMAG: Did you become a producer after working with VAFF?
Lynne Lee: I produced my first serious independent short film, My Name is Arnold, in 2021. Arnold Lim is a very talented artist, and he became a wonderful partner. I later worked with him on Obscura.
HNMAG: What are you working on right now?
Lynne Lee: Arnold came across an amazing project that he optioned, called The Bryce Lee Story. It’s about a thirteen year old boy who moved from Hong Kong to Chemainus and struggles to fit in.
HNMAG: That’s a wonderful town on the Island where they have all the murals.
Lynne Lee: I know, it’s gorgeous. Bryce is passionate about making films, particularly kung fu-themed, but nobody wants to play with him. He makes home movies with his nine-year-old sister. Then he creates a story about being Bruce Lee’s grand-nephew.
HNMAG: Is it a feature?
Lynne Lee: It is a feature. It took a few years with hits and misses, we learned from feedback, and eventually got the movie green-lit. We are making it this summer. It will be my second feature film. I am very lucky, and I love how this community works. The first feature film I produced is called The Chinatown Diner. We are currently in post-production. It’s about the Asian Community that features Vancouver.
HNMAG: Is the Bryce Lee Story set in Chemainus?
Lynne Lee: Possibly. It might be another small town on Vancouver Island.
HNMAG: Ok, so it’s still the Island. You’re not changing that.
Lynne Lee: For sure.
HNMAG: Will the trend of setting productions in Canada continue to rise?
Lynne Lee: I sure hope so. I feel, especially with this moment in history, with Canadian pride being at its highest, from a romantic and ideal perspective, yes. From the practical side, it’s so hard to get funding, so that can be a barrier. Creators want to be authentic and show their hometown, and now people are less resistant to that.
Besides Indigenous people, Canadians are immigrants or recent descendants of immigrants. Unlike the US, people don’t embrace their new nationality and drop into a melting pot. Canada is a multicultural melee that celebrates all cultures. Or at least, that’s what we like to tell others. Moving to a new country, as a teenager, being of a different ethnicity, can be challenging. Spending those difficult, socially awkward years in a new place can make you feel like an outsider. The truth is, most people feel like an outsider as a teenager, even if they never left the place where they were born. Lynne Lee moved to Vancouver from Hong Kong, and just didn’t feel at home. She moved back to China and stayed there for a long time. She thrived and had a wonderful time. When her parents got older, she moved back to Vancouver and found her real home with VAFF. Helping others express their own stories in film was now where she belonged. Now, Lynne Lee is producing feature films that tell authentic Asian Canadian stories.
