Fishtank

Project type: Fiction Short
Project status: Post Production
Writer/Director: Wendi Tang
Producer: Philip Yuzhong Ge
Executive Producer: Rui Mo
Director of Photography: Jay Swuen
Production Designer: Cyrum Aytana Ramirez
 
Email: wenditang21@gmail.com
Website: www.wenditang.com/fishtank
 
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Logline

Sardonic 28-year-old Jules has been sober for a year, but she can’t stop vomiting fish. Striving to put her life back on track, she must preserve control when a fish enthusiast unexpectedly enters her life.

Synopsis

The film is set in modern-day Los Angeles and follows Jules, a 28-year-old Chinese American woman. Jules, who is newly sober, discovers that the vomiting never goes away as expected. She now vomits fish whenever she reacts to negative stimuli. She usually keeps this a secret, but every now and then, she tells it as a joke that no one believes. Jules, who is organized, caring, and trying to find her place in society, jumps between jobs and goes on casual dates. Things never go exactly as planned. However, Jules finally meets a person, who is a fish enthusiast, after a string of bad dates. Things quickly escalate between them, forcing Jules to confront something she’s avoided her entire life.
 

Meet the Filmmakers

Wendi Tang – Writer/Director
Wendi Tang is a Chinese writer/director based in Los Angeles. She is a graduate of NYU’s BFA-BS dual-degree program. Wendi’s work focuses on character-driven stories that explore various corners of female narratives. Her short films have screened at film festivals worldwide and won several awards. She is a 2022 NYC Women’s Fund recipient and a Sundance Uprise Grant Fund Finalist, and a 2022 BAFTA Newcomer. Her upcoming project, Fishtank, is the winner of the 8th Tribeca Chanel Through Her Lens program and the winner of the 2022 Film Pipeline’s Script Writing Competition.

Philip Yuzhong Ge – Producer
Philip Yuzhong Ge is a Chinese producer and writer based in LA who tells authentic and compelling stories of underrepresented communities. A graduate of the American Film Institute Producing program, Philip produced and co-wrote over 20 narrative shorts. His film Langue was an official selection of Palm Springs Shortfest and a semi-finalist of the Student Academy Awards. He is also a fellow of the 2022 Telluride FilmLAB. Philip previously received his BA and MA degrees in economics from USC and Columbia.

Jay Swuen – Director of Photography
Jay Swuen (孫偉傑) is a cinematographer based in Los Angeles, California. Swuen’s work has been exhibited at several prestigious film festivals and platforms, including the Tribeca Film Festival, Austin Film Festival, Nffty, Outfest Fusion, New Filmmakers LA, and Nowness Asia. In addition, he has collaborated with prominent clients such as Fendi, Skims, Reebok, Nike, Samsung, and notable personalities like Nicki Minaj, Kim Kardashian, Kehlani, Grimes, Smino, Olivia Rodrigo, etc. As a queer Asian filmmaker, he understands the urgency of telling stories for the underrepresented community, with true sincerity and authenticity. He’s currently represented by the Gersh agency.

Cyrum Aytana Ramirez – Production Designer
Cyrum Aytana Ramirez, originally from Cancun, Mexico, began her career in Vancouver, Canada where she studied visual arts and design. She earned a BFA in filmmaking from the New York Film Academy and an MFA from the American Film Institute Conservatory. Based in Los Angeles, Ramirez is a student member of the Set Decorators Society of America and has been the production designer for multiple short films, two feature films and commercials. Her work has been part of multiple film festivals, including Telluride and the Academy Awards.

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Contact

For inquiries, please contact fiscalsponsorship@filmindependent.org.