In 2018, Justin Wu, Artsci’08, was earning widespread attention and praise for his fashion photography.
Nowadays he is having more success in the director’s chair. Wu’s passion for film and TV directing has landed him a Filmmaker of the Future Award, a People’s Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, and recently a nomination for a Directorial Achievement Award by the Director’s Guild of Canada. Right now, he is trying to get his new feature documentary into upcoming film festivals.
As a child, Wu dreamed of going into TV and film but never saw it as a realistic goal, growing up in Scarborough. Hollywood was a fantasy, and so was a career in creating films. But after graduation, Wu gained mass success in the fashion photography world working with models and celebrities like Winnie Harlow, Elizabeth Olsen, Madeline Petsch, and later co-founded an award-winning campaign for the United Nations The World Is In Our Hands campaign featuring Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Joaquin Phoenix, Rosario Dawson, Jazz Jennings, Alec Baldwin and more.
With the success of his photography career, Wu decided to pursue a career in film. He directed commercials for eight years, but it didn’t fulfil him. It lacked the depth of storytelling he wished to pursue. This was noticed by his colleagues who asked him “why are you not in TV or film?”.
Although his photography career in Paris was flourishing, he had hit the glass ceiling, as the country didn’t provide many support opportunities for foreigners. He also faced a catch 22 situation; how would he break into TV and film without experience?
As his film career started to develop, Wu’s father fell ill with cancer and Justin moved back to Canada from Los Angeles to help take care of him. It was during this time that Wu realized he needed to fall back into his risk-taking habits and put himself out there if he wanted to break into film, so he started cold calling production companies pleading for a chance.
Wu was able to book a quick meeting with CBC to discuss Kim’s Convenience and deliver his pitch. Months later he got the call saying he would be directing an episode of Kim’s Convenience, a show he heavily related to in terms of characters, upbringing, and heritage. “I broke down in tears,” said Wu, when he heard the news.
Wu became the youngest person to ever direct an episode of Canada’s beloved TV series Kim’s Convenience during their fifth and final season. He directed the episode titled Slippery Slope and he has since been nominated for the Director’s Guild of Canada Award - Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series.
“I was walking down the street carrying groceries when I started receiving congratulation texts from friends and fellow Kim’s Convenience directors that I mentored with before my episode,” said Wu when discussing finding out his episode was nominated. “Everyone was saying congratulations, but I wasn’t actually sure what for until I got home, and my agent emailed me the exciting news.”
When the pandemic hit, Wu, a frequent collaborator with the United Nations, was put in contact with the United Nations refugee agency, the UNHCR. It was then that Wu discovered how refugees were the most affected by the pandemic. The international refugee crisis had reached a historic peak with over 80-million people displaced and counting. This led to Wu reading through refugee profiles and being introduced to Biko Beauttah.
Beauttah is a black transgender refugee from Kenya who sought asylum after being outed on television. Being a member of the LGBTQ+ community in Kenya is illegal, and can lead to severe discrimination and hate crimes, imprisonment, or even being stoned to death. Beauttah has a unique riches-to-rags-to realization refugee story as she came from privilege. Her choice to live her life truthfully would put her in danger. Her fight for freedom and sanctuary is the main focus and inspiration behind Wu’s new feature film.
Wu’s first feature film, currently titled Glambassador, follows Beauttah with supporting expert interviews from UN representatives to refugee shelter and case workers to help viewers understand their plight. “If I can help tell their story authentically, and help viewers not just sympathize, but emphasize with these individuals, then I believe change can happen,” said Wu.
When asked if he had a favourite review for one of his projects, Wu recalled sharing the final cut of the film with Beauttah for the first time. “She broke down in tears and said it was truthful,” said Wu. “She validated the authenticity of the film and storytelling, which was the most important factor to me. Knowing she felt I depicted her, and her story authentically meant the world.”
Right now, Wu is working to get his film into upcoming festivals and onto streaming platforms. He will also be directing a brand-new show for the CBC and continue pursuing his passion for television. In 2017, Wu was a judge for the TIFF Youth Program and his short film, Overtime, won the Audience Choice Award.
All of the film’s earnings Justin has access to will go support the UN Refugee Agency.
To stay up to date with Wu and his projects, visit Wu's website.
