Changyou's Journey （陳昌友的旅行）is an animated short film written, animated, and directed by Perry S. Chen 陳彬睿, and produced by Zhu Shen 沈竹
Changyou’s Journey Film Still (Copyright 2018 by Perry Chen Studios)
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Director Perry S. Chen celebrating his Scholastic Art & Writing National Gold Medal and New York Life Award, Carnegie Hall, New York, June 7, 2018 (photo by Scholastic Inc.)
November 23rd, 2018 
Jackson Murphy
Perry Chen began his journey in the world of animation as a film critic. Today, the 18-year-old freshman at U.C. Irvine is the director of an acclaimed animated short film about the life of his father. Chen is hoping Changyou’s Journey continues to have an impact on audiences and makes it all the way to the Academy Awards.
Jackson Murphy: We were both featured in a 2010 Variety article on young movie critics. What has always fascinated you about film?
Perry Chen: What’s always fascinated me about film is the fact that it’s one of the most appealing art forms to children. I really like that it’s a way to express an artistic medium that kids will enjoy – and universally. It’s about the universal appeal.
Perry Chen’s ‘Changyou’s Journey’ Film Still
JM: You got to work with 2-time Oscar nominee Bill Plympton on a previous project. What was it like working with him?
PC: Meeting him, especially, was a real stroke of luck. I was covering Comic-Con as a young critic, and I happened to sit in on one of his short film showcases for “The Fan and the Flower”. He actually visited that showing and invited everyone down to his booth. I just had to meet him in person, and when I did, he was offering everyone free drawings. I got a drawing and for some reason, I just decided to draw one right next to it. I think it’s because I admired his style so much – I wanted to see if I could imitate it.
After seeing that, Bill Plympton and his friend, Kevin Sean Michaels, were a bit impressed… and wanted me to work on a film with them. Overall, my experience with Bill Plympton on the making of that film, Ingrid Pitt: Beyond The Forest, was that he was a really supportive mentor… surprisingly considering at that time he didn’t have any kids of his own. He was very encouraging. He pointed out ways that I could improve. He was always really supportive of a young artist trying to make something great.
JM: That’s so nice to hear. You love to hear good mentorship stories. I have to congratulate you on “Changyou’s Journey”. It’s about the life of your dad, who passed away in 2012. At what point did you decide that you wanted to tell his story?
PC: I wanted to start telling his story the moment I heard he had two weeks left to live. At that point, the purpose of making the film, to me, was to give him hope that he could live a few more days. And with each scene, I would draw each day, would be something for him to look forward to in the darkest hours of his life. That’s really how it all started. There have been a lot of ups and downs during the course of the making of the film, but that’s how it all began.
JM: That is powerful. Did you go to family members to get their perspective on your dad – for some research on all that he accomplished?
PC: Absolutely. With the support of our donors and friends and family, we were able to fund some trips back to China. I was able to visit some of his old colleagues, his family back in his remote village – to really have long in-depth conversations we recorded about their experience with him and the different roles he played in each of their lives. He was a biotech CEO back in China, and he had a lot of… workers. It was really cool to see how the way they looked up to him was so different from how I looked up to him as a son.
JM: You can tell in watching Changyou’s Journey how personal this is for you. And one of the key elements to making it all work is that you didn’t use any dialogue. Was that a difficult decision or something you decided right out of the gate?
PC: It wasn’t really a difficult decision because… being an animation critic, I’ve watched hundreds of animated films, especially animated shorts. And a lot of those don’t use dialogue. It’s easier to make a silent short film than a feature film, as you know. So it felt like the right thing to do.
JM: I was really impressed with the music. How did you find the right tone?
PC: I worked with our composer and co-producer David Arend. A lot of the music was done with me talking it through with him in many hour-long discussions. I would go through scene-by-scene all the way down to the second. And I think that was really helpful for him, seeing as he was working on it scene by scene. A lot of these short movements that can switch moods pretty quickly, based on the animation. For this film, I made a temp track, but I chose not to share it with him because I ultimately wanted to see the creative direction he took on it completely without any of my influence, as a non-musical person. Ultimately, he performed better than I ever could’ve expected.
Film poster, designed by 17-year-old fellow YoungArts and Scholastic award winner Cynthia Zhou
JM: The short has beautiful hand drawings. When you’re doing them, do you get a sense of power and freedom in hand-drawings, as opposed to people doing something like CGI or stop-motion?
PC: I really enjoy hand-drawn animation as a medium, and I feel that’s part of why I chose to do hand-drawings for the animation here – also because of my experience. This film was not animated by me, but it was done by… our animator, Matt Fisher. But as a whole, I really love the medium of hand-drawn animation. But there are things you just really can’t convey in 3D animation, no matter how advanced the technology. Like in the movie Aladdin: how the Genie moves from one second to another.
JM: I don’t know how Disney is gonna pull-off his movements in CGI with the new, Will Smith version next Summer. So since this is such a personal story for you, how do you want other people coming into this story to feel by watching Changyou’s Journey?
PC: While making the film, I never thought about what kind of impact it would have on others. I honestly started making the film as a pure, personal project. So I never imagined it would have this kind of impact, and I never really intended it, either. But I think it’s such an incredible thing how a film – once you make it – can take on a life of its own and resonate with the audience. It’s striking a chord in ways I personally could never have predicted.
JM: You’re going to so many different places screening the film, including the Toronto International Film Festival, where it was selected for the Kids Division. How has it been traveling to all these places with the film?
PC: It’s pretty incredible to see that my film – this little film I created that was birthed in my mind and through my own personal experience – was able to touch the lives of audiences in Toronto. That was the first one and probably one of the most meaningful ones for me. After the film’s showing, seeing the audience come up to me and tell me about their own experiences with grief and loss of a loved one. I’ve had that all over – in all sorts of different film festivals, where people tell me how this film has a personal meaning to them, with the loss of their father, brother or son – or any loved one in general. That’s not something I ever could’ve expected.
JM: And you’re not only getting this film out there, but you are hoping for an Oscar nomination in the coveted Best Animated Short Film category. What would an Academy Award nomination mean to you and your film?
PC: I actually never thought of that because I never expected to get that far. But that’s a good question. What that would probably mean to me is that I’m really doing something right – that the art I’ve created has a much bigger… purpose behind it and a bigger meaning.
JM: I think you’re already experiencing some of that impact. I also heard your mother is making a documentary on the making of this film. So how has that process been?
PC: That’s been really incredible. I can kind of feel what it’s like to be a parent, seeing your child grow artistically, except a role reversal. I see my mom’s growth artistically, and I think that’s really incredible. It’s such a rare thing for anyone to see their parent grow in a completely different direction than you ever could’ve expected. I think we often see our parents as… fixed permanent beings in our lives, but we have to remember that they’re people, and their creative perspective is very valuable as well. I’m going to be taking a far lesser role in the creation of her documentary film, A Journey of a Thousand Miles. Most of the help I provide will be in the form of teaching her what I learned in my filming experience.
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Trailer (Directed by Zhu Shen, Edited by Alec Dubow)
For more information on Chen and the short, go to changyousjourney.com. Changyou’s Journey is in the Shorts Competition Program #3, December 2nd, 2018 at noon at the Los Angeles Animation Festival on Dec 2nd, 2018.
Writer & Director Perry S. Chen with his Producer Mom Zhu Shen at their film CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY’S Oscar-qualifying Theatrical Run at the Laemmle Monica Film Center, September 22, 2018 (photo by Kurt Braun)
“A young animator crafted this labor of love to inspire his father during his long battle with cancer and to pay tribute to the life he led, beginning with his childhood in rural China. A story of grief, loss, resilience, and enduring hope in the darkest times of our lives.”
Changyou’s Journey Trailer:
12-year-old animator Perry Chen 陳彬睿showing his animation film trailer CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY to his dad Changyou Chen 陳昌友 five days before Changyou passed from cancer, July 14, 2012 (photo by Brian Bostrom)
Join us 2-5 pm on Sunday November 18, 2018 for a feast of the mind and body at a Poway mansion, to follow, support, and celebrate the inspiring journey of San Diego legend, award-winning teen director, artist, film critic, and storyteller Perry Chen and his mother, former biotech executive-turned artist & filmmaker Dr. Zhu Shen, and go behind the scenes as they share the transformative 5-year journey of making their deeply personal film CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY, an Oscar-qualifying animation short film, in honor of Dr. Changyou Chen, Perry’s late father, a Stanford-trained cancer researcher and biotech founder. Perry is the youngest animation director to qualify for an Oscar!
Come watch CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY and be moved by this story of grief, loss, and enduring hope that has swept numerous top national art awards, and international film festival awards, premiered at Toronto International Kids Film Festival (TIFF Kids), selected by 17 international film festivals for official screening, endorsed by Oscar winner and nominees alike, National YoungArts Foundation, Scholastic, The New York Life Foundation, and won San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s Special Commendation Award.
You will watch how Perry’s love for movies and words led to his first national spotlight on CBS Evening News at nine in 2009 as one of the youngest film critics in the country with the encouragement of mother Zhu and Perry’s 3rd-grade teacher at Torrey Hills School, how his chance meeting with animation legend Bill Plympton at Comic-Con in 2009 led to a rare collaboration to make his first film as an animator about a young Holocaust survivor, INGRID PITT: BEYOND THE FOREST, that won multiple festival awards and qualified for an Oscar when he was 11. Perry’s special friendship with DreamWorks How to Train Your Dragon director Dean DeBlois earned him a special invitation to present his first animation at DreamWorks Animation in Hollywood, introduced by DeBlois in 2011. You will get a sneak peak of some of the rare, historical footage that Zhu has curated to be featured in her own directorial documentary feature debut, A JOURNEY OF A THOUSAND MILES, documenting her and Perry’s journey of making CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY, and beyond. Zhu and Perry’s long-time friend, fellow artist, musician, writer Janet White is the moderator for Q&A. CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Co-producer & composer David Arend and Coach Walker Clark will join the Q&A as well.
Thank you for your kind support to Perry’s and Zhu’s journey to create the kind of art that speaks to the heart and connects people from all around the world!
Event cost: $50 per adult as donation to the films, children (6-18) can attend free with paying adult
$60 per adult at the date of the event (cash or check only)
(appetizers provided by local restaurants and markets)
Register here by Nov 17
Teen director Perry S. Chen with his producer mother Dr. Zhu Shen celebrating his San Diego Mayor Award at their film CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY San Diego premiere hosted by Pacific Arts Movement at the Museum of Photographic Arts (photo by Phil Steele)
Writer & Director Perry S. Chen with his mother/Producer Zhu Shen celebrating his San Diego Mayor Award at CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY’S San Diego Premiere, March 22, 2018 (Photo by Phil Steele)
For those unable to attend, donation is greatly appreciated:
www.changyousjourney.com/donate
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Movie Poster, Designed by Cynthia Zhou
Director Perry S. Chen, Coach Walker Clark, Co-Producer/Composer David Arend, Producer Zhu Shen at AMPAS Screening, October 18, 2018 (photo by Angel Burns, poster design by Cynthia Zhou)
Director Perry S. Chen and Producer Zhu Shen Wish to Thank the Following Event Partner/ Sponsors for Promotion and Food:
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Oscar-qualifying Theatrical Run at Laemmle Monica Film Center Sep 21-27, 2018
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Film Creative Team at their Oscar-qualification Theatrical Run, L to R: Co-Producer & Composer David Arend, Producer & Exec Producer Zhu Shen, Background artist Kiana Mosser, Animator Matthew Fisher, and Writer & Director Perry S. Chen at Laemmle Monica Film Center, September 22, 2018 (photo by Kurt Braun)
SAN DIEGO, CA (September 20, 2018) – 2018 Presidential Scholars in the Arts Semifinalist and 18-year-old multiple award-winning filmmaker Perry S. Chen of San Diego, California is the youngest animation director to qualify for an Academy Award in the Animated Short Films category in 2019. His Oscar-qualifying entry is his directorial debut, CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY, produced by his mother, Dr. Zhu Shen, a former biotech executive, in honor of Perry’s late father, Dr. Changyou Chen, a Stanford-trained cancer researcher and biotech founder, whose young life was taken away by cancer itself in 2012 when Perry just graduated from elementary school. The film is co-produced by Juilliard-trained musician and composer David Arend who composed the original score, animated by Matthew Fisher, with Kiana Mosser as the background artist. Perry was a 17-year-old high school junior when he finished the film in 2017.
The Oscar-qualification theatrical run for CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY was held daily at 12:55 pm for a week from Friday September 21st to Thursday September 27, 2018 at the Laemmle Monica Film Center, 1332 2nd Street in Santa Monica, California. Perry and Zhu attended the September 22 screening with co-producer & composer David Arend, animator Matthew Fisher and meet audience members following the 12:55 pm screening. Additional creative members of the film includes Alec Dubow, film trailer editor who is a senior at the San Diego State University’s School of Theatre, Television, and Film; and Cynthia Zhou, Perry’s fellow 2018 YoungArts finalist in design and 2018 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards national gold medalist, who designed the film poster. Perry and Zhu are excited to team up with Joshua Jason of Joshua Jason Public Relations (JJPR), one of the most sought-after film publicists to work on awards season publicity. Joshua Jason led the film publicity of the successful Oscar nominations of Irish independent animation studio Cartoon Saloon’s director Tomm Moore’s animation feature films THE SECRET OF KELLS, SONG OF THE SEA, and Cartoon Saloon’s THE BREADWINNER last year; as well as the Oscar campaign THE SHAPE OF WATER which won best picture and best director Oscars in 2018. CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY theatrical screening details at:
https://www.laemmle.com/films/44504
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Oscar-qualification LA theatrical run
12:55 pm daily, Sep 21 -27, 2018
Monica Film Center
1332 2nd Street
Santa Monica, CA 90401
Online vimeo link to watch the full film is available to journalists and reviewing press. Contact: changyousjourney@gmail.com
Watch trailer:
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Movie Poster, Designed by Cynthia Zhou
Perry received numerous accolades for this film that the New York Life Foundation called “Extraordinary”, and endorsed by the multiple Oscar-nominated director Tomm Moore (The Secret of Kells, Song of the Sea) who called it “Powerful and touching.” Oscar-nominated director Dice Tsutsumi (THE DAM KEEPER) called it “heartfelt, honest and beautifully personal.”
“I am truly honored and humbled by all the awards and recognition for our film.” said Perry, “CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY was conceived and made from a place of deep compassion and love. I am struck with the realization that my vision and vulnerability could foster such kinship with complete strangers through the emotions that unite us all as humans. These are the kinds of stories I am deeply compelled, and uniquely qualified, to tell. Stories about lives and experiences underrepresented among the masses yet profoundly valuable and universal, now more than ever. The recent blockbuster film featuring an all-Asian cast, CRAZY RICH ASIANS. that my mom and I so enjoyed watching highlighted the need for diversity of voices and representation in films and entertainment.”
“I would never have imagined that my former life in biotech business would one day be transformed into that of a storyteller and filmmaker due to life’s unexpected twists and turns, and that through making this film with my son Perry, we would go on this incredible journey of self discovery and transcendence. It warms my heart to see such a deeply personal film about our family’s grief and hope would touch so many lives and go on to qualify for an Oscar!” said Zhu Shen, the producer and executive producer of the film. “Perry and I have been blessed with so many wonderful kindred spirits in this global, caring community: creative artistic partners, mentors, advisers, corporate sponsors, friends, family, and colleagues who have supported and/or donated to our film in the past six years. Our film would not have been possible without the support of this community. I am committed to continuing to tell our story of making CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY and how it transformed our lives in my documentary feature directorial debut, A JOURNEY OF A THOUSAND MILES, to be completed in 2019.”
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Director Perry S. Chen celebrating at Scholastic Art & Writing Awards,(photo by Scholastic Inc.)
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Director Perry S. Chen with his producer mom Zhu Shen at his Canyon Crest Academy high school graduation, June 15, 2018
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY has brought its director Perry several other prestigious local and national awards, including the 2018 Scholastic Art & Writing National Gold Medal Award in Film & Animation, and 2018 New York Life Foundation Special Achievement Award for which he was honored on stage at Carnegie Hall on June 7, 2018 at the national awards ceremony. He also won 2018 National YoungArts Foundation Finalist Award in Cinematic Arts, the highest honor given by the organization. He was a 2018 US Presidential Scholar in the Arts Semifinalist, one of the nation’s highest honors for high school students who exemplify academic and artistic excellence. San Diego’s Mayor Kevin Faulconer honored Perry with a Special Commendation Award for his “transformative power of storytelling and contribution to cinematic arts.” He won Dollars for Scholars Scholarship, Coastal Community Foundation Scholarship funded by the Eric Scott Langdon and Diana Monzeglio Memorial Scholarship Fund, and the Global Changer Award from Alliance of Chinese American in San Diego.
To celebrate the historical endeavor and help fund the Oscar race of CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY, Zhu and Perry are organizing the “Perry Chen Studios Movie Magic & Oscar Race Fundraiser”, on Sunday, November 18, 2018, from 2-5 pm in San Diego, where fans and local donors of the filmmakers will be treated with special screenings of Perry’s first Oscar-qualified short he animated at 11 years old, about a young Holocaust survivor, INGRID PITT: BEYOND THE FOREST, produced by mom Zhu Shen, in collaboration with animation legend Bill Plympton, and Perry’s directorial debut CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY, rare footage of Perry to be featured in Zhu’s directorial debut, documentary feature film A JOURNEY OF A THOUSAND MILES, when he was a budding child film critic featured on CBS Evening News interviewing Oscar-winning Pixar director of Up, and much more. Perry, Zhu, and their co-producer & composer David Arend, their personal development coach Walker Clark will share the challenges and triumphs behind the making of CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY! Attendees will enjoy delicious treats from around the world, provided by many of the restaurants and markets Perry reviewed as a critic since his childhood days.
Perry Chen Studios Movie Magic & Oscar Race Fundraiser:
Sunday, 2-5 pm, November 18, 2018
Private Poway Home, San Diego
Register HERE by November 11, 2018!
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY has two upcoming San Diego film festival screenings in the film director and producer’s hometown San Diego: the film has been officially selected to screen at the 2018 Coronado Island Film Festival with the renowned film critic, historian, and author Leonard Maltin as its honorary jury chairman. The festival is known to “gather makers and lovers of movies in the unique seaside location of Coronado, California, to share and celebrate the magical art of visual storytelling.
Screening time & venue: 1 pm on Saturday, November 10, 2018 at the Black Box Theater, 650 D Ave, Coronado, California ”
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY is also selected to screen at the 2018 San Diego Asian Film Festival, on Sunday November 11, 2018 at 1 pm at the UltraStar Mission Valley Theater at Hazard Center (7510 Hazard Center Dr, San Diego, CA 92108)
San Diego fans of Perry and Zhu can enjoy meeting the dynamic duo and the rest of the creative team at either screenings.
SDAFF screening details:
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY premiered internationally at the 2018 Toronto International Kids Film Festival (TIFF Kids, March 9-18, 2018), one of the top international film festivals worldwide. It was enthusiastically received by festival audience and organizers. The film has since been accepted in official selections of 15 additional international film festivals including the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, Indie Shorts International Film Festival, Sarasota Film Festival, Dances with Films Festival, and International Children’s Film Festival in Istanbul, Turkey, as well as Newport Beach Film Festival where Perry won Youth Film Showcase Gold Award, Arizona International Film Festival where Perry won Best of Indie Youth Award, Film Now Festival where Perry won Documentary Finalist Award.
12-year-old Perry Chen showing “Changyou’s Journey” trailer to his dad Dr. Changyou Chen after its Comic-Con debut (photo by Brian Bostrom)
Visit the CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY film official website and Facebook page for updates, film festival screenings, awards and endorsements, and check out trailer and Perry’s drawings for the film.
Film website: www.changyousjourney.com
To support and donate to our film, visit www.changyousjourney.com/donate THANK YOU!
Become a fan by clicking “Like” on our Film Facebook page: www.facebook.com/changyousjourney.com
For more information about Director Perry S. Chen, CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY film, or our events, contact Dr. Zhu Shen.
Email: Changyousjourney at Gmail dot com
https://www.facebook.com/changyousjourney
(CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Facebook Page)
Director Perry S. Chen winning 2018 Newport Beach Film Festival Youth Film Showcase Gold Award, April 29, 2018 (photo by Zhu Shen)
SAN DIEGO, CA (May 3, 2018) – 18-year-old high school senior, Presidential Scholars in the Arts Semifinalist Perry S. Chen of San Diego, California from Canyon Crest Academy, has won multiple film festival awards for his animation directorial debut CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY, produced by his mother, Dr. Zhu Shen, a former biotech executive, co-produced with music score composed by Juilliard-trained musician and composer David Arend, in honor of Perry’s late father, Dr. Changyou Chen, a biotech founder and cancer researcher, whose young life was taken away by cancer in 2012 when Perry just graduated from elementary school. Perry won the 2018 Youth Film Showcase Gold Award at his film’s Orange County premiere at the 19th Newport Beach Film Festival on April 29, 2018, presented by Schiefer Chopshop, an international media and content agency in Irvine, California, that judged the block of 18 films produced by high school students nationwide. Perry also won a $150 Best Buy gift card as part of the award.
Watch CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY film trailer:
Director Perry S. Chen receiving Newport Beach Film Festival Gold Award, April 29, 2018 (photo by Zhu Shen)
The Youth Film Showcase jury called CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY “Amazing” and said it is “beautiful non-verbal storytelling.” “Filmmaking is about making people feel something and you made us feel happy, sad, you made us laugh, you made us cry. You helped us to appreciate the gift of life, and to be grateful for our loved ones and the gifts they pass on to us. The story came straight from your heart. The technique and style were executed so well (it reminded me of Miyazaki’s films) too. Very well done!” Another juror remarked on the role of the film’s music score, “Music was amazing and conveyed more emotion than words so that was a great choice; allowed the viewer to connect and feel on a personal level instead of being led to how they should feel.”
Newport Beach Film Festival Youth Film Showcase Underwriter Ken Anderson & Festival Organizer Leslie Feibleman with CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Director Perry S Chen & Youth Film Showcase Gold Award (photo by Zhu Shen)
Perry Chen 2018 Newport Beach Film Festival Youth Film Showcase Gold Award
During the audience Q&A session when asked about college decision, Perry announced that he is excited to attend the University of California Irvine as a Regents’ Scholar in the fall. The Regents’ Scholarship is the most distinguished merit scholarship awarded by the university to highly selective outstanding students. It is a four-year scholarship with priority registration for course enrollment each academic quarter, and guaranteed on-campus housing during the four-year tenure. Perry looks forward to exploring a wide array of interest areas including and beyond filmmaking, including life science, social science, humanity, business, economics, and the arts.
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Director & Canyon Crest Academy Senior Perry S. Chen to join UC Irvine as a Regents’ Scholar and future Anteater after his tour of UCI campus on April 21, 2012 (photo by Zhu Shen)
“We celebrate with Mr. Perry Chen his many accomplishments and his recent acceptance to UC Irvine. UCI is a campus that embraces diversity and differences and Perry is precisely the kind of student who characterizes that level of inclusive excellence. UCI welcomes Mr. Chen and all of his incoming classmates who bring their unique talents to our university, and we will all watch with great anticipation his continued growth and development as a student, scholar, and artist.” Said Thomas A. Parham, Ph.D., Vice Chancellor Student Affairs at UC Irvine.
Director Perry S. Chen’s Animation CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY won 2018 Arizona International Film Festival Best of Indie Youth Award
Across the country in Tucson, the 27th Arizona International Film Festival jury voted enthusiastically and honored CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY with Best of Indie Youth Film Award on the festival’s closing date, April 29, 2018. “Everyone loved Perry’s film. It is such a great animation. I wish you could hear the applause at the screening! I encourage Perry to submit to other festivals where they don’t have a youth film entry. If you didn’t know how old Perry was when he made the film, then you wouldn’t know how old he was after watching it, it’s THAT good!” Commented festival Director of Marketing Mia Schnaible.
Director Perry S. Chen’s Film Now Festival Documentary Finalist Award, April 15, 2018
Presidential Scholars in the Arts semifinalist Perry S. Chen with his Film Now Festival Documentary Finalist Award (photo by Zhu Shen)
Two weeks ago, Perry and CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY won Documentary Finalist Award on April 15, 2018 at the third annual Film Now Festival, an international short film festival for high school students sponsored by Germantown Academy in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, outside of Philadelphia. Film Now juror Cameron Yates, a documentary filmmaker whose latest film, Chef Flynn, premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, said of Perry’s work: “Family dynamics paired with honesty and openness as well as incredibly creative execution brought this film to the top of this year’s submissions.”
Adam McGrath, Assistant Director of Communications in GA’s Office of Institutional Advancement, has managed the Film Now Festival since its inception in 2015. “We are thrilled to have Perry’s film as part of our festival this year,” he said. “CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY is a beautiful and moving film, and exemplifies the quality of work that we want to share with high school filmmakers all over the world. On behalf of Head of School Rich Schellhas and festival sponsors Geoff and Gretchen Jackson, congratulations!” Perry also received a cash award.
“I am truly honored and humbled by all the film festival awards from Newport Beach Film Festival, Arizona International Film Festival, and Film Now Festival.” said Perry, “CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY was conceived and made from a place of deep compassion and love. I am struck with the realization that my vision and vulnerability could foster such kinship with complete strangers through the emotions that unite us all as humans. These are the kinds of stories I am deeply compelled, and uniquely qualified, to tell. Stories about lives and experiences underrepresented among the masses yet profoundly valuable and universal, now more than ever. I hope that many friends, old and new, could come see our film at our LA premiere on May 5, at the 34th Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival! Mom and I have the highest concentration of animation and film industry friends, partners, and mentors in Hollywood, and we look forward to seeing many of them at our LA premiere!”
“With so many years of animation experience under his belt, it comes at no surprise that Perry Chen’s directorial debut CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY is a tender and finely crafted film with an animation style to match. What may surprise some is the age at which the director executed the thoughtful and meaningful work. Just 17 years old and still in high school, Perry Chen has a bright future as both an animator and a director. We’re proud to screen CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY at this year’s Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival in our shorts program, From Vision to Reel: GenerASIANS. Keep your eye out for CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY and Perry’s journey as he continues to grow as an artist and animator.” Remarked program curator and fellow filmmaker Trent Nakamura.
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY will be screened on Saturday, May 5, 2018 at 11 am at the 2018 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival. Details below.
34th Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival
Screening: 11 am, Saturday May 5, 2018 (FREE PROGRAM, TICKET REQUIRED)
From Vision to Reel: GenerASIANS Shorts Program (register to get FREE tickets below):
http://festival.vconline.org/2018/films/changyous-journey/
100 N Central Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Director Perry S. Chen & Producer Zhu Shen will be attending in person!
Andrew Ahn (SPA NIGHT) will present a short 10 minute keynote prior to the opening of this program.
GenerASIANS showcases the Asian and Asian American experience over multiple generations from the point of view of young, emerging filmmakers. These films represent the next generation of must-see Asian American and Pacific Islander talent. – Trent Nakamura
RSVP on Our Film’s LAAPFF Screening Fcebook Page!
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY recently won Perry several other prestigious local and national awards, including the 2018 Scholastic Art & Writing National Gold Medal Award in Film & Animation, and 2018 New York Life Foundation Special Achievement Award for which he will be honored on stage at Carnegie Hall on June 7, 2018 at the national awards ceremony. He also won 2018 National YoungArts Foundation Finalist Award in Cinematic Arts, the highest honor given by the organization. He was nominated as a 2018 US Presidential Scholar in the Arts Candidate, as part of the 2018 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program, one of the nation’s highest honors for high school students who exemplify academic and artistic excellence. He has advanced to semi-finalist for the Presidential Scholar in the Arts announced on April 19, 2018. Mayor Kevin Faulconer honored Perry with a San Diego Mayor Special Commendation Award for his “transformative power of storytelling and contribution to cinematic arts.”
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY premiered internationally at the 2018 Toronto International Kids Film Festival (TIFF Kids, March 9-18, 2018), one of the top international film festivals worldwide. It was enthusiastically received by festival audience and organizers. The film has since been accepted in official selections of nine additional international film festivals including Sarasota Film Festival and International Children’s Film Festival in Istanbul, Turkey.
Fans of Director Perry S. Chen, his Producer mother Dr. Zhu Shen, and their film CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY, can look forward to watching their documentary feature, A JOURNEY OF A THOUSAND MILES, written, directed, and produced by Zhu Shen, cinematography by Perry and Zhu, about their journey of making CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY and how it transformed their lives, currently in production, expected to be completed by the end of 2018, and submitted to film festivals in 2019.
Visit the CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY film official website and Facebook page for updates, film festival screenings, awards and endorsements, and check out trailer and Perry’s drawings for the film.
Film website: www.changyousjourney.com
Become a fan by clicking “Like” on our Film Facebook page: www.facebook.com/changyousjourney.com
Perry’s first animation short made when he was ten years old, was about a young Holocaust survivor. “Ingrid Pitt: Beyond the Forest” also produced by his mother Dr. Zhu Shen, in collaboration with animation legend, two-time Oscar nominee Bill Plympton, directed by Kevin Sean Michaels, qualified for an Oscar in 2011, won three U.S. film festival awards, and screened at over 30 film festivals around the world, distributed by Shorts International, the theatrical distributor of Oscar-nominated shorts annually.
Watch “Ingrid Pitt: Beyond the Forest” on iTunes:
http://itunes.apple.com/gb/movie/ingrid-pitt-beyond-the-forest/id554607718
For more information about Director Perry S. Chen, CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY film, contact Dr. Zhu Shen. Changyousjourney at Gmail dot com
https://www.facebook.com/changyousjourney
(CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Facebook Page)
To join our growing list of over 400 donors (individuals, organizations, corporate sponsors) to support our film’s festival submissions and attendance, so that many more people worldwide can watch this moving tribute from a son to his father, and be inspired!
THANK YOU for your donation of any amount HERE All donor’s names will be added to the film credits in the next round of film edits.
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY film News & Updates:
www.changyousjourney.com/awards
www.changyousjourney.com/festivals
www.changyousjourney.com/endorsements
www.changyousjourney.com/media
12-year-old animation director Perry S. Chen showing his animation trailer CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY to his dad Dr. Changyou Chen, five days before Changyou’s passed away from cancer, July 15, 2018 (photo by Brian Bostrom)
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY – AN ANIMATED FILM, IN LOVING MEMORY OF DR. CHANGYOU CHEN
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Film Still, Copyright 2018 by Perry Chen Studios
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Film Still – Changyou as a young man in rural classroom. Copyright 2018 by Perry Chen Studios
Perry S. Chen drawing CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY storyboard on Wacom Cintiq Companion tablet using Toon Boom Storyboard Pro 4.1 software (photo by Zhu Shen)
Multiple award-winning San Diego teen director Perry S. Chen (Canyon Crest Academy senior) with his producer mother Dr. Zhu Shen celebrating his San Diego Mayor Award at their film CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY San Diego premiere hosted by Pacific Arts Movement at the Museum of Photographic Arts (photo by Phil Steele)
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Film has been invited to screen at the following international film festivals and public events! We look forward to having you attend one of the screenings at a city near you, and please share with your network, and let us know your thoughts about our film at our CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Facebook Fan Page THANK YOU!
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Film and its writer & director Perry S. Chen have received multiple national awards and international accolades, including being nominated as a U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts by National YoungArts Foundation, and advancing to semi-finalist after winning his 2018 National YoungArts Foundation Cinematic Arts Finalist Award. Perry also won 2018 Scholastic Art & Writing National Gold Medal Award, 2018 New York Life Foundation Award for which he will be honored on stage at the Carnegie Hall in New York City on June 7, 2018 at the national awards ceremony. Perry recently won the 2018 Film Now Festival Documentary Finalist Award, San Diego Mayor Special Commendation Award. An increasing number of prominent national organizations, international film festivals, and award-winning filmmakers including Oscar winners and nominees have enthusiastically endorsed director Perry S. Chen and his directorial debut in honor of his late father, Dr. Changyou Chen, a Stanford-trained biotech founder and cancer researcher who lost his life to cancer itself in 2012.
Saturday 3 – 4:30 pm, May 26, 2018,
11525 Sorrento Valley Rd. #A, San Diego, CA 92121
Register here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/2144034249153174
Hosted by Perry Chen Studios and After School Learning Tree
Director Perry S. Chen & Producer Zhu Shen will be attending in person!
Their first animation film, the Oscar-qualifying INGRID PITT: BEYOND THE FOREST will be screened as a bonus!
Plus rare footage of director Perry S. Chen sharing his first animation at DreamWorks Animation Studio while in 6th grade, introduced by How to Train Your Dragon Director Dean DeBlois!
ALL San Diego donors of CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY will be invited to attend! Become a DONOR TODAY if you haven’t, and get invitation before the event is SOLD OUT!
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CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Director Perry S. Chen with his Scholastic Gold and Silver Key Awards (photo by Zhu Shen)
June 7, 2018, 6:00 – 7:15 pm, Carnegie Hall, New York, New York 10019
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2018 National YoungArts Week
New World Center, 8 pm, January 10, 2018, Miami, FL
Changyou’s Journey World Premiere – YoungArts dance & film screening tickets, 1/10/2018, Miami, FL
(L to R) 2018 National YoungArts Week Cinematic Arts Program master teachers Shari Carpenter, Doug Blush, Rick Delgado celebrating CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY world premiere with its director Perry S. Chen and Perry’s mother/producer Zhu Shen on January 10, 2018 (photo by Rosalino Ramos)
“Changyou’s Journey” Producer Zhu Shen at National YoungArts Week film premiere, January 10, 2018, New World Center, Miami
Award-winning teen film director Perry S. Chen and his mother & Producer Dr. Zhu Shen at 2018 National YoungArts Week, January 12, 2018 (photo by Jasmine Cui)
Director Perry S. Chen (R) and fellow YoungArts cinematic arts finalists honored on stage at National YoungArts Week, Miami, 1/10/2018 (photo by Zhu Shen)
21st TIFF Kids Toronto International Kids Film Festival
March 8-19, 2018, Toronto, Canada
Screenings: 3/11/2018 @ 13:15, 3/12/2018 @ 10:45, 3/20/2018 @10:00
https://www.tiff.net/films/changyous-journey/
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Director Perry S. Chen with his mother & producer Zhu Shen at their films’ international premiere at TIFF Kids in Toronto, March 11, 2018 (photo by Wei Zhou)
Director Perry S. Chen and Producer Zhu Shen at TIFF Kids International Premiere Q&A (photo by Jackson Walker)
Director Perry S. Chen with TIFF Shorts Programmer Jason Anderson at CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY premiere at TIFF Kids, March 12, 2018 (photo by Zhu Shen)
Director Perry S. Chen & Producer Zhu Shen’s TIFF Kids Memorabilia
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6:30 pm, March 22, 2018, Museum of Photographic Arts (MOPA), Balboa Park
Introduction by Brian Hu, Artistic Director, Pacific Arts Movement
https://www.facebook.com/events/1024309334389585/
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Producer Zhu Shen (L) & Director Perry S. Chen (R) at their San Diego premiere organized by Pacific Arts Movement (Photo by Richard Nesdale)
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY San Diego premiere: Producer Zhu Shen (m) & Director Perry Chen (r) Intro by Artistic Director Brian Hu (L) of Pacific Arts Movement (Photo by Richard Nesdale)
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY San Diego premiere: Director Perry S. Chen (M), Producer Zhu Shen (R) with Coach Walker Clark (L) at Pacific Arts Movement post-screening audience Q&A (photo by Richard Nesdale)
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13th Poppy Jasper International Film Festival
April 5-8, 2018, Morgan Hill, California
Screening: Friday April 6, 2018, Block 3, 6 pm, Morgan Hill Community Playhouse
http://pjiff.org/schedule/film-screenings/
A Warm Welcome to CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Producer Zhu Shen from her Airbnb host before Poppy Jasper International Film Festival, April 6, 2018 (photo by Yucheng Huang)
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Producer Zhu Shen with her Bay Area friends at Poppy Jasper International Film Festival Screening, April 6, 2018
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Producer Zhu Shen at Poppy Jasper International Film Festival Q&A (photo by Eric Morgan)
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8th Capital City Film Festival
April 11-15, 2018, Lansing, Michigan
Screening: Friday April 13, 2018, Animated Shorts, 5:30 PM
https://capitalcityfilmfesti.com/schedule
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3rd Film Now Festival
April 15, 2018, Fort Washington, Pennsylvania
Screening & Reception: Sunday April 15, 2018, Ambler Theater, 108 E. Butler Ave, PA 19002
https://filmnowfestival.org/festivalinfo/
Film Now Festival Documentary Finalist Award to Director Perry S. Chen and his Film CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY, April 15, 2018
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20th Sarasota Film Festival
April 13-22, 2018, Sarasota, Florida
Screening: Sunday April 15, 2018, 5:45 pm, Program I
Regal Hollywood 11 Cinemas, HOLLYWOOD NIGHTS Young Filmmaker Showcase
https://www.sarasotafilmfestival.com/
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2nd Imagination Lunchbox International Children’s Film Festival
April 19-23, 2018, Baltimore, Maryland
Screening: April 19, 2018, 5:30 – 7:30 pm
Parkway Theatre, 5 W North Ave. Baltimore, MD 21201
http://www.imaginationlunchbox .com/film-festival.html
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20th Newport Beach Film Festival
April 26 – May 3, 2018, Newport Beach, California
Screening: noon, Sunday, April 29, 2018
Triangle 7, 1870 Harbor Blvd., Costa Mesa, CA 92637
Director Perry S. Chen & Producer Zhu Shen will be attending in person! Major News Announcement at Q&A!
FREE PROGRAM, TICKET REQUIRED. REGISTER BELOW BEFORE IT’S SOLD OUT!
https://newportbeachfilmfest.com/event/youth-film-showcase/
https://www.newportbeachfilmfest.com/
Perry Chen 2018 Newport Beach Film Festival Youth Film Showcase Gold Award
(L to R) Producer Zhu Shen, Director Perry S. Chen, Animator Matt Fisher holding CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY 2018 Newport Beach Film Festival Youth Film Showcase Gold Award
Newport Beach Film Festival Youth Film Showcase Underwriter Ken Anderson & Festival Organizer Leslie Feibleman with CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Director Perry S Chen & Youth Film Showcase Gold Award (photo by Zhu Shen)
Director Perry S. Chen (L6) with 2018 Newport Beach Film Festival Youth Film Showcase High School Filmmakers with Program Underwriter Ken Anderson(L7) & Festival Organizer Leslie Feibleman (R 1) (photo by Zhu Shen)
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27th Arizona International Film Festival
April 18-29, 2018, Tucson, Arizona
Screening: Sunday April 29, 2018, 12:30 – 2 pm, The Screening Room
127 East Congress, Tuscon, AZ 85701
http://www.filmfestivalarizona.com/film-detail.php?id=719
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34th Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival
May 3-12, 2018, Los Angeles, California
Screening: 11 am, Saturday May 5, 2018
100 N Central Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90012
Director Perry S. Chen & Producer Zhu Shen will be attending in person!
From Vision to Reel: GenerASIANS Shorts Program:
FREE PROGRAM, TICKET REQUIRED.
Andrew Ahn (SPA NIGHT) will present a short 10 minute keynote prior to the opening of this program.
GenerASIANS showcases the Asian and Asian American experience over multiple generations from the point of view of young, emerging filmmakers. These films represent the next generation of must-see Asian American and Pacific Islander talent. – Trent Nakamura
RSVP on Our Film’s LAAPFF Screening Fcebook Page!
CLAIM YOUR TICKET BELOW BEFORE IT’S SOLD OUT!
Writer & Director Perry S. Chen and Producer & Executive Producer Zhu Shen, festival co-founder David Magdael at CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Hollywood premiere at 2018 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, May 5, 2018
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Writer & Director Perry S. Chen with festival board member Phil Yu aka AngryAsianMan at Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, May 5, 2018 (photo by Zhu Shen)
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Writer & Director Perry S. Chen (L6), Producer & Executive Producer Zhu Shen (L5), Animator Matt Fisher (L3), Background Painter Kiana Mosser (L4) with LAAPFF GenerASIAN shorts filmmakers and programmer Trent Nakamura (R1) at the Q&A, May 5, 2018
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Writer & Director Perry S. Chen (L5), Producer & Executive Producer Zhu Shen (L4), Animator Matt Fisher (R5), Background Painter Kiana Mosser (R6) at their film’s Hollywood premiere with 2018 Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival GenerASIAN shorts filmmakers and programmer Trent Nakamura (L6), May 5, 2018
Freshi & International Family Film Festival Executive Director Chris Shoemaker (L1) with CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Writer & Director Perry S. Chen (R3), Producer & Executive Producer Zhu Shen (L2), Animator Matt Fisher (R1), Background Painter Kiana Mosser (R2) at their film’s Hollywood premiere, Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival , May 5, 2018
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15th International Children’s Film Festival
April 25th – May 12th, 2018, Istanbul, TURKEY
Screening Times:
| Date | Time | City | Hall |
| April 28th, 2018 Saturday | 14:00 | Istanbul | Beyoglu Grand Pera Cinemo Hall 8 |
| April 29th, 2018 Saturday | 14:00 | Istanbul | Beyoglu Grand Pera Cinemo Hall 8 |
| May 3rd, 2018 Thursday | 14:30 | Yozgat | Cultural Center Big Room |
| May 8th, 2018 Tuesday | 13:00 | Erzincan | Erzincan Conference Hall |
| May 11th, 2018 Friday | 14:30 | Van | State Theatre Hall |
http://www.tursak.org.tr/cocuk/page?slug=cocuk-hakkinda
15th International Children’s Film Festival, Istanbul, Turkey catalog cover
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Director Perry S. Chen & Producer Zhu Shen will be attending in person!
Their first animation film, the Oscar-qualifying INGRID PITT: BEYOND THE FOREST will be screened as a bonus!
Plus rare footage of director Perry S. Chen sharing his first animation at DreamWorks Animation Studio while in 6th grade, introduced by How to Train Your Dragon Director Dean DeBlois!
3 – 4:30 pm, May 26, 2018
Register here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/2144034249153174
After School Learning Tree
11525 Sorrento Valley Rd. #A, San Diego, CA 92121
Teen director Perry S. Chen with his producer mother Dr. Zhu Shen celebrating his San Diego Mayor Award at their film CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY San Diego premiere hosted by Pacific Arts Movement at the Museum of Photographic Arts (photo by Phil Steele)
Canyon Crest Academy senior Perry Chen, 18, has won a Scholastic Art and Writing Awards National Gold Medal in Film & Animation for his directorial debut Changyou’s Journey, after winning multiple 2018 Scholastic Art and Writing Western Regional Awards on Jan. 30 (a Gold Key Award for the same film, and four critical essay writing awards for his movie, theater and restaurant reviews). Chen is the only National Gold Medal Winner in Film & Animation from San Diego this year, according to a press release. He is among six students this year who are honored with a Special Achievement Award by The New York Life Foundation, and the only Film & Animation winner in this category.
The New York Life Foundation provides scholarships of $1,000 each to students whose work exemplifies how the arts can act as a positive outlet to cope with grief, and raises public awareness of the issue of youth bereavement. Chen’s animation film Changyou’s Journey was made in honor of his late father, a Stanford-trained biotech founder and cancer researcher who lost his life to cancer itself in 2012. Chen is among only 15 students honored in both National Gold Medal and Special Achievement Award categories (The New York Life Foundation Award, The Herblock Award for Editorial Cartoon, and Civic Expression Award) this year.
Grief is a difficult journey, but having a creative outlet can provide a safe space. But for teens trying to make peace with the loss of a parent, a teacher, a caregiver, or even a friend, finding ways to express bereavement can open a door to healing. In 2017, The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards and the New York Life Foundation have created a special partnership to encourage bereaved teens in grades 7–12 who have personally experienced a loss through the death of a close loved one to create original works of art or writing that explore their responses to a range of grief and emotion.
“The recognition that Mr. Chen is receiving is well-deserved. His extraordinary work is helping our mission to raise awareness about the issue of childhood bereavement and changing the grief conversation into one that focuses on inspiration, empowerment and resiliency. His film also helps to inform the larger community of parents, guardians and educators about how vital the role of the arts is in assisting childhood bereavement,” said Maria Collins, vice president, New York Life Foundation.
Chen and his mother Dr. Zhu Shen, who is the producer and executive producer of Changyou’s Journey, are invited to attend a week-long national celebration in New York City with all other National Gold Medalists and Special Achievement Award winners, highlighted in a national awards ceremony at Carnegie Hall on June 7, where Chen will be honored on stage. They are also invited to a Board of Directors Reception for Special Achievement Award and Gold Portfolio Medalists at Carnegie Hall immediately following the awards ceremony
“I’m truly honored and grateful to both Scholastic Inc. and New York Life Foundation for the wonderful awards and for their encouragement in my mission to foster empathy and compassion to those who suffered profound losses,” Chen said. “Changyou’s Journey is the ultimate gift that took me five years to give to my dad and to all who experienced the loss of a loved one. What I hope the audience can take away from it all is a profound appreciation for life and hope for the future. It is dad’s enduring legacy. New York is a city that I longed to visit since childhood, for its vibrant culture and art scenes, its fascinating history, commerce, and gourmet food. And to be honored inside the iconic Carnegie Hall for my animation directorial debut is beyond my wildest dream! Mom and I are so happy that our co-producer and composer David Arend, who lives in New York City, will join us at the Carnegie Hall award ceremony!”
Changyou’s Journey recently won Chen another prestigious award, the 2018 National YoungArts Foundation Finalist Award in Cinematic Arts, the highest honor given by the organization. Chen was nominated as a 2018 US Presidential Scholar in the Arts Candidate, as part of the 2018 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program, one of the nation’s highest honors for high school students who exemplify academic and artistic excellence. He has advanced to semi-finalist for the Presidential Scholar in the Arts announced on April 19. Changyou’s Journey premiered internationally at the 2018 Toronto International Kids Film Festival (TIFF Kids, March 9-18, 2018), one of the top international film festivals worldwide. It was enthusiastically received by festival audience and organizers. The film has since been accepted in official selections of nine additional international film festivals including Sarasota Film Festival, Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (May 5, 11 a.m.), Newport Beach Film Festival (April 29, noon), Arizona International Film Festival (April 29, 12:30 pm), and International Children’s Film Festival in Istanbul, Turkey.
Chen’s hometown donors and audience can look forward to a Memorial Weekend Special VIP Screening and Discussion with the teen director and his producer mother on Saturday, May 26, at 3 p.m. at After School Learning Tree.
Visit www.changyousjourney.com for details.
Copyright © 2018, Del Mar Times
http://www.delmartimes.net/sd-cm-nc-perry-chen-20180425-htmlstory.html
Perry S. Chen drawing Changyou’s Journey storyboard on Wacom tablet using Toon Boom Storyboard Pro 4.1 software (photo by Zhu Shen)
SAN DIEGO, CA (April 20, 2018) – 18-year-old high school senior Perry S. Chen of San Diego, California from Canyon Crest Academy, has won a Scholastic Art and Writing Awards National Gold Medal in Film & Animation for his directorial debut CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY, after winning multiple 2018 Scholastic Art and Writing Western Regional Awards on January 30, 2018 (a Gold Key Award for the same film, and four critical essay writing awards for his movie, theater, and restaurant reviews). Chen is the only National Gold Medal Winner in Film & Animation from San Diego this year. He is among six students this year who are honored with a Special Achievement Award by The New York Life Foundation, and the only Film & Animation winner in this category. The New York Life Foundation provides scholarships of $1,000 each to students whose work exemplifies how the arts can act as a positive outlet to cope with grief, and raises public awareness of the issue of youth bereavement. Chen’s animation film CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY, was made in honor of his late father, a Stanford-trained biotech founder and cancer researcher who lost his life to cancer itself in 2012. Chen is among only 15 students honored in both National Gold Medal and Special Achievement Award categories (The New York Life Foundation Award, The Herblock Award for Editorial Cartoon, and Civic Expression Award) this year.
Grief is a difficult journey, but having a creative outlet can provide a safe space. But for teens trying to make peace with the loss of a parent, a teacher, a caregiver, or even a friend, finding ways to express bereavement can open a door to healing. In 2017, The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards and the New York Life Foundation have created a special partnership to encourage bereaved teens in grades 7–12 who have personally experienced a loss through the death of a close loved one to create original works of art or writing that explore their responses to a range of grief and emotion.
“The recognition that Mr. Chen is receiving is well-deserved. His extraordinary work is helping our mission to raise awareness about the issue of childhood bereavement and changing the grief conversation into one that focuses on inspiration, empowerment and resiliency. His film also helps to inform the larger community of parents, guardians and educators about how vital the role of the arts is in assisting childhood bereavement,” said Maria Collins, Vice President, New York Life Foundation.
Chen and his mother Dr. Zhu Shen, who is the producer and executive producer of CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY are invited to attend a week-long national celebration in New York City with all other National Gold Medalists and Special Achievement Award winners, highlighted in a national awards ceremony at Carnegie Hall on June 7, 2018 where Chen will be honored on stage. They are also invited to a Board of Directors Reception for Special Achievement Award and Gold Portfolio Medalists at Carnegie Hall immediately following the awards ceremony
12-year-old animator Perry Chen showing his animation “Changyou’s Journey” to his dad Changyou (photo by Brian Bostrom)
“I’m truly honored and grateful to both Scholastic Inc. and New York Life Foundation for the wonderful awards and for their encouragement in my mission to foster empathy and compassion to those who suffered profound losses. CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY is the ultimate gift that took me five years to give to my dad and to all who experienced the loss of a loved one. What I hope the audience can take away from it all is a profound appreciation for life and hope for the future. It is Dad’s enduring legacy,” said Chen, “New York is a city that I longed to visit since childhood, for its vibrant culture and art scenes, its fascinating history, commerce, and gourmet food. And to be honored inside the iconic Carnegie Hall for my animation directorial debut is beyond my wildest dream! Mom and I are so happy that our co-producer and composer David Arend who lives in New York City will join us at the Carnegie Hall award ceremony!”
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY recently won Chen another prestigious award, the 2018 National YoungArts Foundation Finalist Award in Cinematic Arts, the highest honor given by the organization. Chen was nominated as a 2018 US Presidential Scholar in the Arts Candidate, as part of the 2018 U.S. Presidential Scholars Program, one of the nation’s highest honors for high school students who exemplify academic and artistic excellence. He has advanced to semi-finalist for the Presidential Scholar in the Arts announced on April 19, 2018.
Chen was honored by San Diego’s Mayor Kevin Faulconer with a Special Commendation in recognition “for his tranformative power of storytelling and contributions to cinematic arts through his multiple award-winning directorial debut CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY”.
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Director Perry S. Chen receiving San Diego Mayor Special Commendation Certificate from Mayor’s Senior Representative Anthony George after a special screening at his high school, Canyon Crest Academy, on March 14, 2018 (photo by Zhu Shen)
San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer’s Special Commendation Award for Director Perry Shen Chen’s Animation CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY Director Perry S. Chen with his mother & producer Zhu Shen at their films’ international premiere at TIFF Kids in Toronto (photo by Wei Zhou)
Director Perry S. Chen and Producer Zhu Shen at TIFF Kids International Premiere Q&A for their animation film CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY (photo by Jackson Walker)
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY premiered internationally at the 2018 Toronto International Kids Film Festival (TIFF Kids, March 9-18, 2018), one of the top international film festivals worldwide. It was enthusiastically received by festival audience and organizers. The film has since been accepted in official selections of nine additional international film festivals including Sarasota Film Festival, Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (Sat 11 am May 5, 2018), Newport Beach Film Festival (Sunday 11:15 am April 29, 2018), Arizona International Film Festival (Sunday 12:30 pm April 29, 2018), and International Children’s Film Festival in Istanbul, Turkey. Chen’s hometown donors and audience can look forward to a Memorial Weekend Special VIP Screening and Discussion with the teen director and his producer mother on Saturday, May 26, 2018 at 3 pm at After School Learning Tree.
On April 15, 2018, Chen won Film Now Festival’s Documentary Finalist Award for directing CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY. “Family dynamics paired with honesty and openness as well as incredibly creative execution brought this film to the top of this year’s submissions,” remarked Film Now juror Cameron Yates, documentary filmmaker for Chef Flynn, which premiered at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival. “We are thrilled to have Perry’s film as part of our festival this year,” said Adam McGrath, Assistant Director of Communications in Germantown Academy’s Office of Institutional Advancement. “Changyou’s Journey is a beautiful and moving film, and exemplifies the quality of work that we want to share with high school filmmakers all over the world. On behalf of Head of School Rich Schellhas and festival sponsors Geoff and Gretchen Jackson, congratulations!”
Film Now Award To Director PERRY CHEN & His Film CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY
CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY is written, directed, edited by Perry S. Chen, who also designed the characters and storyboard. Producer and executive producer Zhu Shen is also in charge of the film’s fundraising, corporate sponsorship, worldwide publicity and distribution including film festival submissions. David Arend is a co-producer who composed original music score and arranged all music performance and orchestration in multiple locations. Matthew Fisher and Kiana Mosser of 3rd Wall Studios animated the film, provided background painting, and contributed to storyboard and character design. More information on CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY and watch film trailer: www.changyousjourney.com
Chen started computer 2D animation at age 10, as the sole animator of the critically-acclaimed INGRID PITT: BEYOND THE FOREST, about a young Jewish girl’s survival during the Holocaust, based on two-time Oscar nominee Bill Plympton’s storyboard and character design, directed by Kevin Sean Michaels. The film won multiple film festival awards in the U.S. and qualified for an Oscar in 2012, distributed by Shorts International, which also distributes Oscar-nominated short films theatrically worldwide.
“Perry’s film CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY is a powerful and dazzling piece of animation that stunned our jury panel with its storytelling and technique, and the film played to a sold-out, cheering crowd at Miami’s New World Center during our awards week show.” said Doug Blush, the illustrious two-time Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker (20 Feet From Stardom, 2014, Icarus, 2018) who had two more Oscar nominations and was involved in over a hundred documentary feature films, and chair of National YoungArts Foundation Cinematic Arts Program during National YoungArts Week.“We were further amazed to find out that Perry had been making animated films since the age of 10, and had already had films shown at festivals and public screenings.”
Perry S. Chen Gold Key 2018 Scholastic Art & Awards Certificate in Film & Animation Certificate
“I’m thrilled to learn that Perry has also won the 2018 Scholastic Art and Writing National Gold Medal in Film & Animation, and The New York Life Foundation Special Achievement Award for directing CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY, and that his film is now about to screen at many international film festivals after its successful international premiere at the 2018 Toronto International Kids Film Festival in March. He is a true filmmaker who brings a great sense of story and emotion to his work and a very advanced animation style that proves he is a talent to watch for years to come.”
Chen’s film mentors were impressed by his first animation film as a director. “I was blown away by the power of Perry’s debut film. CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY is heartfelt, honest, and beautifully personal. It is one of those stories that inspires us as filmmakers to stay true to the story we all have inside us.” Remarked Daisuke “Dice” Tsutsumi, co-founder of Tonko House Inc., an independent animation studio, after working on beloved modern animation classics such as Toy Story 3 at Pixar. Tsutsumi is one of Chen’s mentors, whose directorial debut, the animated short THE DAM KEEPER, was nominated for an Oscar in 2015.
Virginia McEnerney, Executive Director of the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers remarked: “Today is a momentous day for more than 2,800 creative teens as they receive national recognition in the 2018 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. For 95 years, the Awards have identified the creative promise of visionaries like Andy Warhol, Sylvia Plath, Stephen King, Kay WalkingStick, and Zac Posen. The students being recognized today join a legacy of teens facilitating important dialogue through their art and writing. We celebrate these innovative teens as members of the next generation of great American artists and writers.”
Marc Brown, Arthur creator, author, and illustrator and 2018 Scholastic Art & Writing Award Alumni Achievement Award Recipient said: “It is an honor to receive this year’s Alumni Achievement Award from the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers. I vividly remember how important it was for me to be recognized in the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards as a junior high student in Erie, Pennsylvania because it was one of the very few validations I received as a developing artist—and it still profoundly affects me today. The impact of this national recognition is undeniable and I can’t wait to see where it takes these exceptionally talented students as they continue on their creative journeys.”
The purpose of the awards according to Scholastic Art & Writing Awards founder Maurice R. Robinson, is “…to give those high school students who demonstrate superior talent and achievement in things of the spirit and of the mind at least a fraction of the honors and rewards accorded to their athletic classmates for demonstrating their bodily skills.”
The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, established almost a century ago in 1923, are the nation’s longest-running and most prestigious recognition program for creative teens in grades 7–12, administered by the nonprofit Alliance for Young Artists & Writers. The Awards have recognized the vision, ingenuity, and talent of our nation’s youth, and provided opportunities for creative teens to be celebrated. This honor opens doors for students by providing access to future scholarship programs and workshops, the ability to have work publicly displayed in the Art.Write.Now.2018 National Exhibition, and the opportunity to attend the week-long national celebration in New York City June 6-8, 2018.
Each year, increasing numbers of teens participate in the program, and become a part of its community—young artists and writers, filmmakers and photographers, poets and sculptors, video game artists and science fiction writers, along with countless educators who support and encourage the creative process. Within the Awards’ 29 categories—which include poetry, photography, sculpture, humor, editorial cartoons, and video game design—a record-breaking 346,000 works of art and writing were submitted for adjudication at the regional level this year.
National Events (New York, NY)
Judging Criteria
All art and writing submissions are judged based on the program’s three criteria: originality, technical skill, and emergence of personal vision or voice. Student works are first adjudicated regionally through the more than 100 local Affiliates of the Alliance. Students receiving Gold Keys, Silver Keys, Honorable Mentions, or American Visions & Voices Nominations are celebrated within their communities through local exhibitions and ceremonies. Gold Key works are then judged nationally by an impressive panel of creative-industry experts to receive Gold, Silver, American Visions & Voices, Portfolio Silver with Distinction, or Portfolio Gold medals.
About the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards
Founded in 1923, the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are presented by the national nonprofit organization the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers and are made possible through the generosity of Scholastic Inc., The Maurice R. Robinson Fund, Command Web Offset Co., The New York Times, New York Life Foundation, The Herb Block Foundation, Blick Art Materials & Utrecht Art Supplies, Golden Artist Colors, Bloomberg Philanthropies, ESA Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Creative Circle, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, Amazon Literary Partnerships, and numerous other individual, foundation, and corporate funders; and, for the National Student Poets Program, the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the Poetry Foundation.
For more information about the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, visit: www.artandwriting.org.
A complete list of the 2018 Scholastic Art & Writing Awards National Medalists, is available at:
https://www.artandwriting.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/2018-National-Medals.pdf
Additional details about the Awards can be found in the Scholastic media room: http://mediaroom.scholastic.com.
For more information about Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, visit www.artandwriting.org
212-343-7700, info@artandwriting.org
For information about Perry Chen and CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY film, and to inquire about corporate sponsorship and donations, please contact:
Zhu Shen, Producer & Executive Producer, CHANGYOU’S JOURNEY
changyousjourney at gmail dot com
https://www.facebook.com/changyousjourney (Changyou’s Journey Facebook Page)
To make a donation to CHANGYOU’s JOURNEY film, visit:
PRESS RELEASE: AWARD-WINNING TEEN DIRECTOR PERRY S. CHEN TO PREMIERE HIS ANIMATION IN HONOR OF LATE FATHER AT TIFF KIDS IN MARCH 2018
SAN DIEGO, CA (February 15, 2018) – 17-year-old award-winning high school senior Perry S. Chen of San Diego, California from Canyon Crest Academy, will attend the international premiere of his animation film “Changyou’s Journey,” in honor of his late father, Dr. Changyou Chen at the Toronto International Kids Film Festival (TIFF KIDS) on March 11 and 12, 2018 with his mother, producer and executive producer, Dr. Zhu Shen, and co-producer and film composer David Arend. “Changyou’s Journey” will be screened in a PG-rated, 80-minute shorts program about family bond, called “It’s All Relative” for Grades 6-8, age 11-13, on Sunday March 11 at 1:15 pm, Monday March 12 at 10:45 am, and Tuesday March 20 at 10 am.
TIFF KIDS Film Program details:
https://www.tiff.net/films/changyous-journey/
https://www.tiff.net/events/its-all-relative/
https://www.tiff.net/tiffkids/
Perry Chen drawing storyboard using Toon Boom Storyboard Pro 4.1 software (photo by Zhu Shen)
Changyou’s Journey Film Trailer
TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival) is dedicated to presenting the best of international and Canadian cinema to film lovers. What began as the Festival of Festivals over 40 years ago, has become the world’s most important publicly attended film festival and grown to embrace programming 365 days a year.
As a premier cultural institution TIFF offers screenings, lectures, discussions, festivals, workshops, industry support and the chance to meet filmmakers from Canada and around the world.
In 2017, the TIFF Kids International Film Festival celebrated its 20th anniversary as one of the world’s most important cinematic events for film lovers aged 3 to 13.
This year, TIFF Kids moves to March for ten days of programming that will inspire and empower tens of thousands of children through the discovery of filmmaking and animation. Chen is the only high school or young student filmmaker in the 2018 TIFF KIDS film selection.
12-year-old Perry S. Chen showing “Changyou’s Journey” trailer to his dad Dr. Changyou Chen five days before Changyou’s passing, July 2012 (photo by Brian Bostrom)
“To have my directorial debut film ‘Changyou’s Journey’ premiere at TIFF KIDS in Toronto is an incredible honor!” said Chen. “My story was conceived from a place of deep compassion and empathy for those who have suffered devastating loss just like my own family, and I soon found it had inspired compassion in so many more. I am particularly grateful to all my animation mentors Dean DeBlois, Bill Plympton, Charles Zembillas, Dice Tsutsumi, Robert Kondo, and David Chai who taught me the art and craft of directing an animation film; my National YoungArts Week master teachers Doug Blush, Shari Carpenter, and Rick Delgado, for teaching me how to make films at the next level; and my personal development coach Walker Clark for his unwavering support and countless brainstorming sessions in the darkest time of my life when I was ready to give up on the film.
I cannot wait to explore Toronto for the first time, and share this labor of love with audiences at the Toronto International Kids Film Festival! I feel so inspired to create new art, now more than ever, empowered by my life-affirming YoungArts Week experience in Miami, to share my vision and touch more lives.”
Changyou’s Journey Film Writer/Director Perry S. Chen, Producer/Executive Producer Zhu Shen, Co-Producer & Composer David Arend (photo by Mark Whitney)
“Making ‘Changyou’s Journey’ had been quite a journey itself. To watch and grow with Perry along the many ups and downs in the five-year journey, and to premiere our most personal film at such a prestigious international film festival is truly beyond belief,” said Chen’s mother and producer Zhu Shen “I could not be more proud of Perry for his perseverance through the monumental challenges of grief, loss, self doubt, the onset of adolescence, and the rigorous demand of academic curriculum and college application at his top-ranked high school in San Diego.”
(L to R) “Changyou’s Journey” producer Zhu Shen, background painter Kiana Mosser, writer & director Perry S. Chen, animator Matthew Fisher at 2018 Annie Awards
“We are full of gratitude for our Juilliard-trained composer and co-producer David Arend’s evocative, stirring music score that enriched our film without dialog in a deep way; our animator and background artist Matthew Fisher and Kiana Mosser’s thoughtful rendition of Perry’s story; all the talented musicians and sound engineers from multiple locations who worked so beautifully on this film; all of the sponsoring organizations including Toon Boom, Wacom, The Stephen Low Company, Hefei Lifeon Pharmaceutical Co. where Changyou was a co-founder, and many individual donors whose help and support made ‘Changyou’s Journey’ possible.”
Shen is writing, directing, and producing her first documentary feature “A Journey of a Thousand Miles”, to tell in vivid details the behind-the-scenes stories of making “Changyou’s Journey” with her son. The documentary is slated for completion in 2019. Chen is the co-star of the documentary, and mentor to his mother on the art and craft of shooting a documentary, imparting his knowledge and skills gained from taking two Canyon Crest Academy Film & Video classes and master classes at the National YoungArts Week in Miami last month. Chen and Shen are featured on the San Diego Union Tribune for their TIFF KIDS international premiere: Young Filmmaker Earns Several Distinctions for Directorial Debut
Chen’s father, Dr. Changyou Chen, was a Stanford-trained cancer researcher and biotech founder stricken by cancer, who started his life as a poor boy from rural China. Perry Chen started computer animation at age 10, as the sole animator of the critically-acclaimed “Ingrid Pitt: Beyond the Forest” about a young Jewish girl’s survival during the Holocaust, based on animation legend, two-time Oscar nominee Bill Plympton’s storyboard and character design. The film won multiple film festival awards in the U.S. and qualified for an Oscar in 2012.
“Perry’s film ‘Changyou’s Journey’ was artfully crafted and he told his story in an emotional, accessible way,” remarked Bernard Steinberger, Assistant Principal, Canyon Crest Academy. “I was moved by the cinematography and his ability to tell a story without words. I am proud of his work as a student at Canyon Crest Academy.”
(L to R) 2018 National YoungArts Week Cinematic Arts Program master teachers Shari Carpenter, Doug Blush, Rick Delgado celebrating “Changyou’s Journey” world premiere with its director Perry S. Chen and Perry’s mother/producer Zhu Shen on January 10, 2018 (photo by Rosalino Ramos)
(L to R) 2018 National YoungArts Week Cinematic Arts Program master teachers Shari Carpenter, Doug Blush, Rick Delgado celebrating “Changyou’s Journey” world premiere with its director Perry S. Chen and Perry’s mother/producer Zhu Shen on January 10, 2018 (photo by Rosalino Ramos)
“The National YoungArts Foundation recognized Perry’s outstanding talent, selected him as a 2018 YoungArts Finalist in Cinematic Arts and nominated him for consideration as a U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts,” says Lisa Leone, Vice President of Artistic Programs at YoungArts. “Given his talent it was no surprise that he was selected for the Toronto Kids International Film Festival. We congratulate him and cannot wait to see all he will accomplish.”
“Changyou’s Journey” director Perry S. Chen with his animation mentor Dice Tsutsumi at the 2018 Annie Awards for Animation (photo by Zhu Shen)
“Changyou’s Journey” director Perry S. Chen with his animation mentor Dice Tsutsumi at the 2018 Annie Awards for Animation (photo by Zhu Shen)
Chen’s film mentors were impressed by his first animation film as a director. “I was blown away by the power of Perry’s debut film. Changyou’s Journey is heartfelt, honest, and beautifully personal. It is one of those stories that inspires us as filmmakers to stay true to the story we all have inside us.” Remarked Daisuke “Dice” Tsutsumi, co-founder of Tonko House Inc., an independent animation studio, after working on beloved modern animation classics such as Toy Story 3 at Pixar. Tsutsumi is one of Chen’s mentors, whose directorial debut, the animated short “The Dam Keeper,” was nominated for an Oscar in 2015.
“I first met Perry at the 2018 National YoungArts Awards Week in Miami, Florida, where he was one of only ten winners in the United States of our Cinematic Arts Finalist Award, out of over 500 applicants,” remarked Doug Blush, the illustrious Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker (20 Feet From Stardom) who had two more Oscar nominations and was involved in over a hundred documentary feature films, He is the co-founder of MadPix Films, a Los Angeles-based film production and post-production studio. a film instructor at University of Southern California, and chair of National YoungArts Foundation Cinematic Arts Program during National YoungArts Week.
“Perry’s film Changyou’s Journey is a powerful and dazzling piece of animation that stunned our jury panel with its storytelling and technique, and the film played to a sold-out, cheering crowd at Miami’s New World Center during our awards week show.” said Blush. “We were further amazed to find out that Perry had been making animated films since the age of 10, and had already had films shown at festivals and public screenings.”
“I’m thrilled to learn that Perry has also won the 2018 Scholastic Art and Writing Gold Key Award in Film & Animation for directing ‘Changyou’s Journey’, and that his film is now about to premiere at the 2018 Toronto International Kids Film Festival in March. He is a true filmmaker, who brings a great sense of story and emotion to his work and a very advanced animation style that proves he is a talent to watch for years to come.”
Perry S. Chen interviewing Pietro Serapiglia, Producer of Rocky Mountain Express at Reuben H. Fleet Science Center, San Diego, 2013 (photo by Zhu Shen)
“From the first frame, I was engaged by Perry’s animation film! Each frame of Changyou’s Journey was so beautifully crafted, the story so compelling, the editing superb, the writing and directing so vivid. Simply said, a truly beautiful piece of animated film making!! OSCAR material for me!” said Pietro L Serapiglia, producer of the Montreal, Canada-based IMAX film production company, The Stephen Low Company, whom Chen interviewed for the U.S. premiere of “Rocky Mountain Express” in San Diego in 2013.
Chen has won multiple national awards and accolades for writing and directing “Changyou’s Journey”, including nomination for 2018 U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts, one of the nation’s highest honors for high school students who exemplify academic and artistic excellence. Chen was honored with the National YoungArts Foundation Cinematic Arts Finalist Award, the highest honor given by the organization, established in 1981 to identify and nurture the most accomplished young artists in the visual, literary, design and performing arts and assist them at critical junctures in their educational and professional development.
Chen also won five 2018 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards, including a Gold Key Award in Film & Animation. The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards, established almost a century ago in 1923, are the nation’s longest-running and most prestigious recognition program for creative teens in grades 7–12, administered by the nonprofit Alliance for Young Artists & Writers.
Chen’s other claim to fame is as an award-winning young film and entertainment critic who started reviewing movies in print, radio, and TV at age eight with a child-friendly starfish rating system. He has been featured on numerous regional, national and international media, including CBS Evening News, NPR, Animation Magazine, Variety, (CCTV) China Central Television. His movie, theater, and restaurant reviews have been featured on the Animation World Network, Amazing Kids Magazine, San Diego Union Tribune, DiningOut San Diego, and his own website www.perryspreviews.com . He won multiple 2018 Scholastic Art and Writing Awards for his entertainment reviews, and honored with San Diego Press Club Excellence in Journalism Awards from 2010 to 2016 for his movie, theater, and restaurant reviews.
For more information on TIFF and TIFF KIDS, visit
https://www.tiff.net/tiffkids/
For information about Perry Chen and “Changyou’s Journey” film, please contact:
Dr. Zhu Shen, Producer & Executive Producer, Changyou’s Journey
changyousjourney at gmail dot com
More information on “Changyou’s Journey” and watch film trailer:
Additional Donations are always appreciated, to be used in additional film festival submissions and attendance, so more people around the world will enjoy our film. All donors will be credited in the film and film website, and be able to watch the full film online before festivals. Donation link:
https://www.changyousjourney.com/donate
Become a Facebook fan of Changyou’s Journey and receive film updates:
https://www.facebook.com/changyousjourney
Follow our film on Twitter, @changyoujourney @perryspreviews:
https://twitter.com/changyoujourney
San Diego Union Tribune: Young filmmaker earns several distinctions for directorial debut
San Diego Union Tribune feature link
National YoungArts Foundation Cinematic Arts Finalist Perry S. Chen at YoungArts Week (photo by Zhu Shen)
What started as a project created by a local teen to comfort his dying father has turned into an internationally-recognized film.
Perry Chen, 17, of Carmel Valley (Torrey Hills), and his debut animated film “Changyou’s Journey” — which tells the story of his father, who passed away from cancer when Perry was 12 — has been named an official selection for the Toronto Kids International Film Festival, held in Canada from March 9 to 18; a National YoungArts Foundation Cinematic Arts Finalist; a winner for the Scholastic Art and Writing Gold Key Award in Film and Animation; and a U.S. Presidential Scholar in the Arts candidate.Perry, who began making animated films at age 10, said his father got to see a few scenes from the movie five days before he passed in 2012. The film was finalized last year.In the last two weeks of [my dad’s] life, I really wanted to make a film to give him hope at the very end of his life,” he said. “I thought animation would be a good way to pay homage to his life and everything that he’s accomplished in his journey.”
In the animated short, the father is seen growing up in China, working in molecular biology, meeting his wife (Perry’s mother, Zhu Shen) and immigrating to the United States.
Perry, who began reviewing films at age 8, never imagined his five-minute gift to his father would earn so many distinctions.
“That was a big source of conflict,” the Canyon Crest Academy senior said. “Originally, I never envisioned my little story becoming something so big. It felt scary and daunting in a way. But now, I’ve realized that it’s important to step up to life’s challenges and always strive to be a better version of yourself.”
Teen film director Perry S. Chen and his mom & Producer Zhu Shen at 2018 National YoungArts Week, January 12, 2018
For his movie-making, his mother has encouraged Perry to network. She set him up with mentors such as Dean DeBlois, Oscar-nominated DreamWorks director of “How to Train Your Dragon”; Charles Zembillas, founder and president of the Animation Academy in Burbank; ex-Pixar and Oscar-nominated animation directors Robert Kondo and Dice Tsutsumi; and Academy Award-nominated animator Bill Plympton.
In 2011, Plympton collaborated with Perry on the film “Ingrid Pitt: Beyond the Forest,” a short animated film about Ingrid Pitt, an actress and Holocaust survivor. Perry was the sole animator for the six-minute short, which qualified for an Oscar in 2012.
“I think [animated movies] can tell a very compelling story that I think live action a lot of times really can’t,” Perry said.
For “Changyou’s Journey,” Perry researched his father’s legacy and brought his own animations to life using the computer program Storyboard Pro.
He thanks his mother for instilling a love of creativity into him.
Zhu Shen, Perry’s mother, a former biotech executive, said she’s encouraged her son to be imaginative ever since he was a toddler. His mother is the executive producer of her son’s film and is currently working on a documentary film, “A Journey of a Thousand Miles,” which takes a look at the making of “Changyou’s Journey.”
“What I see in Perry is that he has so much creativity and imagination,” she said. “He’s a truly creative spirit.”
For more information about Perry and “Changyou’s Journey,” visit www.changyousjourney.com, www.facebook.com/changyousjourney and www.twitter.com/changyoujourney.
