Life began with play. My childhood in Singapore was defined by the stories I would act out with my best friend, Jan and my little brother, Satch. As we invented characters and missions, we discovered and built the rules of story. I distinctly remember Jan saying one day, “What if we do one where the bad guys win?” 

“Can we do that?”

“Why not!”

By the age of 13, I’d written and self published four novels. The first two were made from the scribbles in my notebooks – while other kids stormed the playground, I was filling pages. Moving to London for two years, leaving behind all I’d known, I suppose I’d constructed my own fictional refuge, as well as simply pursing a passion. And as you’d perhaps expect from a writer at 9 years old, these first two were imitations of the stories I loved. A mix of Harry Potter and Percy Jackson but instead following “Eli, Satchel, and Jan”. Hah!

When I moved back to Singapore, my third book caught the eye of a teacher, who asked me if I knew what a book launch was. I said no, and he described it as a “party for when somebody writes a book. We want to throw one for you.”

And throw one they did… a gala book launch was held one month later. I was interviewed by the school’s publicity team… I gave a reading… my teacher and the school principal spoke… there was wine… my blazer was too big for me. 

This formative experience opened the world up. When I moved to Victoria, BC, Canada I began a five-year long career in debate and theatre. I competed at the regional, provincial and national level in debate, and performed in five productions throughout high school. 

In parallel, I had discovered the world of CGI, spending several years learning 3D modelling and animation with Blender 3D; my entry point into the world of visual expression. Photography emerged as a hobby around the same time. 

It was only a matter of time before all of my interests cumulated in my debut short film (well, aside from the dozens of “films” my brother and I made as kids). In 2018 (my final year of high school) I wrote, directed, produced, composed and edited A Deaf Man’s Symphony. This film, in combination with my writing and academic achievements, led to my being offered a four-year full-ride National Scholarship from the University of Toronto…

… At UofT I pursued an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in Cinema Studies and double-minoring in Philosophy and Creative Expression and Society. 

I spent my first year at UofT trying to make I’m Still Here, a short film about drama therapy. I encountered impressive resistance from the administration at Victoria College, who – despite the emphatic support of my professors – ultimately shut the film down. However, doors opened once again as a public speaker. During the pandemic, I presented a my first guest lecture for a university class, and started speaking at symposiums about mental health, free speech, and freedom of artistic expression.

In 2021, with the support of UofT’s COVID-19 Student Engagement Award, I produced, edited and co-hosted the first season of a podcast called “Different Boat Same Storm”, aimed at kindling empathy amidst a global pandemic. Here I had the opportunity to converse with poets, adventurers, artists, activists, doctors, venture capitalists, and motivational speakers.

I spent my last three years at UofT working on The Only Bar on King Street, a musical-drama-comedy feature film set entirely in a bar. After a challenging pre-production journey, we ended up producing a proof-of-concept by the same title. This 15-minute short film was largely responsible for my selection as 1 of 20 Canadian filmmakers and photographers into Canon Canada’s first ever 12-month creative incubator program, Canon Futures, where I learned from and worked with Canada’s top industry professionals. 

Upon graduating UofT, I was awarded the Norman Jewison Fellowship in Cinema Studies, and was invited to give a talk called “How to See the Future,” a few days before moving to Berlin to pursue a Master’s in Film Directing. The year in Berlin was the most transformational of my life, and culminated with the creation of my thesis short film, Playfight, which will be submitted to next year’s film festivals.

In October 2024, I return to Toronto for a year. 

In 2025, I fly back to the UK for a second Master’s degree, in Philosophy, at King’s College London. There, I will continue to pursue my academic interests in consciousness, spirituality, meditation, and psychedelic-assisted therapy… while of course, continuing to make films.