Yugen is a story about the healing powers of nature, told through an unsettling lens of a woman grieving the death of her child. 

DIRECTOR: Ruth Du

WRITER: Agam Darshi

CAST: Christine Ko & Chacha Shen

PRODUCERS: Sabrina Stoll & Brian Grigsby

CREATIVE EXECUTIVE: Jennifer Gottesfield

CINEMATOGRAPHER: Becky Baihui Chen

EDITOR: Katelyn Wright

COMPOSER: Aron Frank

PRODUCTION DESIGNER: Alessia Madau

The film was produced in association with Film Independent’s Project Involve in 2020.

For more than a quarter-century, Project Involve has been Film Independent's most vital and impactful program. We're proud to be a leader in the ongoing fight to build a more inclusive and equitable industry by supporting emerging filmmakers from communities underrepresented in film and entertainment. 

This robust program provides invaluable hands-on filmmaking experience from pre-production through premiere. Participants are paired with mentors at the top of their respective fields, and receive personalized guidance to help move their projects and careers forward.

CHRISTINE KO stars in Alan Yang’s directorial debut feature film, TIGERTAIL for Netflix, opposite Tzi Ma, and is also currently a series lead on the Kevin Hart/Jeff Schaffer produced hit, DAVE, for FX, starring Lil’ Dicky. Other credits include a supporting role in the Greg Daniels / Amazon series UPLOAD, a season long arc on HAWAII FIVE-O for CBS, and a series regular role on the highly-acclaimed comedy sitcom THE GREAT INDOORS with Joel McHale and Christopher Mintz Plasse.

Born in Chicago and raised between Atlanta and Taiwan, she is the daughter of Taiwanese superstar, Frankie Kao. Christine is currently working on a Novel based on her childhood experience. She speaks fluent Mandarin and enjoys golfing, surfing, cooking and good ole 90s R&B.

CHACHA SHEN is a 7 year old actress, dancer and comedian known for her "chachaography" dance moves as seen on "The Ellen Show", "Little Big Shots", and "The Late Late Show with James Corden". Chacha has been featured on networks like Disney Channel, Hulu, ABC, NBC, CBS, Buzzfeed! Chacha's commercial credits with Target and H&M.

Ruth Du is a director and producer who gravitates towards relationship-based stories with a genre twist. Du received a B.F.A. at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and subsequently worked multiple production positions in New York City. Her extensive experience ultimately led her to produce feature film The Archer which premiered at SXSW 2017. Her relentless passion towards authentic storytelling led her to produce five award winning short films as the Executive Director of the AT&T Mentorship Program with head mentor Lena Waithe. Her directorial credits include digital series Seeking and TV movie Your Baby Is Mine. She directed short film Yugen, starring Christine Ko (Tigertail, Dave) as a 2020 Fellow in Film Independent’s Project Involve. Most recently, she wrapped principal photography on feature film A Dangerous Thing featuring Erica Tazel (Justified) and Natasha Marc (Timeless). She currently resides in Los Angeles and enjoys singing and dance competition shows in her spare time. www.ruthdu.com @ruthie06

Agam Darshi is an award-winning actress, writer and director. In 2020, Agam wrapped on Ava Duvernay’s HBO Max series DMZ alongside Rosario Dawson. Prior to this, she wrapped a lead role on Oscar-nominated director Deepa Mehta’s newest film FUNNY BOY (Netflix), for which Agam has been nominated for a 2021 Canadian Screen Award. Agam Darshi also recently wrapped principal photography on her directorial debut of the feature film, DONKEYHEAD, funded by Telefilm Canada, in which she stars as Mona Ghuman, a failed writer who cares for her ailing father for seven years. The film, penned by Agam, was Executive Produced by Deepa Mehta and Kim Coates (SONS OF ANARCHY), and produced by Agam Darshi and Karma Films. DONKEYHEAD was one of six scripts selected as a part of the Whistler Film Festival Praxis Screenwriter’s Lab in 2018, and was awarded a grant by the Saint John’s Women’s Film Festival, in collaboration with the DGC. Agam is a co-founder of VISAFF The Vancouver International South Asian Film Festival. Currently in its tenth year, the festival works at bridging the gap between m

Sabrina Stoll is an award-winning creative producer based in Los Angeles. She received the Women In Film Producing Fellowship for the short drama-thriller Just A Drill (2018) examining gun violence in American High schools. She also wrote and produced the short horror-comedy Mondays for Fox Digital that premiered at the Cannes International Series Festival (2018) and is now on Hulu. Stoll won the Google VR 180 Fellowship (2018) as well as an Emmy Award for Interactivity (2017) and a Clio Award for Music (2016). She also developed and produced a Women Empowerment Campaign with the Geena Davis Institute, Google and Ford that won a Streamy Award for Social Good (2017).

Brian Grigsby is a Pittsburgh Pennsylvania raised/ Los Angeles based producer who advocates for unique stories told in captivating ways.  Being the second youngest of seven, and the son of a preacher, has given him a unique perspective on the world around him. He’s produced a variety of projects for the NFL, NBA, HBO, NBC and agencies across Los Angeles.  He’s currently screening his short film, Russ and Dru, at film festivals across the United States and internationally. This fall, his team plans to complete development on Cuffing Season and Black Tax as part of his latest venture, Nelson Studios.

Jennifer Gottesfeld works at the intersection of social impact and entertainment. Currently a social impact strategist at the production company Participant Media, Jenn thinks about how to use film and television as a vehicle for culture change. Additionally, as a Creative Executive in Film Independent's Project Involve fellowship, she is thinking about how to intentionally integrate socially impactful ideas into the fabric of storytelling. She has spent her career focused on championing change in areas from health equity to racial justice to gender rights. This led her to Sierra Leone to fight Ebola, the Resistance School to train activists, and to Goldman Sachs to (try) and make them more socially responsible. Jenn holds a Master's in Public Policy from Harvard Kennedy School of Government and a BA from UCLA. She is also a certified yoga and meditation teacher.

Katelyn Wright is an up and coming editor residing in Los Angeles. Discovering filmmaking at a young age, Wright developed her editing skills by working on a variety of documentary and commercial projects as an editor before pursuing her Bachelor’s in Media Communications at Full Sail University. Katelyn was always drawn to editing for its unique ability to enhance a story and engage the audience. Wright has now worked as an assistant editor for companies like Rebl HQ, Disney+, Apple and ATTN. She has been given the opportunity to be a collaborative editor on independent films Fox Hunt Drive (which recently had its premiere at Cinequest) and James The Second. Her most recent short film, Eva, won Film Freeway’s top short prize. Wright is now apart of the post-team for James Wan’s upcoming horror film Malignant.

Becky Baihui Chen is a Chinese cinematographer based in LA. Chen earned her MFA in Film Production from the USC School of Cinematic Arts, and in 2020 she received an ASC Heritage Award nomination. 

Chen’s fiction narrative work has covered a wide range of genres, from political drama to steampunk fantasy. She lensed indie feature I'm FINE, Thanks for Asking which World Premiered at SXSW in 2021. Her short film credits include Welcome Back (HollyShorts Best Live Action Short Film Winner), Clarity (Mammoth Film Festival Grand Jury Award Winner) and La Ruta (Telly Awards Gold Winner). Her enthusiasm for intimate stories has led her to work on projects all over the world.

Aron Frank is an award-winning composer of concert and film music, a violinist, and educator. After beginning the study of violin at age seven, shortly thereafter he began composing music and studying music theory with Judd Danby in West Lafayette, Indiana. Aron is a graduate of the Indiana University – Jacobs School of Music, where he received the bachelor and master of music degrees, studying composition with Claude Baker, Aaron Travers, Sven-David Sandström, and Don Freund, film scoring with Larry Groupé, and violin performance with Federico Agostini. His music for films has been screened recently at the Montclair Film Festival in New Jersey (Jury Prize Award) and at Film Independent in Los Angeles. His concert works are wide-ranging, and have been performed in the United States and Latin America, by soloists and ensembles at the Bowdoin International Music Festival, Tanglewood Music Institute, Indiana University Bloomington, the Cleveland Institute of Music, Music Educators National Conference, and by the Wabash Valley Youth Symphony, Americas Chamber Orchestra, and Mariah Wind Quintet. As a recent recipient of the Harriet Hale Woolley Scholarship, he will live and study abroad in Paris, France for the 2021-22 academic year. During this period of time, he will pursue an Artist Diploma in Film Scoring at the Conservatoire de Paris (Paris Conservatory), and will serve as an Artist-in-Residence at the Fondation des États-Unis (U.S. Cultural Arts Foundation).