From leading the way in Asian-American romcoms to the brilliant 26.2 TO LIFE, I talk with filmmaker Christine Yoo about her career, how to depict marathons and prisons on film, the state of rom-coms and Asian-American filmmaking, and more. Just by those categories alone you should know you are hearing from a wildly original filmmaker. And that's before the CIA gets namedropped. In this episode, we discuss: prison films and film festivals;how she got started as a filmmaker, starting in Iowa as a Korean-American, and while she was expected to be a "doctor, a lawyer, or an engineer", she ended up being interviewed by the CIA (!) and fell into film as a "complete fluke and accident";her decision to attend film school;her decision to do both narrative and docs was influenced by the advent of digital filmmaking and how 26.2 TO LIFE was originally conceived as a narrative;why she made WEDDING PALACE (2013), the first Asian-American rom-com;how she feels about some of the seemingly personal reviews of what I thought was a fun, highly enjoyable film;how a filmmaker should think about reviews of their work within the larger construct of the review process and if reviewers feel more comfortable attacking a first-time director;what kind of advice she'd give a new filmmaker facing a similar situation;how she led the way in making Asian-American romcoms;the story behind 26.2 TO LIFE and why she depicted the characters in a more truthful way than you would expect;her decision regarding the innovative formatting of the film;how the unique environment of filming a documentary in prison presented opportunities and challenges;the challenges of independent film and how she felt so strongly about the story of 26.2 TO LIFE;what her success says about the ability for Asian-American filmmakers to tell their stories now;what's next for her -- "sports provides such a great narrative structure." Christine's Indie Filmmaker Highlight: Jennifer M. Kroot Links: Follow Christine Yoo On Instagram 26.2 TO LIFE Streaming 26.2 TO LIFE Website WEDDING PALACE Streaming Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/first-time-go/exclusive-content