Ziyao Liu is a Chinese writer/director based on Earth. Transplanted from the “West Virginia” of China and now living in Los Angeles, she creates compelling narratives of a personal nature that finds humor in the absurdity of existence beyond language and cultural barriers. Her work explores themes of womanhood, immigration, and grief.
She earned her directing MFA at the University of California, Los Angeles, and her BA from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her short films have been selected to screen at multiple Academy-qualifying and worldwide film festivals.
Her feature script CHIPPED is a semifinalist of 2023 Humanitas New Voices Fellowship. Her short script DAISY IS GONE is a finalist of 2020 CAMERAderie Initiative x Women in Media, and the short film won Special Jury Recognition for Narrative Short x 2024 VC Film Fest. She was selected to direct THE WHISTLE in 2023 CBS Leadership Pipeline Challenge, which won $50,000 donation from CBS to the non-profit Boyle Heights Beat. Ziyao Liu is also the recipient of 2021 Armed with a Camera Fellowship x Visual Communications, 2022 Delia Salvi Memorial Award, 2021 Motion Picture Association of America Award, and 2020 Voices with Impact x Art with Impact Grant.
She spends her free time tending her backyard garden and discovering plants in her neighborhood.
Samples and references upon request.