BTS: lululemon Summer 2017

In March I spent 18 days filming with a wild crew in LA & San Diego. This was one of the most memorable shoots and my last one before leaving lululemon to freelance. I have so much gratitude for our two amazing producers on this shoot, without them we wouldn't have been able to pull this one together. We set out to create a campaign that was fun, sweaty and invited our audience to join in lululemon's summer. 

Stuart and I did double duty, splitting the Directing and DOPing roles between the first and second half of the shoot. I took on directing most of the sweat activities (as seen in the directors cut) and Stuart came in to Direct the road trip and remaining activities. 

Below is my director's cut of the Summer17 Campaign video. Huge ups to our talent and creative team in making it possible. Here's to summer! 

Directors: Jon Chiang & Stuart Gillies  DOPs: Stuart Gillies & Jon Chiang Producers: Annalise Deboer & Ruby Vizcarra  Editor: Jon Chiang
Art Directors: Steph Chan & Talia Cohen  Creative Team: Shinead D'Sousza, Claire Tam, Leila Nadery, Cayley Theissen  Music:  "Found" by Francis Arevalo & Roya Bennett

Crush Hush IV // #DISTRIKTFAM

“YOUTH IS AN ATTITUDE, NOT A NUMBER. STAY YOUNG, STAY IGNORANT.

SURROUND YOURSELF WITH POSITIVE PEOPLE AND ENCOURAGE THEM.

BE CHILDLIKE IN WONDER. BE ROMANTIC IN REVOLT.
”

— BOBBY HUNDREDS

Describing the DISTRIKT is like sharing a meme (check this if you're confused). Cecil Adams from theStraightDope.com describes the concepts of memes as something that "is either really deep, or really, really obvious." On the first glance, you may get the joke. And upon closer inspection, you may see layers of meaning that go way deeper. 

On the outside, the DISTRIKT is a community of people who engage in fitness classes and yoga. It is what you expect it to be, a hard, sweaty workout with fun people. Got it. 

Once you go a bit deeper, you realize there's more to it. Jian describes the studio as a front for creating something bigger than just movement. Movement is the access point to create connection between humans. REAL connection, not the kind that's sold on a sponsored Instagram post. Before leaving my job, I knew I needed some time and space to reset. This was the perfect environment to recharge and take some time away from the city. 

Calling Crush Hush a retreat, doesn't quite fully capture the experience. Leaving Crush Hush, I feel more connected. More understood. And more a part of a community. 

portugal pt. 3

Film developed. Photos edited. Here's a final bunch of photos from Portugal. 

Summer is finally happening in Vancouver and I'm already missing the grilled fish and bottles of 2€ Wine. I find myself trying my best to bring parts of my travels home with me. How can I slow down and experience things anew? What would wine with every meal feel like? Where can I explore in my own city that I haven't been before? 

I hope you enjoy.

Living the Fuck out of life

On my flight home last week, I sat beside a lovely woman from a small midwestern state. Herself and her husband were going on an Alaskan cruise for 2 weeks, the first time she'd been on vacation for more than a week. 

Before we took off, she shared that the doctors cleared her husband to travel after recovering from Encephalitis. He hasn't been the same since and let me know this could be one of the last times they could enjoy their travels together. Regretfully, she wished they would have gone travelling sooner, but now was better than never. 

What my conversation left me with was two fold. First, I felt so much love for this woman for not wasting another moment and going on a beautiful vacation with her husband. And second, I felt re-invigorated to not waste another moment of life and not feel trapped by it. The experience reminded me of a quote I read from Tools of Titans: 

“The more we associate experience with cash value, the more we think that money is what we need to live. And the more we associate money with life, the more we convince ourselves that we’re too poor to buy our freedom.”

— Tim Ferris

Ultimately, this isn't about the big things: leaving your mediocre job, or launching a tech start-up, or finally meditating for 30 minutes every day. This is about the little things. Do I want to waste another moment complaining about the weather? Do I want to keep prolonging the art project that's waiting? Do I want to stay mad at my partner? 

When filming with Taylor Phinney last year, we met one Joe, one of his family friends at a bar in Salinas. Joe is incredibly successfully, not just in monetary senses, but in how he finds appreciation for all things in life. After having a few drinks, Joe shared a piece of wisdom with us: "The secret to life is living the fuck out of it." 

Happy Monday and go live the fuck out of your life. 

Why I Left lululemon

I stole the title from one of lululemon's 2014 viral blog posts. It's incredibly click-baity. 

There is an allure around lululemon that people want to know. What really happens in the company? Do you drink the kool-aid? Did you leave because they forced you to x, y, z?  This isn't that kind of post. Yes there were challenges (all jobs have theirs) and no I wasn't part of a cult. 

After 2.5 years at lululemon, I leave with complete gratitude for all the people I met. One could not ask for better people to work with. The decision to leave was not easy, but it was clear. So what did I learn over those years?

• Trust your gut, it's probably right.
• Be responsible for the energy you bring into a room.
• Relationships are the foundation for everything.
• Move everyday.
• Enrolment, enrolment, enrolment.  
• Pay gratitude daily. 
• Take responsibility for it all. The good, the bad, the ugly. 

These past 4 years (when I first started my internship with lululemon) have been formative to say the least. I feel like I walked in a snotty-nosed kid and was steeped in the culture, opportunities, and absolutely incredible people who shaped who I am. I was given and took on projects when I was not ready. I was entrusted to tell the stories of our people and athletes. I was brought in with open arms and developed and shaped to not just be a better filmmaker, but a better person. 

My desire to leave was ultimately influenced by everything I learned with lululemon. I knew it was time to move into the uncomfortable, the unknown and the possibility. I made the choice to leave and carve my own path as a Director. I'm taking responsibility for the future and life I want to create for myself. 

So this is to chasing dreams. To realizing possibilities. To living the future, now. 

Watch "The Lion," my latest short film about chasing your dreams. After being diagnosed with bipolar disorder, Vancouver hip-hop artist, Francis Arevalo, harnessed the healing power of music. This is his story.

The Art of Rest

I love what I do and still the tiredness, burnout, and exhaustion feel real.

My career as a filmmaker has been short, but it feels like I haven't taken a proper vacation to unplug and not work, since I started freelancing in 2014 (Disclaimer: Nicole called me out on working while on vacation). When I reflect back at the past three years and the volume and quality of work, it is light years away from where I first started.  There is still so much more I want to do and grow in the years ahead, but right now feels like a good time to take pause.

I've been thinking a lot recently about what success looks like to me. In a world that tells me to push harder towards its own definition of  'success,' where fame, followers, likes and brand building is constantly put to the pinnacle, I am working on pushing back. 

I am in the practice of bringing awareness to when I feel like I'm getting caught in the rat-race of popularity and forgetting what's truly important to me. Things like indulging and appreciating life. Like, real life living. The kind with slow lunches and a bottle of wine, taking naps in the sun, reading short stories (who even does that anymore?!). Things that happen in the real world, away from the phone, away from my instagram, when the wifi is turned off and nobody cares how many followers you have. 

It's become a balance of pushing towards exponential growth, hustling to create great work and taking the time to not work, to grow in my personal and spiritual life, and have life experiences. Here's to practicing the art of rest. 

Cows have leisure down to a science. 

WITH LOVE, FROM Portugal

I'm currently writing from a small BNB in the Algarve countryside while drinking my 0.99€ white wine from the grocery store. Lauren and I have been wanting to come to Portugal for quite some time now and decided to come on a whim after we saw a flight deal. I didn't have an expectation of what this country would be like so far, but it's been incredibly beautiful. Between the tiny cobble-stone streets in Lisbon and the long winding roads of the countryside, I've felt at ease exploring the different sides of this country. 

The Portugese egg tarts, fresh grilled fish and abundance of wine are worth all of the hype. I was also warned online about the challenges of driving in Lisbon while taking 20 minutes to back out of a dead-end alleyway, sandwiched between parked cars. Portugese (which I thought would be relatively easy to pick up) first sounded like Russian mixed with Spanish, but is now starting to feel a little bit more familiar. 

I'll leave you with these photos from Lisbon (I'm working on the selfie game). 

With love, from Portugal. 

Behind the Scenes: On Time

Last weekend I spoke at the Distrikt DVRSN about time. This is a quick write up of the ideas I talked about. 

“The average industrialized man with 25,000 days on this planet may easily secure only about 4,500 waking hour days of beneficial life. That’s a quarter of your life if you’re lucky. A quarter of your life during which the average person can puruse activities which are meaningful to them.””

— John B Mclemore, S-Town

My mom was diagnosed with breast cancer last year. What became clear from this experience was how precious time is and the finite-ness of our time on this planet. 

This past Winter I had an increasingly growing discontent with how my life was going (only as far as a privileged person can be dissatisfied). I was feeling burnt out at work and my day to day felt like a grind. During this time, I was also reconnected with Francis. I took Francis out for a coffee and I learned about his story and how he lost a year and half of his life dealing with bipolar disorder. 

Francis asked me to make a kickstarter video to help raise funds for the album he was creating. I politely declined and told him what we need to do is share your story.

In my gut, I knew that his story had the potential to impact hundreds of other people. Four months ago is when I decided to take on The Lion as a personal project. It was something that I found meaning in, a project that isn't driven by commercial success, financial gains or broad swaths of approval and status. That was refreshing. 

I came back from work and would squeeze in what time I had left before bed to write, film or edit this project. And every single time I walked away more energized and excited about what I was doing. 

In those moments, I felt like I was doing truly meaningful work. I want to leave you with the question, what will you do with your 4,500 waking hour days? 

PSA: DISTRIKT HOMECOMING

This week's blog post is short and sweet. 

If you haven't heard already, the DISTRIKT is having their 3 year anniversary celebration this weekend at the Pipeshop. Get all the info at the eventbrite

Join us tonight from 6-11pm at the Pipeshop for a CRUSH HUSH Class, pizza party and DVRSN, a speakers series. I'll be speaking about time and coming home, alongside some other amazing people in the community.

Saturday will be all sorts of sweaty fun from 9-5 with a dance party to close the night down. 

INSECURITY & FRANCIS FORD COPPOLA

“We are very insecure. People are insecure, not just young people. Everyone is insecure. They say that Barbara Streisand, when she goes on, she has a panic attack. She feels she can’t sing. Of course, she can sing.”

— Francis Ford Coppola

I used to feel really insecure. Especially in high school.

I think it was because I felt like I never quite fit in. I played magic cards and I played football. I got along well with people, but I never belonged to a group. I identified as Asian-Canadian, born in Vancouver to parents who were born in Peru to parents who were born in China -- and did not feel like I fit neatly into a defined category of race. 

Things never quite felt like they fit in. Looking back, my insecurity held me back from so many things. Making friends. Trying something new. Risking failure or embarrassment. Creating memories. 

Enter Francis Ford Coppola: 

Dad goals right here. Francis & Sofia Coppola on set, 1970s. 

This interview with Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather, Apocalypse Now, The Outsiders) was illuminating.

When asked "You now have all the resources to do your own production, writing, directing. What's the biggest barrier to being an artist," he answered: "Self-confidence always. The artist always battles his own/her own feeling of inadequacy." Here is Francis Ford Coppola, one of the most distinguished and influential filmmakers in American Cinema, saying that self-confidence is the thing that gets in the way.

Even after having all of the resources, power, and tools. Even after having made some of the most influential films. Even after being acclaimed as one of the top 10 directors of our time, he still battles the feeling of inadequacy and self-confidence. Having more isn't the answer, especially to dealing with insecurity and self-doubt. 

My hope is that by showing up consistently and patiently, creating will become second nature. That maybe one day, my actions will hold more power over my feelings. 

---

Quick announcement!

I'll speaking next Friday at the Pipeshop for the DISTRIKT Homecoming along side an amazing crew. 

Come out and join for a sweat & party. Check out the Eventbrite page for details! 

Behind the Scenes: Jumping in

I just spent the last 3 hours scrolling through the internet looking for some inspiration for my writing and going down the wrong rabbit holes. Should I write about how I feel like everyone is only concerned with millennial's because they want to sell us shit? Or do I write about how I'm reading Walden and that Thoreau wasn't actually all that perfect? Or maybe I write about career and how I've been putting too much emphasis on that being what brings me fulfilment in life. 

I'm looking for answers in all the wrong places.

This blog is a place to drop my thoughts, process what I'm going through (in the hopes that it might help someone else) and get better at writing and connecting ideas. Too often I find myself looking for answers outside of myself, wether it be my friends, interviews, books (of the self help variety), and people I generally look up to.

I don't need more data, more inspiration, or more contemplation. What I need is a little more action and a little less thinking. To let go of fear because life's too short. I'm going to get back to the edit. What have you been putting aside? 

Hello from california

Greetings from California. I'm over half-way through a 15 day production with lululemon.

I had a conversation with my co-worker Stuart where he said something along the lines of: "Jon, we're Filming in LA! My 16 year old self would have never believed this would be possible."

And here I am, in LA, writing from a Diner that opened 1948. A guy beside me on the bar just ordered a rye whiskey. It's 9:31 am. At my hotel, people are writing scripts, advertisers are pitching decks over drinks and I'm spotting b-list celebrities at dinner. The traffic is real and so are the palm trees.

10 years ago, being a filmmaker wasn't on my radar. 5 years ago, paying the bills through film & photography would have been a dream. And now, being behind the camera is finally beginning to feel comfortable.

I ran into my incredibly talented buddy Due at our hotel (if you need a TO based Filmmaker, give him a shout)l. Before I left LA, we had a conversation about our current careers, what was going well and what we wanted to change. I feel like he's a peer of mine in the truest senses and someone I look up to. In our conversation, I was reminded about the timeless advice from Maria Papova to "expect that anything worthwhile to take a long time."

I am still so new to this craft. There isn't a ceiling to what's possible and all it takes is time. With this shift, my impatience and millennial attitudes of needing to see success, now (whatever success even means) eventually dissipate. Those feelings are replaced with gratitude for the amazing people I work with, the privilege of being able to do something Ienjoy and the experiences along the way.

Here's to a great LA crew. Here's to playing the long game.

*not pictured is our Boss producer Ruby, and Hype-people Kelsey + Rowan.

Work in Progress: The Lion

2017 began with a new project in motion and this is a definite work in progress. 

Talking to my photography + filmmaker mentors early in my career, each one of them placed a heavy emphasis on the personal project. Work done not for money, fame or acknowledgement, but because of a magnetic pull towards the project. From my little experience in the world of commercial filmmaking, I've grown more and more aware that the projects I work on for clients are not necessarily my own. After watching Wonderland a few years ago, I really began to understand the path I was taking in my career. 

Personal projects are a space where I can explore and create, uninhibited. A space where I can find the fullest expression of myself and my collaborators. 

I first met Francis in my second or third year at UBC. A talented spoken word poet, we met a few times while being a part of the Passion Project (a sweet little community a few mutual friends started). This past October, at a screening of The Africa Yoga Project, we reconnected. Like old times, Francis gave a spine tingling performance for the crowd.

We later caught up and I learned about his story over past two years and what he's up to now. I knew in my gut there was a story to be told. 

This is a story about chasing dreams. About the healing power of music. About the courage to get back up. About the hustle. And about the power in community.

I'm so excited to share this with you when we launch this in April! 

Check out his latest mixtape drop last month: 

Fan Letter: To the women in my life

I was raised in a matriarchy.

My grandmother fled communist China to immigrate to Lima, Peru at the age of 18. A few days later, she would give birth to her first child in an entirely foreign country with a few dollars to her name. Sixty years later, my grandmother has created a legacy through raising seven successful children, contributing to the Chinese-Peruvian community, and creating entrepreneurial success late in life. My grandmother's resilience has interwoven itself through her children and grandchildren. 

I look to her as an example of someone who has relentlessly pushed through the challenges of life. When things get tough, I remember my grandmother and how she had to create a new life for herself when she arrived in Peru. 

My grandma being a boss. She will never turn down ice cream.

This week, I'm reflecting on the tremendous impact the women in my life have had on me. 

I'm writing to acknowledge my grandmother, my mother, my aunts, my sister, my partner, my mentors, and the women in my life who have been leaders, collaborators, and inspirations for me. Thank you for teaching me presence, patience and listening. For demonstrating to me what powerful leaders look like. For showing me how to persevere and overcome life's unexpected obstacles. For being powerful role models, business owners, community leaders, and creative minds. Thank you for challenging me to think bigger and grow into a better person.

This is a fan letter to all of you...

and the many more women in my life. 

Behind the Scenes: On Resistance

“Procrastination is the most common manifestation of Resistance because it’s the easiest to rationalize.

Never forget: This very moment, we can change our lives. There never was a moment, and never will be, when we are without the power to alter our destiny. This second, we can turn the tables on Resistance.

This second, we can sit down and do our work.”

— Steven Pressfield, The War of Art

Holy shit the excuses I can come up with: I'm too tired, I have to do my laundry, I've been looking at a screen all day already, I've got to make dinner...all the things I need to do before I can sit down and do my work. Right? 

For those unfamiliar with the term, Resistance was coined by Steven Pressfield in his book the War of Art (highly recommended read). At its essence, Resistance is all the rationalization we put on that prevents us from doing the work. 

For me, Resistance doesn't just appear in my filmmaking or business. Steven Pressfield describes resistance as something that shows up in all acts that "rejects immediate gratification in favor of long-term growth, health or integrity." Things like:

Starting a new, healthier way of eating.
Launching the side project we always dreamed of. 
Learning how to paint.
Improving our relationships.
Picking up a new morning habit.

Since discovering The War of Art, recognizing and overcoming resistance has been a constant occurrence. I see it everywhere, in my training, my relationships, on side projects and in my work.

The beauty is that between the resistance and my work, there's a gap. This is where I've got to show up. Take a step forward with a project. Sit down and edit after work. Resist pressing snooze a third time and get up to write. Ship the work. There is no secret, other than to simply show up and do. 

Here's another great post by Seth Godin on Resistance on 99u, a collection of 5 books for overcoming fear in the creative process from Brainpickings, and a playlist I created to move through resistance. I recently rediscovered the use of music to put in the right wavelengths. Am I the only one who uses a playlist like this? Anyways, I'll leave you with a quote I have written in my notebook from 2013: 

“The professional endures adversity. He lets the birdshit splash down on his slicker, remembering that it comes clean with a heavy-duty hosing. He himself, his creative center, cannot be buried, even beneath a mountain of guano...He reminds himself it’s better to be in the arena, getting stomped by the bull, than to be up in the stands or out in the parking lot.”

— Steven Pressfield, The War of Art

Behind the Scenes: Creative Cross-training

“the point of creative cross training is to immerse yourself for a short period of time in an art form that is not your primary one.”

— Srinivas Rao

2015 ended with two big projects at work getting cut, lots of self-doubt, and a hunger to shift into a higher gear. My then co-worker Alyson posted a link for an online course called "THE GREATEST YEAR EVER." It definitely sounded like scam.

I was quickly humbled by how freaking useful this course was. As a part of creating "MY GREATEST YEAR EVER," I had to break my daily "work" down into three creative fundamentals. This is what I came up with: 

•  creating + experimenting (actually making films)
•  communicating (interviewing skills, building + pitching treatments, leading teams, etc.)
•  learning (watching, reading, studying, etc.).

Like most human beings, I was incredibly inconsistent with doing activities from these three buckets. However, what carried over from this work in 2017 was a nagging question: "how can I hone my directing skills on a daily basis?" The challenge with directing is that you need a project to direct, people to actually direct and the resources to do so.

Werner Herzog shares in his philosophies to filmmaking to "READ. READ. READ. READ. READ." and "Write Quickly." Noted. I also came across this 99U article about using creative cross-training to grow in our crafts. Learning what I have over the past few years, I'm coming back to my practice of writing.  At least for 2017, I plan to use this blog as my experiment. It'll be a place to play, create, test and practice. Hope you'll join in along for the ride! 

I'll leave you with a quote from Seth Godin:

“My suggestion is, whenever possible, ask yourself: What’s the smallest possible footprint I can get away with? What is the smallest possible project that is worth my time? What is the smallest group of people who I could make a difference for, or to? Because smallest is achievable. Smallest feels risky. Because if you pick the smallest and you fail, now you’ve really screwed up.”

— Seth Godin, Tools of Titans by Tim Ferris

New Work: Movement with jian pablico

"Movement was at first, a way to run away from something...the most prominent movement practices I had in my life came after breakups." 

Jian Pablico began his education in movement with boxing, then capoeira and later CrossFit. Aside from being an athlete, Jian is an incredible leader and mentor for young people through founding VARS/TY initative and co-founding of The Distrikt. Jian's inspired me to think bigger about how I can serve my community, what it means to be a man and finding my movement practice.

I asked Jian if he would help us test a RED-Dragon set up with a wireless follow focus and video system (which ended up failing). Recovering from a torn abdomen, he moved like a champ. What resulted was this piece, edited together with the footage and and interview with Jian.

Big ups to Popseka and his team for licensing this track to us. 

Director: Jon Chiang DOP: Andrea Wing & Jon Chiang Music: Popseka - Doing me wrong

New Work: The Gift is in the Give

The gift is in the Give. 

A quick-turn digital advertising campaign for lululemon. Take from Concept, to production and post in under 2 weeks. This was also the first time I pulled .R3D stills and was super impressed with how they turned out. 

The campaign reached over 28 million impressions through all our online creative. 

Director/DOP: Jon Chiang Editor & Colourist: Adam Hennegan Producers: Louise Hatton & Yael Stein Art Director: Talia Cohen Copy Writer: Leila Nadery Graphic Designer: Malin Otmalm Stylist: Alexie Gray

Fan Letters: Bruce Lee

“
Many people dedicate their lives to actualizing a concept of what they should be like, rather than actualizing themselves. The difference between self-actualizing and self-image actualizing is very important. Many people only live for their image”

— Bruce Lee, Artist of Life.

Some of my first movie memories were of Bruce Lee on VHS. I remember going to my grandmothers house everyday after pre-school while my mom was at work. A classic afternoon would involve a trip down Victoria street to grab lunch ingredients and then putting on a Bruce lee VHS afterwards. Like most people, I was drawn in by his crazy martial arts moves, huge fight scenes and infamous noises. I remember one afternoon where I got overly excited imitating Bruce Lee and puked out my noodles from lunch. 

It wasn't until a few months ago, that I renewed my appreciation for Bruce Lee when I came across this article by Maria Papova on Brainpickings.

“Early in his career, Lee was systematically sidelined by Hollywood’s studio system, which operated with extreme racial bias and still used white actors in yellowface to portray Asian characters based on flat stereotypes. Over and over, Lee was told in no uncertain terms that white audiences simply wouldn’t accept an Asian man as a lead character in a movie.
”

— Maria Papova, Brainpickings

Bruce Lee has grown to become a mentor and cultural leader for me. In acknowledging the lack of Asian and minority representation in film and media, I have been inquiring deeper into what my responsibilities are in my work. How is my work shaping the landscape of film? Who's voices are being represented when I put out new work? How can I shift the power to those who are not typically with power in our society? 

Outside of my work as a filmmaker, his philosophies on living life have also been largely influential on me. Watch this great piece compiled by Must See films. 

Bruce was not only an influential person in drawing me to the beauty and excitement of film, but now later in my life, has been an influence on how to live life. For me, Bruce Lee exemplified the balance of living with self-will, determination and discipline while also living in the present and detachment. He balanced living with desire and detachment of the mind.  

Thank you Bruce for inspiring me to cultivate a life of persistence, letting go and standing for what you believed in. 

“You will never get any more out of life than you expect

Keep your mind on the things you want and off those you don’t

Things live by moving and gain strength as they go

Be a calm beholder of what is happening around you

There is a difference a) the world b) our reaction to it

Be aware of our conditioning! Drop and dissolve inner blockage

Inner to outer ~~~ we start by dissolving our attitude not by altering outer condition

See that there is no one to fight, only an illusion to see through

No one can hurt you unless you allow him to

Inwardly, psychologically, be a nobody”

Behind the Scenes: The year that was 2016

Jan 1, 2016 started with a quiet view of the ocean from Lighthouse Park. The previous night's hangover was quickly cured with the ocean breeze and good company. 

Earlier that week, I had set one goal that would guide 2016: "I reach over 500,000 people with films I direct or DP that inspire and elevate the world by Dec 31, 2016." I wanted an ambitious goal that would push me to create consistently and put the work into becoming a better DP and director. It was the most important thing I had set my sights on.

Now, as I cross that goal off the list, I know it wasn't the most important thing that happened - far from it. 2016 was a year of real adulting. Of learning to navigate life, dipping into discomfort, finding courage and cultivating community. Here's a behind the scenes to the people who made 2016 possible.

1. Cancer, Choice, courage and community. 

At the end of 2015, my mom was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer. There's so much I am grateful for that resulted from the diagnosis.

I learned what courage looked like from my mom as she underwent her treatments. 

I saw what support and unconditional love looked like from my Dad, as he put his life on pause to take care of my mom. 

I discovered the power of choice, even when "Cancer" was the only option. 

I saw of our family & community rally behind my mom in so many little ways that made enormous  differences. From dropping off food to all the hospital visits, I saw so many acts of support, generosity and positivity. Thank you all so much. 

An another thank you to Akira and Pia for wrangling me in to do the Obliteride and the people who helping to raise over $2,200 for Cancer Research. 

2. For friendship, my crew, JT CO-WORK, & THE DISTRIKT. 

For Friendship & my crew: (including you in Toronto, Edmonton, and NZ): I couldn't have asked for more. Thank you for making so many of the moments in 2016. Thank you for the support during the year, for teaching me the ropes in ultimate, for all the dinners, all the late night chats and adventures. 

Jess, Laura, Zach, Meg, Ryan, Lauren & the JT: Thanks for letting us camp out at the Juice Truck every Wednesday. When I was freelancing in 2012, finding community with the people I wanted to work with was the most challenging part. Thank you for opening up your space for us to gather and work together. 

Ally,  Jian & The District: Thank you both for showing me what leadership looks like. What it means to create community. What it means to be powerful Men and Women in the world. Thank you for including me in the community with open arms. 

3. lululemon

In 2013, I wrote a goal that "I am creating visual content daily that inspires and elevates others with Lululemon." After an internship and the past two years as a filmmaker at Lululemon, I've grown as a filmmaker in a beautiful and trusting community. Thank you to all our athletes for trusting me and our team with your stories, for sharing your vulnerabilities and teaching us what it means to be human. 

To my big-boss Winger: Thank you for continually challenging me and giving me the opportunities to grow. I wouldn't have wanted anyone else on set when things don't go as planned. 

To the film team (and Tina & Brent): Thank you for being the best team someone could ask for. 2016 has been a wild ride and I'm excited to keep creating with you. 

4. This little nugget. 

I know how much you love being acknowledged on the internet (I'll keep this short). Thanks for being the best partner someone could ask for. For constantly challenging me to be a better person. For keeping me grounded while I chase dreams. And for bravely adventuring, despite the possibilities of bears. 

2016 has come to a close with mountain views, a snowy New Years and Bon Iver on the speakers. 

Thank you to all who have been a part of it, for the moments we've shared and experiences we've had. Here's to another great year!