#107: Chi Thai, Independent Filmmaker & Producer

Best Girl Grip

This week my guest is Chi Thai, an independent filmmaker & producer who works across features, documentary, animation & immersive. She has produced over 13 short films, been a Cannes Lion finalist three times, had her work screened at BAFTA & Academy accredited festivals, and exec produced the documentary short Little Miss Sumo, written & directed by Matt Kay, which you can currently watch on Netflix. Chi is also an alumnus of the Guiding Lights scheme and NETWORK@LFF and a ScreenDaily Star of Tomorrow. Her production company Last Conker is also a recipient of the BFI Vision Award and she is currently producing BIFA nominated writer-director Paris Zarcilla’s debut feature Raging Grace.

We talk about how Chi ‘blagged’ her way into film school (her words not mine), how she has gained confidence as a producer, the ethos and mission behind her production company Last Conker and how the climate crisis and her ambition to work with storytellers from the East & South East Asian diaspora, spearheads her producing and advocacy work.

We also discuss not getting the BFI Vision Award the first time she applied, what the money has allowed her to do when she was awarded it and why she chose to invest the money in a variety of initiatives and how she’s working towards dismantling the structures that marginalise underrepresented groups in the film industry.

I hope you enjoy our chat. Chi is someone who has a lot of experience and very clear sense I think of what needs to change in the film industry and how she can help effect that, so it was definitely a galvanising conversation and I was really delighted to be able to speak with her.