MARIA W. CHIU

DIRECTOR, PRODUCER, EDITOR

A blend of storyteller and journalist, I go between telling stories of quirky subcultures to investigating multi-billion dollar companies.

Projects
The Exiles

Investigations
Quitting LuLaRoe
Children of Sperm Donor 8928

Sports
The Towers
Ice Beard Surfers of Michigan

Health
Vice Plastic Planet Series
    Selfie Surgery
    Labiaplasty
    Six Pack Abs
Mobile Addiction Unit
First Hand Transplant

Family
Kate’s Home Funeral
Meet Me at the Bridge

Awards
2022 Sundance Grand Jury Prize
2019 Webby Honoree
2016 Tribeca & ESPN Future Filmmaker
2016 Joyce A. De Groot Award

Send a note
︎mariawchiu[at]gmail[dot]com
︎ Instagram
︎ LinkedIn



MARIA W. CHIU

Director, Producer, Editor

A blend of storyteller and journalist, I go between telling stories of quirky subcultures to investigating multi-billion dollar companies.

Send me a note:
︎ mariawchiu [at] gmail [dot] com
︎ Instagram
︎ LinkedIn
I’ve directed and produced over 50 short documentaries for VICE, BBC News, Buzzfeed News and Esquire. My favorite stories took me around the country, capturing stories of the women who quit LuLaRoe, the ice-bearded surfers of Michigan, and the dozens of children from sperm donor #8928.

Recently I co-produced the Sundance Grand Jury Prize winning feature film THE EXILES, which follows professor and documentarian Christine Choy as she revisits three exiled leaders from the Tiananmen Square protest. 

My love for documentaries began as an undergrad at UCLA when Professor Goldovskaya graciously invited me to sit in on her Advanced Documentary class. Inspired by the films I watched, I went on to pursue a Masters in Journalism with a special focus in documentary filmmaking at Columbia University where I co-directed THE TOWERS, a short film about the best little person basketball team in the US. We finished the film with support from Tribeca Film Institute and ESPN and published on CNN’s Great Big Story.

Through journalism and documentary film, I’ve met resilient people from all walks of life and been lucky enough to tell their story.





THE EXILES

Producer

Brash and opinionated, Christine Choy is a documentarian, cinematographer, professor, and quintessential New Yorker. Thirty years after the Tiananmen Squre pro-democracy protests, Christine tracks down three exiled leaders from the Tiananmen Square massacre to find closure on an abandoned film she began shooting in 1989.

Watch on Apple TV



THE TOWERS

Director, Producer, Editor

Five-time national champions of dwarf basketball, the New York Towers raised the bar for dwarfs playing basketball around the world. This year, the Towers compete for the gold medal against six teams at the Dwarf Athletic Association of America National Games. Through this team, they show the world that you don’t have to be tall to play ball.

Watch on CNN’s Great Big Story