Renee Eva Chen

🎓Grad photos (pt 1!)🎓 3 drafts in and yet always being late and as the over thinker that I usually am, I still couldn’t condense what these last 4 years meant for me ahah but wanted to finish writing this in the wee hours (it’s 6am here lol) before heading to the airport: From the moment I stepped foot on campus with someone across the village “Omg are you Renee Chen?” and me with “wait who tf are you 🤣” and even while abroad somehow my presence as a ghost existed back at home (for those that used my name as an “ice breaker”, you’re welcome 🤭), in the midst of ebbs and flows of college life I’ve tried to do and feel every possible emotion and experience possible from the lowest of the lows (those ER trips hah) highest of the highs (3 lifetime 🪣✅🤯?!) and every opportunity, success, failure, fun and precious memories with friends and full circles in between - which none would’ve been possible without the mentors and friends made along the way + support of my family that served as my backbone in this entire journey. Idk what I did to deserve y’all but for those that chose to get to know me and wanted to to spend time with me at any point in these last 4 years both here and abroad (or even just following along on here with me showing glimpses of life/micro-influencing unintentionally 😅), eternally grateful from the bottom of my heart for you all and so happy that I got to know you and have these memories and moments together that I can carry with me to the next chapter in our lives 🥹❤️ I’ll do my best to return the favor and to keep documenting and preserving these memories for us and a future generation to look back for nostalgia’s sake 🫶 Hehe I’ll find y’all again soon (or come find me!) for those reunions 🥰 Soul is very happy and fulfilled, much love y’all ❤️ That said, Fight the f*ck on forever! ✌️❤️💛 📸: an honor to be photographed 😖 - but fr tho before the legend gets too famous for his skills alone, @dennisweilee made it nearly impossible to choose that we might have to make this into a series now 😅 🎶: idk I felt like this song and band was an anthem for this support and journey 🥹❤️ - #uscgrad #wegraduated (?) #wtf

[🇪🇺1.1.23-6.17.23🇪🇺] There is so much to say and yet it’s hard to find the words to describe the amt of gratitude I have for this once in a lifetime experience. So much personal growth has happened through trial and error (the good, the bad, the ugly) and not just by meeting new people everyday but also being able to take the time to soak in every minute, every feeling. Took a bit of a windy path and fought hard to get to this point since I first had that lifetime dream to study abroad since I was little, and idk if I really deserve it but I’ve learned to live life more fully and learning how to be fully independent after doing a 2 week solo trip afterwards - somehow this tiny 5’0 survived 🤭 altho I was scared shit about being far from family and home for a long time I’m glad we decided to see it through ❤️ I’m still a complete beginner when it comes to filming/editing these lil videos and long ways to go but I hoped that I was able to capture just a glimpse of what those 6 months meant to me 🥰 📸: Panasonic @lumixusa #g85 Inspired by many amazing talented friends! There’s a shit ton of y’all, but I’ve been collecting inspo all semester long from filmmaking/cinematography/photography friends 😅 To name a few with reels I’ve saved - @_alyshawang @tyleretang @thecreatingwarrior @matthieuss @corysiu @cabacani @amyanchilichen @these_nads @tereselim @nrleevideo @ethankbb @hashimoto_films Also took inspo from @knt__films @henbu_ ! And couldn’t forget my sister @downbythevivers my other half who advocated for me since day 1 and one I aspire to be the most 🥹🫶 Europe Country Highlights: 📍: Netherlands (Rotterdam, Delft, Den Haag, Keukenhof, Utrecht, Amsterdam) 📍: Belgium (Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent) 📍: UK (London) 📍: Germany (Berlin, Düsseldorf) 📍: Switzerland (Geneva, Lusanne, Montreux, Interlaken, Sigriswil) 📍: Italy (Milan, Rome, Vatican City, Venice, Florence) 📍: Hungary (Budapest) 📍: Czech Republic (Prague) 📍: Luxembourg 📍: Zakynthos - one of the smaller islands of Greece 📍: France (Nice, Cannes, Paris) 📍: Monaco 📍: Madeira Island (one of the islands of Portugal) #cinematicreel #europetravel # #visiteurope #mysummer2023

[🎞️🇫🇷5.25.23-5.27.23🎞️🇫🇷] Tbt when I got away with wearing Adidas on the red carpet bc I didn’t have time to change into heels 🤭 But 你看妈妈，我终于到了！ (Look Mama, I made it!) (Jk, sorta 😅) It was an absolute lifetime dream come true to be able to attend Cannes Film Festival 🥹🫶 I’ve always admired Cannes for celebrating international cinema, having grown up watching international films with my family and has shaped a part of me to wanting to learn about everyones stories and experiences from all around the world and different walks of life while also learning and gaining a deeper appreciation about their cultures and filmmaking styles - it’s one of the reasons why I wanted to study abroad since I was in elementary school! I had a goal in mind that I was going to try and attend Cannes through the 3 Days in Cannes Program (which is technically open to any film enthusiast ages 18-28 that wants to apply 👀) since before study abroad started and while it took a shit ton of planning, we somehow manifested that dream as part of my first time solo trip. It’s surreal to not only be able to catch some of the films premiering for Palme D’Or competition and for other programs (ex Director’s Fortnight), but somehow made it onto the red carpet and ending the night with Pixar’s “Elemental” red carpet world premiere. I also got to meet new friends along the way! Shoutout to @sydney_cyl @megan.whitham for making the first leg of my solo trip around Europe less daunting and @hi.anadanko (fellow Trojan who’s now an alumni! ❤️💛) for helping me with my hair as this girl still don’t know how to curl her hair 🤧❤️ The little 10yr old in me was screaming. Truly those 3 days were an unforgettable experience and renewed my love and passion for cinema as I continue to work on my dreams and aspirations - thank you Cannes Film Festival for everything, I just might have to come back again soon 😭🫶 #3daysincannes #cannesfilmfestival

For the 4 photo nerds that finally made it out of the gc to touch grass and hug (or kiss) trees 😗 📸: 🙆🏻‍♀️ @lumix + @s.l.eight 🤭 @sonyalpha #sequoia #roadtrip #cinematicphoto #traveldiaries #photography

When the docs say to touch grass that we started to blend in 😗 🌿 (I know the Adidas don’t really match the aesthetics but we were walking a lot lol 😅) 📸: @jvminju 🤓🤓

Echoes MV is finally out 🥹🫶 It’s been a year in the making and so excited that its finally out in the world for you to see 🥰 When Matt and I were catching up last year, he asked if I wanted to help out as one of the associate producers for this cinematic MV and pitched it as “A family of Vietnamese women across 3 generations rediscovering themselves during an accidental high trip on edibles (including the grandma)” and I was like wait yes bc the concept is funny to me and it turned from what is normally considered a taboo topic in Asian families into unexpected family bonding 🤣To Matt and Amy (the mastermind of this beautiful piece), thank you for bringing me on and Aidan for being an amazing producing partner! 🥹🫶🫶 Alongside the whole team, I’m really proud of us to make it happen 🤧❤️ Link in bio to watch the full MV! Starring: Bà Ngoại Theresa Nguyen Mẹ Ngoc Le @hey.ngoc Con Jordan Nguyen @jordann_nguyen Featuring Sundae School @sundae.school @sundae_flowers Written and Directed by Amy Pham amysetc Song Written by Amy Pham and Theo Pleasure-Park theopleasurepark Song Produced by Theo Pleasure-Park theopleasurepark Produced by Matt Oflas @matthieuss Associate Producers Renee Chen @_renchenchen_ Associate Producer Aidan Wattson @aidan_wattson Associate Producer Aerin Oh @aerinohh 1st AD Jake Patao @jakekainoa_ Director of Photography Ryan Hoang @ryho.dp 1st AC Hugh Vo @hhughvo Gaffer Aaron Pham @aaronpham17 Key Grip Tommy One @thomas.one Grip Ken White @ken.m0v Grip/Swing Brandon Yu @brandon.j.yu Production Designer Lam Chung @lamusubi Costume Designer/HMU Evelyn Zhong @summershordy Hair and Makeup Dulce Ontiveros @dulceontiveros Art PA Milan McIntosh @milan.xu Art PA Derrick Nguyen @derrick_nguyyen Animation Danny Roadhouse @dannyroadhouse Animation Ani Brown @ani.makes.art Production Assistant Tristan Obedos @tristanobedos Production Assistant Damien Nguyen @damiennguyen_ Production Assistant Catherine Nguyen @catherinennguyen Production Assistant/BTS Katherine Harry @katlarisa Editor Amy Pham amysetc Colorist Ken White @ken.m0v VFX @matthieuss Title Card/Credits Design @ella.buscaino #filmmaking #cinematic #musicvideo #aapi

Attempted a cinematic MV vlog for the first time! 😅 I had this idea in mind for a long while after spending time with my family, and as a child of immigrant parents, I realized that they too are really living for the first time too and trying to figure things out along the way - sometimes trips with them can be a lil hectic but the more I spend time with them, the more I cherish that time knowing that time is finite whether it’s watching them slowly age or how they’d get news of who left this world already. And we’re not going to get that time back. While I’ve been reflecting on how I spend my own time, and with the uncertainty of time and my future, I learned how important it is to just embrace that phase and find the beauty in it, whether it’s to slow down and be more present, and even go on trips with the family. And whenever we’re on trips like these, they bring out the youthfulness of my family again (they’re really just children at heart too 🤭) This song also captured those feelings too so I wanted to use it to reflect the memories I have of these trips from the last 2 years with them 🥹🫶 The way this took a while to figure out from the mini story that I wanted to tell to recording the voiceover (in Mandarin mind you - I realized my voice is usually at higher range whenever I speak it lol 😵‍💫) adding some sound effects and visual effects to the color grading and more (i only used Edits to sync the music + fonts ahhah) but while it was a learning curve, it was also a lot of fun making this (finally) - had to just rip off the band aid and start making projects like this to fill my cup than being a perfectionist and overthinking it with decision paralysis lol (And if you have more feedback on how I can improve my editing skills, please send them my way 🙇🏻‍♀️) 📸: @lumix lumixusa #visualdiary #cinematicvlog #aapiparents #aapiheritagemonth #aapi

In spirit of Milan Winter Olympics, tbt Milan archives around this time 3yrs ago that I forgot to post 🥸

Always been in a Chinese time of my life 😗 Or attempted - it’s definitely mixed feelings myself having grown up in a predominantly white environment (it’s getting somewhat better now demographics wise lol), that I either felt too Chinese to be American or too American to be Chinese during my childhood (I was often told to be in ESL bc I was born learning Mandarin and English same time 😅 and have faced sinophobia/xenophobia in high school ( Iykyk with that racist money jar, and are we forgetting COVID?) a bit so I wasn’t able to really embrace my heritage side fully until university As one of the daughters of immigrant parents, I’m quite damn proud of my cultural identity recent years from sharing bits and pieces about it relating to self (the photography/videography, travel, speaking mother tongue with friends and family, visiting the motherland etc) and also grateful for the experiences that I grew up with that shaped me into who I am and my perspectives but yeah maybe a gentle reminder that cultures with thousands of years of history aren’t to be reduced into a disposable trend and there’s a difference between cultural appreciating and cultural appropriating? But take the time to actually get to know, learn, respect and appreciate the cultures?Food for thought lol🤔 Happy Chinese New Year and Lunar new year for those celebrating! One of my favorite holidays and hoping that the year of the horse can bring in much needed luck and happiness this year 🧧🥳

24! And one more year until the quarter life crisis oml 😵‍💫🤣 But fr tho this past year (and this past month) was probably one of the hardest in my life deep down, wrestling with much anxiety stress and health scares - I was even uncertain where my future is going, and if I’m even enough. Yet I also realized that with the support of friends and family that have been carrying me through these tough times, knowing that I’m not alone dealing with all of this and that it’s been tough for a lot of friends too but I know that as long as we’re supporting and uplifting each other, we can still look forward into the future together. So I hope that this coming year, I’ll be able to prioritize my mental health (non negotiable), be kinder to myself and continue to work on my dreams and goals while sidequesting along the way and not forget to just touch grass, appreciate the small moments and wins and live life to the fullest too 🎶 the song chosen also sort of reflects that too - to cherish every moment and facing new beginnings with optimism and resilience in the midst of unpredictability of life 🫶 Thank you all for the birthday wishes! 🥹🫶

2 weeks of being at my worst and a week of a much needed break later (unfiltered) >> Ty for the friends I got to reconnect with and for friends @jenniphodacbiet and sister @downbythevivers for hosting me 🥹🫶 And Ty for the friends that kept checking in on me this past month - it’s been a tough month and grateful that y’all helped me pull through 🙇🏻‍♀️

Thank you 2025 for what it is ❤️ For the burnouts, crashouts and hitting rock bottom to the sidequests and a childhood dream fulfilled - for the newfound supportive communities and friends new and old, life this past year has been a series of musical episodes Grateful for those that came into my life this year and will be carrying the lessons and renewed energy into 2026 (staying present, slowing down and not overthink about the uncertainty of the future is one of them) 🥰 Going to keep documenting life as it is so my future self can look back at the core memories and be proud of my present self ❤️ 📸: @lumix @lumixusa Loosely inspired by @_______mikii ‘s 2024 recap 🥹 #endofyear #cinematic #newyear #2025recap #strangerthings