Julie Zhao & Harshith Surya Kotni
2023 HEAR US Awardees
Undergraduate Film & TV Class of 2023
Harshith Kotni is an Indian American Writer, Director, Cinematographer, and recent alum of New York University's Tisch School of Arts.. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, he grew up deeply connected to his Indian roots. Many of his films follow South Asian characters learning to navigate their worlds while holding on to their heritage. He wants to showcase his culture in all its different shapes and colors, show its vulnerabilities, and open people's perceptions of South Asians. He has also shot numerous music videos, commercial projects, and political campaigns. Alongside filmmaking, he studied theater for 2 and a half years at Ohlone College's award-winning theater program.
Julie Zhao is a Franco-Chinese producer with experience working on both narrative and commercial projects in LA, Shanghai, and NYC. She was a full-time editor and Post-production manager at Great Wave Creative, a full-service media agency based in Shanghai and Taiwan. Currently, she is a Tracking and Acquisitions intern at Cinetic Media, and has developed a strong passion for creating content through a multicultural lens. Through film, she hopes to amplify Asian voices, expanding representation in front and behind the camera.
Project
"Dreamline"
Vaanen is an ambitious 1st generation Indian-American classically trained tabla player - but he’d much rather become the next big name in hip-hop. Blasting Kanye on the speakers, eating Taco Bell beefy burritos, and smoking with his friends, Vaanen's behavior is completely at odds with the expectations of his upbringing -- the Bay Area tech industry. When he skips an important networking dinner organized by his father to go work on his beats with his friends instead, a heated argument between father and son ensues, where culture and beliefs violently clash.
With the growing popularity of Asian cinema and AAPI narratives with films like RRR, Minari, Shoplifters, series like Squid Game and more, it’s the perfect time to showcase these diverse Asian-American perspectives, as well as the unique challenges that come with our identity. With a team of international filmmakers from all over the world attached to this project, we’re poised to shed light on the immigrant experience and the challenges it poses to parent-child relationships.
The choice of hip hop music as a medium for open communication supports the narrative; Vaanen’s music in Dreamline pays homage to the power of hip hop culture which is, at its core, built on values of self-worth, community, and having fun. Growing up, the turbulence we encounter when our cultures from home clash with the ones we come across at school, at work, can alter a sense of connection to one’s culture and people, including a connection to one’s family. Thus, this film tackles miscommunication through the lens of both the parents and the children.
