Chen has been in the filmmaking industry for 10 years. Like a moth to a flame, she is always eagerly chasing the next project, passionate about her films and the community it takes to create them. Like most filmmakers, she originally got into filmmaking because she loved telling stories, and felt it was the only place she could express how she felt.  She loves that she can inspire change through the stories she tells. 

Her latest project, Erzulie, is no exception. The concept was inspired after a day in the pool over the summer. She wrote a seven page short the day she decided to do a mermaid film, set it aside, realizing how much a mermaid tail would cost, and revisited it three months later when she had the opportunity to pitch a thriller to a distribution company. The idea for a mermaid film came from The Little Mermaid. As a kid, she loved this film. Apart from mermaids being visually stunning and inspiring, as well as relating to Ariel and the fact that she never felt like she belonged in her world, but wanted to be part of another world. Chen and her co-writer, Camille worked on the script for months, and by the beginning of April, had gotten the greenlight to start production. 

Chen credits a lot of her expertise to her experience as a first assistant director, to the crew she has worked with over the years, and the slow build up over time of doing other projects that guided her to successfully complete Erzulie. 

“I think the reason I have been able to succeed is because anything I have ever said I was going to do, I have done. You have to want to do it above anything else. Another thing is to be nice to everyone, not just in the film industry but in the world.”