James Y. Shih

James Y. Shih was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area and is the son of Taiwanese immigrants. In high school, he fell in love with acting and performing in school plays. He continued this passion at UC San Diego, where he studied Economics and Theatre and performed in college theatre/film productions. After graduation, James moved to Taipei to learn Mandarin and also worked as an actor for theatre productions (Against Again Troupe), music videos, and short films. Back in the U.S., James shifted his focus to behind the camera and became a Producer for "Fight Life" (2012), a feature documentary about the lives of professional MMA fighters. After "Fight Life", James worked as a Co-Producer for the sci-fi feature "Advantageous" (2015) which premiered at Sundance 2015 and won a Special Jury Award. As of 2018, it is available on Netflix. James is also the writer/director of the short films "Distance" (2012) and "Moment" (2016) which have screened at national film festivals. James is an MFA graduate of Screenwriting from California State University, Northridge. As of January 2018, he is in pre-production for his short film "Grandma's Journey", a comedic drama inspired by his Taiwanese grandma.