Wesley Wang
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Wesley Wang | |
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| Born | May 14, 2004 Jericho, New York |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Harvard University |
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Wesley Wang (born May 14, 2004) is an American film director, writer, and producer. He is best known for directing the short film nothing, except everything. (2023), which won a Grand Jury Prize at the Academy-Award qualifying Indy Shorts International Film Festival[1], and subsequently went viral on the video platform YouTube[2].
Early life and education
Born in Jericho, New York, both Wang's parents are of Chinese origin. Encouraged by his older brother, Wang started playing chess at age 5, and quickly became one of the top chess players in the United States for his age. With a peak rating of 2441 USCF, Wang achieved the FIDE Master title in 2018[3], earning a spot in the All-America Chess Team six years straight from 2016-2021[4].
Voted an "extraordinary senior" in 2022 by Newsday[5], Wang is now a sophomore at Harvard University pursuing a concentration in economics.
Career
Inspired by watching movies, Wang began filmmaking at the age of 11. At 15, he directed, wrote, and composed his first serious short Faces (2019), which won the American Visions Award at the Scholastic Art & Writing Competition, given to approximately only 150 artists out of 320,000 submissions every year[6].
He followed Faces with Eve (2021) and Mute (2022), which respectively premiered and screened at the Oscar-qualifying LA Shorts International Film Festival and Flickers' Rhode Island International Film Festival. Mute went on to win the Directorial Discovery Award at Flickers'[7], and Best Young Filmmaker at the Jim Thorpe Independent Film Festival[8].
Produced throughout his last year of high school, Wang's latest film nothing, except everything. won a Grand Jury Prize at the Oscar-qualifying Indy Shorts International Film Festival and garnered over 4.5 million views on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. The film also stars David Mazouz (FOX's Gotham) and Lily Chee (Netflix's Daredevil), and was produced by the Oscar-shortlisted Scott Aharoni, whose films have premiered and won awards at Sundance, SXSW, and Tribeca [9]. MovieMaker's Editor-in-Chief Tim Molloy described the film as "fast-moving, expertly shot, and charmingly narrated by Mazouz"[10], and film critic Richard Propes adds that the "original music by Tim Fain complements the narrative quite nicely"[11].
Personal life
Aside from chess and film, Wang is also a singer/songwriter. His single "Runaway" has amassed over 68,000 streams on the music streaming platform Spotify, and he recently opened for pop sensation Nicky Youre at Harvard's annual Crimson Jam[12][13].
References
- ↑ Fagerholm, Matt. "No Moment was Wasted: Highlights at the 2023 Indy Shorts International Film Festival". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
- ↑ Graber-Lipperman, Nate. "Inside the Viral Short Film Taking Over YouTube". Retrieved October 13, 2023.
- ↑ "Wesley Wang FIDE Profile Info". FIDE.
- ↑ Lucas, Daniel. "One Move at a Time February Edition: FM Wesley Wang". UsChess.org.
- ↑ Dziemianowicz, Joe. "Meet Newday's Extraordinary Seniors". Retrieved June 13, 2022.
- ↑ "Thoughtful Thursday: Meet the 2020 RAL National Medalists". artandwriting.org. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
- ↑ "2022 Flickers' Vortex Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Film Festival". film-festival.org.
- ↑ "Awards & Nominations". jimthorpeindiefilmfest.com.
- ↑ Ramachandram, Naman. "Greenbird Media Cluster Acquired by STV Studios – Global Bulletin". Variety. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
- ↑ Molloy, Tim. "In Wesley Wang's 'nothing, except everything,' Recent High School Grads Grasp for Meaning". Retrieved July 23, 2023.
- ↑ Richard, Propes. "Movie Review: Nothing, Except Everything". theindependentcritic.com.
- ↑ Feder, Ilana. "That Guy Who Sings "Sunroof"". The Harvard Independent. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
- ↑ Hua, Ian. "In Photos: Students Jam at Crimson Jam". The Harvard Crimson.
External links
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