Interview by Paul Salfen
Synopsis
Chinese scholarship student Wei travels to New Zealand to study medical research at a prestigious university. Shy, introverted, and hiding a genetic facial birthmark, Wei is shunned by her social butterfly cousin Angela and her glamorous friends. Determined to change her fate, Wei immerses herself in her late father’s research, working on a revolutionary skin grafting procedure that could cure her deformity. As her experiments take a dark turn, she becomes more dangerous and unhinged, willing to eliminate anyone who threatens her secret.
About the Director
Sasha Rainbow is an award-winning New Zealand born director whose unique sensibility and vision reflects in both her film and commercial work. Her documentary Kamali, about a seven-year-old Indian girl skateboarder, was long listed for an Oscar, nominated for a BAFTA and was distributed through RYOT films. Since 2018, Sasha has been a mentee of the British Film Institute X British Academy of Film and Television mentorship, and attended the renowned Yaddo artists residency in 2019. In 2021, Sasha was selected as one of eight women for the Women in Film multi-hyphenate mentorship scheme in Los Angeles. Sasha is developing several feature-length scripted films, including Beta, a female lead sci-fi set in the Bay Area.