Refugee families spend a lifetime trying to survive their past to build a home and a new life in another country. Jane Alcala’s documentary short Next Up, Lin Sun tells the story of one such survivor who reconciled with her family’s past and found freedom on the stand-up stage.
At ten years old, Lin Sun found herself the star of her father’s Cambodian music videos in Long Beach, California. What she didn’t know was the story of her filmmaker grandfather, who started Cambodian cinema only to see his dream evaporate with the Khmer Rouge’s takeover of his beloved country. While he got out, Lin’s parents barely survived the “killing fields” and started life anew in the States.
Lin Sun points to a mural of children and a Cambodian village in Next Up, Lin Sun.
“Lin’s father worked hard in a bakery by day and shot and edited videos by night.”
Lin’s father worked hard in a bakery by day and shot and edited videos by night. These videos starred her uncles, with her mother in the spotlight. Following in her mother’s footsteps, Lin got her taste of fame…Cambodian fame, and tried to please her mother. But that road led to a teen rebellion, giving “massages (wink),” spending time in jail, and becoming a single mother.
Compelling is the best word to describe Lin Sun’s story. No one ever wants to go through intense adversity, but as they say, “Adversity builds character.” In the short documentary, we see that after everything Lin went through, the obvious final destination was comedy. We have to laugh at our past not just to heal from it, but to share our journey with others walking a similar path.
No one asks for a life like Lin’s, but from the killing fields to Cambodian music videos to a jail cell and single motherhood, every twist seemed to be pointing somewhere. Jane Alcala’s Next Up, Lin Sun is proof that when life throws everything it’s got at you, all roads eventually lead to comedy, and Lin is just getting started.
"…a teen rebellion, giving “massages (wink),” spending time in jail..."
