In GOLDEN GATE GIRLS author and professor S. Louisa Wei tells the story of filmmaker Esther Eng, the first woman to direct Chinese-language film in the US, and the most prominent woman director in Hong Kong in the 1930’s. A San Francisco native and open lesbian, her contribution to film history is sadly overlooked – her 11 feature films mostly lost. After the retirement of director Dorothy Arzner in 1943 and before Ida Lupino began directing in 1949, Eng was the only woman directing feature length films in the US.
Wei’s documentary paints a fascinating picture of how Eng’s career in filmmaking broke through gender and racial boundaries in Hollywood and Hong Kong, at a time when opportunities for Chinese women in the industry were few and far between. With a captivating archive of newly discovered images and interviews with those who knew her, Wei uncovers a rich chapter of film history that challenges both gender hierarchies and national narratives. Essential viewing for Cinema Studies and Asian American Studies.
"...extraordinarily interesting..." Indiewire
"...eye opening and compelling..." Hollywood Reporter
"Golden Gate Girls restores Eng to her place in history, weaving her story in and out of those Hollywood contemporaries, director Dorothy Arzner and actress Anna May Wong." Patricia White, Professor and Chair Film and Media Studies, Swarthmore College
"Golden Gate Girls is cultural history at its best." Staci Ford, Hon Associate Lecturer Department of History, Hong Kong University
"Golden Gate Girls is alluringly posited at the intersection of these fields: how women’s contribution to film history overlaps with the tumultuous History of the 20th century." – and Professor, California Institute of the Arts. Bérénice Reynaud, Festival Curator Professor, California Institute of the Arts
"Louisa Wei takes us on a journey of discovery in the footsteps of the remarkable Esther Eng. Wei provides a sensitive portrait of the intrepid, but largely neglected filmmaker who too easily fell through the cracks between Asian American and Chinese screen history." Gina Marchetti Professor, Hong Kong University
Citation
Main credits
Wei, S. Louisa (film director)
Wei, S. Louisa (screenwriter)
Wei, S. Louisa (film producer)
Wei, S. Louisa (editor of moving image work)
Wei, S. Louisa (director of photography)
Law, Kar (film producer)
Other credits
Music, Robert Ellis-Geiger, Trà̂n Mạnh Tuà̂n; editor/camera, S. Louisa Wei.
