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Staff Profile

Dr Lydia Wu

NUAcT Fellow - Culture and Creative Arts

Background

I am a Newcastle University Academic Track (NUAcT) Fellow in Culture and Creative Arts. I am also the Founding Director of the Association for Curators and Programmers of Asian Cinemas (ACPAC), a global platform dedicated to curators and programmers working with Asian films and moving images.


My academic journey began with the successful completion of my PhD in Film Studies at Newcastle University in 2017. Subsequently, I embarked on a dynamic trajectory that led me from a teaching and scholarship lecturer in Chinese studies at the University of Hull (2016-2019) to a research associate for an AHRC-funded project on Chinese independent cinema at Newcastle University (2019-2023). During my tenure as a research associate, I also organised, categorised, and digitised films, materials, and related information on Chinese independent cinema, film festivals, and exhibitions. This effort contributed to the establishment of the Chinese Independent Film Archive. In 2023, I assumed the role of a NUAcT fellow, granting me the independence to lead a research project "Decolonising Film Curation: Asian Cinemas as Method".


At the core of my endeavors is the motivation to effect positive change in the society through practice-based and event-driven research. I hold a particular interest in exploring the narratives of marginalised film cultures and underrepresented communities within the film industry, with a specific emphasis on Chinese independent filmmakers and Asian film curators and programmers. My research journey has delved into diverse aspects, including Chinese independent cinema, film festivals, film curation, and the cultural and knowledge production related to Asian cinema.


In addition to my roles within academia and research, I have actively engaged as a film programmer, curator, and event coordinator. These roles have afforded me the opportunity to contribute to various cultural initiatives and events, such as the 'Beijing Independent Film Festival UK Tour 2012,' the '10th Anniversary of China Independent Film Festival UK Celebration 2014,' and 'Earth in Crisis: Chinese Eco-documentary UK Tour 2019.'








Research

My NUAcT project 'Decolonising Film Curation: Asian Cinemas as Method' aims to reconceptualise film curatorship on Asian cinemas and transform current perceptions of 'Asia' constructed as an arbitrary and disconnected collection of countries through film curation. It marks the first comprehensive, empirical, and practice-led research into film curation, with a particular focus on the curatorial workflow of programmers and curators specialising in Asian cinemas. By unveiling the temporal and spatial patterns of curators and programmers' engagement with various stakeholders in the global film industry, the project seeks to identify and unravel the power distribution and hierarchy within the film industry that contributes to the construction of 'Asia.' More significantly, it aims to demonstrate that critical film curation can transcend the mere selection and presentation of an arbitrary collection of Asian films, offering a deeper understanding of 'Asia' as a globally circulating and adaptable set of discourses shaped by historical and contemporary colonialism and geopolitics. Additionally, the project will underscore the agency of curatorship in reshaping the cultural production mechanism, challenging existing assumptions about 'Asia'.


I have long been dedicated to observing the transformation of the Chinese film industry since 2012. I have closely examined how the interplay of art, capital, and politics has reshaped the landscape of art and independent cinema in China in terms of their discourse production, filmmaking, distribution and exhibition.












Teaching

PG modules

FMS8366Film and Social Justice

FMS8356 Film Exhibition, Archiving, Curation

FMS8099 Dissertation


External examiner for Chinese studies at Xi'an Jiaotong Liverpool University 2020-2023


I am interested in PhD proposal on film festivals, film curatorship on Asian cinemas, Chinese independent cinema, Chinese art cinema, film preservation and archiving, among other topics.




Publications

  • Articles

    • Wu L. Film Curation as Decolonial Practice: The 69th Flaherty Seminar. Media Practice and Education 2025. In Press.
    • Wu L, Ni V. Qin Yi Obituary. Guardian 2022.
    • Wu L. From Chinese independent cinema to art cinema: Convergence and divergence. Asian Cinema 2022, 33(1), 3-19.
    • Wu L. When We Talk About Feminism at A Film Festival, What Are We Talking About?: The First China Women’s Film Festival. Senses of Cinema 2014, 70.
    • Wu L. How Does It Survive?: The Tenth Beijing Independent Film Festival. Senses of Cinema 2013, 68.

  • Authored Book

    • Wu L, Hong JC, Ma R. co-translate Sirende Sheyingji: zhuguan dianying yu sanwen dianying a translation of The Personal Camera: Subjective Cinema and the Essay Film . 2014.

  • Book Chapter

    • Wu L, Yu S. From Elitism to Institutionalisation: CIFF and Chinese Independent Film Festivals. In: Berry, C. and L. Robinson, ed. Chinese Film Festivals: Sites of Translation. 2016.

  • Edited Book

    • Berry C, Yu SQ, Robinson L, Wu L, ed. Chinese Independent Cinema: Past, Present and A Questionable Future.. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2025.

  • Exhibitions

    • Yu S, Wu L. Earth in Crisis: Chinese Eco-documentary UK Tour. 2019. Tyneside Cinema Newcastle, Home Manchester, Showroom Sheffield, Lakeside Arts Nottingham, Phoenix Cinema and Bertha DocHouse London, and the University of Edinburgh.
    • Wu L. Nomadic Chinese Identity. 2015. Tyneside Cinema Newcastle. In Preparation.
    • Wu L, Yu S. The 10th Anniversary of China Independent Film Festival UK Celebration. 2014. Newcastle University.
    • Wu L, Yu S. Beijing Independent Film Festival UK Tour. 2012. Newcastle University.

  • Reports

    • Wu L. The Beijing Independent Film Festival Survives. dGenerate, 2013.
    • Wu L. No Apologies: Ai Weiwei Makes Surprise Visit to BIFF Closing Night. dGenerate, 2013.