Indie Lens Pop-Up: Free Chol Soo Lee
Event Date and Time: April 19, 2023 7:30 pm
Cost: $0
Location: https://ovee.itvs.org/
Tickets and Reservations
Sentenced to death for a lurid 1973 San Francisco murder, Korean immigrant Chol Soo Lee was set free after a pan-Asian solidarity movement of Korean, Japanese, and Chinese Americans helped to overturn his conviction. After 10 years of fighting for his life inside San Quentin, Lee found himself in a new fight to rise to the expectations of the people who believed in him.Directed by Julie Ha and Eugene Yi.
Stay for a post screening talkback hosted by the Teaneck International Film Festival with Julie Ha and Eugene Yi, co-directors of Free Chol Soo Lee; and Edgar Aquino-Huerta, 21 Cumberland County.
In 2023 we have partnered with NJ-PBS to feature a short film before the screening. The shorts are part of the 21 film series. The film featured a this event is Cumberland County
About Cumberland County: Edgar Aquino-Huerta, the son of undocumented migrant workers and a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program beneficiary, is using his protected status and his voice to help educate the local undocumented community and advocate for immigration reform.
Free streaming on OVEE
Registration Required
Photo credit: Independent Lens
About Indie Lens Pop-Up
Our 2023 series of films are presented this winter and spring through the continued partnership between Teaneck International Film Festival (TIFF), The Puffin Foundation Ltd., PBS, and Indie Lens Pop-Up, a neighborhood series that brings people together for film screenings and community-driven conversations. Film screenings are free but registration is required. TIFF thanks our Winter/Spring documentary series sponsor, the YWCA of Northern New Jersey. Sponsorships are still available for Storming Caesars Palace and Free Chol Soo Lee. Contact if you would like to sponsor a film for as little as $50.
About the Panel

Julie Ha, Co-director of Free Chol Soo Lee
Julie Ha’s storytelling career spans more than two decades in ethnic and mainstream media, with a specialized focus on Asian American stories. She was former editor-in-chief of KoreAm Journal, a national Korean American magazine. Free Chol Soo Lee, which premiered at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival, is her first documentary film.

Eugene Yi, Co-Director, Free Chol Soo Lee
Eugene Yi is a filmmaker, editor, and writer from Los Angeles. His editing work has been in Berlinale, TriBeCa, and The New York Times. He was a contributing editor for KoreAm Journal, a national Korean American magazine.

Edgar Aquino-Huerta, 21
Edgar Aquino-Huerta is the son of undocumented migrant workers and a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program beneficiary. He uses his protected status and his voice to help educate the local undocumented community and advocate for immigration reform.
About the 21 Film Series