I studied Broadcast Journalism at university in the UK – but never actually worked as a journalist, choosing instead to go into film and television production. Early on in my career, I worked for a couple of female producers in Los Angeles who were also writers, and they inspired me to learn screenwriting once I had begun directing in order to be able to better translate my vision onto the screen.

My Extra-Special Aunty is my first children’s book.  I was inspired by a group of migrant domestic worker artists called Guhit Kulay, who I met after a screening of my first feature documentary film The Helper.

The film explored the complex maternal sacrifices that migrant workers make in order to create a better future for their families. Since the documentary was really only suitable for older kids, I felt we had missed an opportunity to talk to the younger ones about the unique relationship they have with their ‘Aunty’ here in Hong Kong, and so over several months, I consulted with the domestic workers and explored what they would want their young wards to know about their lives. Then I wrote My Extra-Special Aunty, and two Filipino members of Guhit Kulay, Noemi Manguerra and Cristina Cayat, created the illustrations. We decided to donate all the proceeds from book sales to two migrant worker-focused NGOs here in Hong Kong, Pathfinders and Enrich.