Jason Phu

Reclaiming wise sayings from movies and TV shows like Drunken Master (1978) and Avatar the Last Airbender (2005–08), Analects of Kung Phu presents a moving image philosophy for surviving contemporary life. Taught by action stars but inspired by classic Chinese texts like Lao Zi’s Dao De Jing, the work questions whether these life lessons are genuinely useful. The film explores how wisdom can be oversimplified and misused, how film subtitles miss the mark or even present a completely different narrative, and how we are guided in our day-to-day life by the movies we watch.

The pull of ancestry as it shifts into the present, communication across generations, heritage as it delivers you to the future, viral cooking show videos, honouring those you love, familial creativity and collaboration, moving with the geopolitical tides across Asia, cooking as a useful and caring act.