Grave Cleaning
San Francisco, California | Film Short
Drama, Family
A film about coming home. Grave Cleaning depicts a deep-generation, San Francisco Chinese American family navigating the logistical and emotional fallout of a death. We follow the youngest generation, Flora, how they experience the divides in their family and how they might ultimately bridge them.
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This campaign raised $7,100 for production. Follow the filmmaker to receive future updates on this project.
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A film about coming home. Grave Cleaning depicts a deep-generation, San Francisco Chinese American family navigating the logistical and emotional fallout of a death. We follow the youngest generation, Flora, how they experience the divides in their family and how they might ultimately bridge them.
About The Project
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
A film about coming home.
Our story follows Flora, Chinese American and in their mid 20s, as they return home to San Francisco to help their ailing grandmother in the wake of their Grandfather’s, their Gung Gung’s death and funeral.
Familial disputes have pitted Flora and their mom, Joyce, against each other for most of Flora’s life. As they take care of grandmother together, we watch Flora and Joyce slowly reconcile their relationship with each other.
The film gives us space to wonder and meditate along with Flora as they grow and change in the face of grief. Through its three characters and their interactions, the film explores intergenerational conflict as well as connection over generational divides.
Characters
Flora: mid 20s and avoidant, moved away from home as soon as they could. Now they must reckon family with the family they left behind.
Ginger: in her 80s, Flora’s grandmother. She has spent most of her life as a self-determined woman in Chinatown, now she battles a failing memory.
Joyce: in her late 50s. Fourth-generation Chinese American woman. Overwhelmed with the responsibility of organizing her father’s funeral services, she reaches out to her alienated child.
Director's Statement
I am a sixth-generation Chinese Californian born and raised in the Bay Area. I grew up staying in my grandparents' house on weekends and going to family banquets in San Francisco Chinatown. This story is inspired by that- But I am going to admit something:
I have not always been around for my family. I have not always been good to my family. I have not always been responsible or stayed in contact. With Covid and my grandfather’s passing, a new distance arose between me and my family. We loved my grandfather and we are still feeling the effects of his absence today. He was the best.
This is a film about losing someone important to your identity and about not being there for the ones you love, but I would say, and maybe more importantly, it’s also about coming back home after being out in the world. Flora’s story, our main character's story, is my story. I’ve spent a lot of time over the past two years researching family history, and collecting stories and photographs before they fade away. It’s been a lovely way to reconnect and come back to family. That's what this film is all about: reconnection and family.
The Life of this Film
We are shooting in San Francisco on February 12th - 19th. As soon as the filming is done, the editing process begins. By the end of the summer, post-production will be finished and we will submit to festivals like (but not limited to) CAAMFest, SFFilm, and Hawaii International Film Festival. We will keep you updated on which festivals we screen at when we are accepted in Fall of 2025. After we premiere at festivals, everyone who donated will receive a link to an online upload of the final film!
A film is only as alive as those who are watching it. This film will be yours to watch.
Inspiration
For this film, my team and I are seeking inspiration from the legacy of prominent Asian American filmmakers. We looked at films like Wayne Wang’s Chan is Missing, which shows Chinese Americans in a humanistic and almost documentary lens. I was struck by Wang’s ability to put characters on screen so convincing that they could’ve been one of my cousins, uncles, or aunts. For visual inspiration, we’re studying the work of filmmakers like Hiro Murai and Yasujirō Ozu, both of which utilize a powerful, grounded, and meditative directing style. Their use of wides, ambiance, and shot composition heavily inform the look and feel of Grave Cleaning. Of course, my main inspirations for this film have been my family, their history, and the beautiful cityscapes and landscapes of the Bay Area. These inspirations help us direct the frame so that the audience can exist alongside our characters and feel their history, relationships to one another, and internal world.
This filmmaking style is building upon the visual language I found with my previous film, Staying and Leaving which is currently entering festivals. Here's a (sneak peak) still from Staying and Leaving!
Budget
To tell a story this personal and with the care it needs, we need your support. Everything, from equipment, set design, food, and transport requires your help through funding. The total budget for our film will be 11,000 dollars. We are so fortunate to have already raised 4375 dollars through personal funds, donors, and an allotment we secured from NYU's Tisch Film and TV department. That still leaves around 7,000 dollars to be raised. No matter how much you donate, you will receive a special thanks in the film's credits. The more you donate, the more incentives and benefits you will receive.
On Seed & Spark, our campaign must hit 80% of our goal to get approved and receive funds. Any contribution is needed and appreciated.
Remember, without your funds, this film can't happen.
How You Can Help
1) FOLLOW OUR SOCIAL MEDIA.
You can follow this page via Seed&Spark, but make sure to follow our instagram account: @gravecleaningfilm! Share this with family members, friends, etc.
2) SPREAD THE WORD
Mention this film to friends in conversation! Repost our instagram account or email this page! We want to share this film with everyone.
3) CONTACT US
If you have resources you want to share or questions, don’t be afraid to email [email protected]!
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Equipment Rental
Costs $3,000
Please help us to ensure that our film is told through quality camera and lighting equipment.
Travel and Transportation
Costs $1,500
The setting of San Francisco is integral to our film, meaning we’ll be flying in from NYC and LA to film on location!
Catering
Costs $1,350
Help feed our cast and crew!
Costumes and Production Design
Costs $900
Help us create an accurate look and feel of a Chinese American household in the Bay Area.
Distribution
Costs $350
We hope our story can resonate with a wide audience and intend to send it out to as many festivals as possible.
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
DANE LUM HOHMEYER
Dane Lum Hohmeyer (they/them) is a filmmaker, composer, animator, and sound designer from Berkeley, California. They are currently pursuing their BFA for Film at NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Now that their last film “Staying/Leaving”, is off to festivals, they are returning to the Bay Area to direct their thesis: “Grave Cleaning”! Dane’s work explores the long history of Chinese Americans in the United States, changing relationships to family and home, and queerness. “Grave Cleaning” weaves both Dane’s personal and family history into a meditative story on change and reconnection. They are deeply excited to work with the amazing and talented crew they have assembled and to finally bring this project to life !!
PHOEBE YUNG
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Phoebe is a Chinese-American producer from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. On top of her film & television production degree, she’s gained experience in creative development, TV programming, sales, acquisitions, and distribution during internships at companies including Fremantle, AMC Networks, NBCUniversal, and the Sundance Institute. As a storyteller, she loves creating coming-of-age, surrealist, and sometimes, horror films that address complex family relationships, explore cultural themes, and bring AAPI-centered narratives and characters to the forefront. Phoebe works on all theatrical releases at Paramount Pictures as the executive assistant to the EVP of Global Marketing and SVPs of Brand Marketing Strategy.
BELLA JIANG
Meet one of our associate one of our associate producers of Grave Cleaning, BELLA JIANG !! Bella Jiang is a senior at NYU majoring in Media, Culture, and Communication with minors in Creative Writing and Business of Entertainment, Media, and Technology. Raised in the Bay Area, she grew up with a love for storytelling and is currently writing her first novel. She is especially passionate about media that amplifies marginalized voices, and this ethos has guided her through internships at Warner Bros. Discovery and JV8, where she contributed to projects by Yorgos Lanthimos and the Safdie Brothers. She is beyond excited to join Gravecleaning as a first-time producer and help bring this story to life!
LAURYN CHARLIAH
Lauryn Charliah is an aspiring showrunner, director, filmmaker, and overall artist. Charliah is studying film and television at NYU, where she has earned the first Maura Mandt Storytelling Scholarship. She’s directed, produced, and written several projects. Last year, she was a showrunner for TV Bootcamp for a mini-series titled Quarter-Life Crisis, which is in post-production. She aims to work on projects highlighting underrepresented voices and stories, especially those centered around family drama. She's excited to support Grave Cleaning in its journey from script to screen!
WINONA LU
Born in Australia and raised by Chinese immigrant parents, Winona Lu’s work and passions often lie in understanding the nuances of families and their history, and uplifting voices from communities of colour, third cultures, and queer spaces.
CHRISTINA BATTE
Christina Batte is a filmmaker, composer, archivist, and educator. Christina’s passion for music and motion pictures began in elementary school after becoming interested in skateboarding videos. Christina aims to diversify the film industry by passing down her technological knowledge to young femmes of color.
LUCAS MANUEL-SCHEIBE
Lucas Manuel-Scheibe’s first film, “Terra Natal,” won the 2024 Best New Filmmaker award and was nominated for a jury prize at the National Film Festival for Talented Youth. His second film, “Rope,” is in post-production, and he is currently shooting his third film, “Kealoha Disappears,” on location on the Big Island of Hawai’i, where his family resides. Lucas grew up in Oakland, California and holds a BFA in film production from NYU Tisch School of the Arts.
DAISY OKAZAKI
An ex-journalist, visual artist, and filmmaker, Daisy Okazaki is deeply passionate about exploring how to tell stories–through a variety of media–that are relevant, personal, and rooted in community. A fourth generation Japanese American born and raised in the Bay Area, Daisy has a special love for California and its rich history of deep-generation Asian American existence. In the past few years, they’ve produced and directed a film with the sisters of Oakland Chinatown’s Banteay Srei delving into the complexities of being a young woman of color growing up in Oakland. Currently, Daisy is co-directing and co-producing a narrative short film that tells the story of two Chinese and Japanese American women and their relationships to family, home, identity, and each other. They are a senior at Pitzer College majoring in film/media studies and Asian American studies.
Current Team
Incentives
- The Story
- Wishlist
- Updates
- The Team
- Community
Mission Statement
The Story
A film about coming home.
Our story follows Flora, Chinese American and in their mid 20s, as they return home to San Francisco to help their ailing grandmother in the wake of their Grandfather’s, their Gung Gung’s death and funeral.
Familial disputes have pitted Flora and their mom, Joyce, against each other for most of Flora’s life. As they take care of grandmother together, we watch Flora and Joyce slowly reconcile their relationship with each other.
The film gives us space to wonder and meditate along with Flora as they grow and change in the face of grief. Through its three characters and their interactions, the film explores intergenerational conflict as well as connection over generational divides.
Characters
Flora: mid 20s and avoidant, moved away from home as soon as they could. Now they must reckon family with the family they left behind.
Ginger: in her 80s, Flora’s grandmother. She has spent most of her life as a self-determined woman in Chinatown, now she battles a failing memory.
Joyce: in her late 50s. Fourth-generation Chinese American woman. Overwhelmed with the responsibility of organizing her father’s funeral services, she reaches out to her alienated child.
Director's Statement
I am a sixth-generation Chinese Californian born and raised in the Bay Area. I grew up staying in my grandparents' house on weekends and going to family banquets in San Francisco Chinatown. This story is inspired by that- But I am going to admit something:
I have not always been around for my family. I have not always been good to my family. I have not always been responsible or stayed in contact. With Covid and my grandfather’s passing, a new distance arose between me and my family. We loved my grandfather and we are still feeling the effects of his absence today. He was the best.
This is a film about losing someone important to your identity and about not being there for the ones you love, but I would say, and maybe more importantly, it’s also about coming back home after being out in the world. Flora’s story, our main character's story, is my story. I’ve spent a lot of time over the past two years researching family history, and collecting stories and photographs before they fade away. It’s been a lovely way to reconnect and come back to family. That's what this film is all about: reconnection and family.
The Life of this Film
We are shooting in San Francisco on February 12th - 19th. As soon as the filming is done, the editing process begins. By the end of the summer, post-production will be finished and we will submit to festivals like (but not limited to) CAAMFest, SFFilm, and Hawaii International Film Festival. We will keep you updated on which festivals we screen at when we are accepted in Fall of 2025. After we premiere at festivals, everyone who donated will receive a link to an online upload of the final film!
A film is only as alive as those who are watching it. This film will be yours to watch.
Inspiration
For this film, my team and I are seeking inspiration from the legacy of prominent Asian American filmmakers. We looked at films like Wayne Wang’s Chan is Missing, which shows Chinese Americans in a humanistic and almost documentary lens. I was struck by Wang’s ability to put characters on screen so convincing that they could’ve been one of my cousins, uncles, or aunts. For visual inspiration, we’re studying the work of filmmakers like Hiro Murai and Yasujirō Ozu, both of which utilize a powerful, grounded, and meditative directing style. Their use of wides, ambiance, and shot composition heavily inform the look and feel of Grave Cleaning. Of course, my main inspirations for this film have been my family, their history, and the beautiful cityscapes and landscapes of the Bay Area. These inspirations help us direct the frame so that the audience can exist alongside our characters and feel their history, relationships to one another, and internal world.
This filmmaking style is building upon the visual language I found with my previous film, Staying and Leaving which is currently entering festivals. Here's a (sneak peak) still from Staying and Leaving!
Budget
To tell a story this personal and with the care it needs, we need your support. Everything, from equipment, set design, food, and transport requires your help through funding. The total budget for our film will be 11,000 dollars. We are so fortunate to have already raised 4375 dollars through personal funds, donors, and an allotment we secured from NYU's Tisch Film and TV department. That still leaves around 7,000 dollars to be raised. No matter how much you donate, you will receive a special thanks in the film's credits. The more you donate, the more incentives and benefits you will receive.
On Seed & Spark, our campaign must hit 80% of our goal to get approved and receive funds. Any contribution is needed and appreciated.
Remember, without your funds, this film can't happen.
How You Can Help
1) FOLLOW OUR SOCIAL MEDIA.
You can follow this page via Seed&Spark, but make sure to follow our instagram account: @gravecleaningfilm! Share this with family members, friends, etc.
2) SPREAD THE WORD
Mention this film to friends in conversation! Repost our instagram account or email this page! We want to share this film with everyone.
3) CONTACT US
If you have resources you want to share or questions, don’t be afraid to email [email protected]!
Wishlist
Use the WishList to Pledge cash and Loan items - or - Make a pledge by selecting an Incentive directly.
Equipment Rental
Costs $3,000
Please help us to ensure that our film is told through quality camera and lighting equipment.
Travel and Transportation
Costs $1,500
The setting of San Francisco is integral to our film, meaning we’ll be flying in from NYC and LA to film on location!
Catering
Costs $1,350
Help feed our cast and crew!
Costumes and Production Design
Costs $900
Help us create an accurate look and feel of a Chinese American household in the Bay Area.
Distribution
Costs $350
We hope our story can resonate with a wide audience and intend to send it out to as many festivals as possible.
Cash Pledge
Costs $0
Direct link:
Share this update!
About This Team
DANE LUM HOHMEYER
Dane Lum Hohmeyer (they/them) is a filmmaker, composer, animator, and sound designer from Berkeley, California. They are currently pursuing their BFA for Film at NYU Tisch School of the Arts. Now that their last film “Staying/Leaving”, is off to festivals, they are returning to the Bay Area to direct their thesis: “Grave Cleaning”! Dane’s work explores the long history of Chinese Americans in the United States, changing relationships to family and home, and queerness. “Grave Cleaning” weaves both Dane’s personal and family history into a meditative story on change and reconnection. They are deeply excited to work with the amazing and talented crew they have assembled and to finally bring this project to life !!
PHOEBE YUNG
Phoebe is a Chinese-American producer from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. On top of her film & television production degree, she’s gained experience in creative development, TV programming, sales, acquisitions, and distribution during internships at companies including Fremantle, AMC Networks, NBCUniversal, and the Sundance Institute. As a storyteller, she loves creating coming-of-age, surrealist, and sometimes, horror films that address complex family relationships, explore cultural themes, and bring AAPI-centered narratives and characters to the forefront. Phoebe works on all theatrical releases at Paramount Pictures as the executive assistant to the EVP of Global Marketing and SVPs of Brand Marketing Strategy.
BELLA JIANG
Meet one of our associate one of our associate producers of Grave Cleaning, BELLA JIANG !! Bella Jiang is a senior at NYU majoring in Media, Culture, and Communication with minors in Creative Writing and Business of Entertainment, Media, and Technology. Raised in the Bay Area, she grew up with a love for storytelling and is currently writing her first novel. She is especially passionate about media that amplifies marginalized voices, and this ethos has guided her through internships at Warner Bros. Discovery and JV8, where she contributed to projects by Yorgos Lanthimos and the Safdie Brothers. She is beyond excited to join Gravecleaning as a first-time producer and help bring this story to life!
LAURYN CHARLIAH
Lauryn Charliah is an aspiring showrunner, director, filmmaker, and overall artist. Charliah is studying film and television at NYU, where she has earned the first Maura Mandt Storytelling Scholarship. She’s directed, produced, and written several projects. Last year, she was a showrunner for TV Bootcamp for a mini-series titled Quarter-Life Crisis, which is in post-production. She aims to work on projects highlighting underrepresented voices and stories, especially those centered around family drama. She's excited to support Grave Cleaning in its journey from script to screen!
WINONA LU
Born in Australia and raised by Chinese immigrant parents, Winona Lu’s work and passions often lie in understanding the nuances of families and their history, and uplifting voices from communities of colour, third cultures, and queer spaces.
CHRISTINA BATTE
Christina Batte is a filmmaker, composer, archivist, and educator. Christina’s passion for music and motion pictures began in elementary school after becoming interested in skateboarding videos. Christina aims to diversify the film industry by passing down her technological knowledge to young femmes of color.
LUCAS MANUEL-SCHEIBE
Lucas Manuel-Scheibe’s first film, “Terra Natal,” won the 2024 Best New Filmmaker award and was nominated for a jury prize at the National Film Festival for Talented Youth. His second film, “Rope,” is in post-production, and he is currently shooting his third film, “Kealoha Disappears,” on location on the Big Island of Hawai’i, where his family resides. Lucas grew up in Oakland, California and holds a BFA in film production from NYU Tisch School of the Arts.
DAISY OKAZAKI
An ex-journalist, visual artist, and filmmaker, Daisy Okazaki is deeply passionate about exploring how to tell stories–through a variety of media–that are relevant, personal, and rooted in community. A fourth generation Japanese American born and raised in the Bay Area, Daisy has a special love for California and its rich history of deep-generation Asian American existence. In the past few years, they’ve produced and directed a film with the sisters of Oakland Chinatown’s Banteay Srei delving into the complexities of being a young woman of color growing up in Oakland. Currently, Daisy is co-directing and co-producing a narrative short film that tells the story of two Chinese and Japanese American women and their relationships to family, home, identity, and each other. They are a senior at Pitzer College majoring in film/media studies and Asian American studies.