We are in the homestretch for completion of THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK! The film will have its world premiere in May 2026 and we are crowdfunding to get us to the finish line. Your contribution would support editing, sound design, color correction, and other aspects of postproduction that we need to complete before we deliver the film to film festivals in May.
THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK is a feature-length documentary that follows the Auntie Sewing Squad founded by Kristina Wong, a collective of mostly BIPOC women volunteers who came together on social media with a mission: to protect vulnerable communities from COVID-19. This national network of hundreds of Aunties, Uncles, and non-binary volunteers turned their living rooms into "sweatshops," where they sewed and donated cloth facemasks to counter the US government's failure to provide protective gear for its people.
At the start of the COVID-19 crisis in March 2020 in the U.S., due to the Trump administration's botched response to the pandemic, the bottom dropped out of the surgical facemask supply as healthcare workers scrambled for PPE. From this chaos the Auntie Sewing Squad emerged, when performance artist Kristina Wong created the Auntie Sewing Squad facebook group in mid-March 2020.
The Auntie Sewing Squad grew from about two dozen crafty activists to a nationwide group of more than 800 members who sew for historically disenfranchised communities of color whose vulnerabilities have been exacerbated by COVID-19. For the Aunties, sewing masks served as a way to meet a public health need, as well as a model for engaged radical care and as a means of expressing cross-racial solidarity. The Aunties address systemic inequities from their sewing machines, openly discussing feminism, anti-racism, allyship, and smashing white supremacy.
As hate crimes against Asian Americans spiked as a result of President Trump’s rhetoric blaming all Chinese for the so-called “Wuhan virus,” the mostly-Asian American Auntie squad formed, gathered momentum, and sewed masks by the thousands. As coronavirus rapidly spread through every state, overburdening health care systems to near-collapse, more and more Aunties joined the ranks. When it became clear that communities of color were disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, the Aunties quickly pivoted from their initial mission of supplying healthcare workers to meeting the needs of vulnerable communities, funneling masks to farmworkers, day laborers, unhoused asylum seekers, indigenous communities, incarcerated people, and many others in need of protection. As the nation erupted in rebellion over police violence against Black Americans, the Aunties supplied Black Lives Matter protesters with facemasks. For the Aunties, sewing masks is not only a way to meet a public health need, but also a means to express cross-racial solidarity in a moment of social upheaval.
As Sun Tze wrote, “On desperate ground, fight.” In 2020 we were on desperate ground in the battle against COVID-19, and the Aunties continued to fight, to save lives.
As a professor in Asian American Studies at San Francisco State University as well as a filmmaker who has produced more than 20 short films and videos, I'm looking forward to premiering this project in May 2026 and sharing it with everyone.
WATCH THE TRAILER!
We're aiming for the following milestones:
Mar 23 - Mar 27, 2026
Picture lock: complete editing the festival cut of the film, including VFX and other animations
Mar 30 - Apr 10, 2026
Color grading, sound design, and captioning
Apr 13 - Apr 17, 2026
Deliver completed festival cut to film festivals
May 2026
World Premiere!
Here are some of the things your contribution will help with.
For $800 we can hire an assistant editor for one week
For $2000 we can hire an editor for one week
For $10,000 we can hire a soundtrack consultant and music supervisor
For $10,000 we can hire a sound designer
For $15,000 we can hire a VFX artist who will design our title sequence and other animation in the film
So please join this important and exciting film project! Please share widely with your networks and spread the word about THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK!
Statement from director/producer, Valerie Soe:
"Producing and directing an independent documentary film is a big challenge and many films never get finished. As a veteran filmmaker with more than two dozen short experimental films and documentaries under my belt, I know I have the experience and know-how to bring this project to life. My feature film, LOVE BOAT: TAIWAN (2019) played to sold-out festival audiences in North American and Asia and streamed on Comcast Xfinity and the PBS World Channel. With your generous aid and assistance, I'm sure I’ll be able to bring THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK to completion. Your help is invaluable to this film’s creation. Become a part of the team that brings THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK across the finish line!"
Other Ways You Can Help
If you’re not able to make a donation right now, please share the campaign widely across your networks! Post on your social media, tell your friends and family, and spread the word! The more buzz for THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK the more support we’ll be able to get. And with that support we’ll be able to finish the movie and share it with you, our supporters.
Thanks so much for all that you do. I really appreciate it.
Rewards / Donor Thanks!
$20 donation: Your name in the film credits of THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK!
$50 donation: digital download of THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK, name in film credits
$75 donation: THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK tshirt, sticker, name in film credits
$150 donation: THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK zip hoodie, sticker, name in film credits
$200 donation: Two tickets to the premiere of THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK in San Francisco, Los Angeles, or New York! Awesome! Airfare not included.
$250 donation: THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK complete package: tshirt, zip hoodie, sticker, digital download, name in film credits
$300 donation: Two tickets to the premiere and the exclusive afterparty for THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK in San Francisco, Los Angeles, or New York! Yassssss. Airfare not included.
$1000 donation: dinner with filmmaker Valerie Soe! Plus tshirt, zip hoodie, sticker, digital download, two tickets to the premiere and afterparty. Airfare not included.
$2000 donation: THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK Producer package: Producer credit, Internet Movie Database credit, tshirt, zip hoodie, sticker, digital download, two tickets to the premiere and afterparty. Airfare not included.
$5000 donation: THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK Executive Producer package: Executive Producer credit, Internet Movie Database credit, tshirt, zip hoodie, sticker, digital download, two tickets to the premiere and afterparty. Airfare not included.
THE AUNTIE SEWING SQUAD RESISTANCE PLAYBOOK is fiscally sponsored by Art2Action, Inc., a Section 501(c) (3) charitable organization. All donations are deemed tax-deductible.