DIRECTOR BIOS

Chih Ling Lai
I am currently studying Animation at the Taipei National University of the Arts in Taiwan. I love drawing and creating, and I’ve recently started learning to drive — who knows, maybe I’ll become Lightning McQueen one day.

The Way Back Home is the first fully completed animated short I co-created with two other teammates, and it holds a very special place in my heart. During production, we spent a lot of time crafting the atmosphere and defining the monster’s traits. One of my favorite parts of the process was discussing sound design with Jia Le —thanks to his hard work, the Stick Bug Man truly came to life.

Since this was a three-director project, disagreements and compromises were inevitable, but
the way we supported and encouraged one another made me realize the importance of
teamwork. I’m deeply grateful to my teammates for helping turn The Way Back Home into a
reality.

Hsin Yin Tsai
I am Tsai Hsin-Ying, currently studying at the Taipei National University of the Arts. The Way Back Home is the first animated film I have co-created with my classmates. It was my first attempt at extensive character animation, and while it may still be somewhat unrefined and awkward, I am grateful for the opportunity to present our work. I will continue to work hard and grow in my animation journey.

Pei Chen Tsai
I’m Tsai Pei-chen, currently studying at Taipei National University of the Arts. I was in charge of the backgrounds and coloring for The Way Back Home, and also served as one of its directors.

At first, I simply proposed making a horror animation. After discussions within the team, the idea for The Way Back Home took shape. I initially thought it was an impossible mission, but in the end, we actually made it happen.