MOCA CINEMA – History of NYC’s Chinatown

Register The Museum of Chinese in America (MOCA) invites you to a special screening of two episodes from History of NYC’s Chinatown, a newly released documentary series from NYC Media: Episode 2: A Community Takes Root and Episode 3: The Shape of Belonging. Through historical insight and intimate community voices, the films trace the making and remaking of one of New York City’s most enduring neighborhoods. A Community Takes Root explores how Chinese immigrants built communal life in the early twentieth century and nurtured a new generation of leaders in Chinatown. The Shape of Belonging examines the transformative years following the 1965 Immigration Act, when new arrivals—including immigrants from Fujian—expanded Chinatown beyond its historic borders and reshaped ideas of community, prosperity, and identity in neighborhoods such as Sunset Park, Flushing, and Elmhurst. Featuring MOCA and members of the Chinatown community, these episodes bring to life a history that continues to unfold. Following the screening, producers Andrew Chow Guidone and Joy Lau will join Rev. Bayer Lee, pastor of First Chinese Baptist Church, and Angela Li, president of OCA-NY, both featured in the series, for a conversation moderated by Farah Bala, a Leadership EDIA Executive Coach. Together, they will reflect on the process of documenting Chinatown’s layered histories and the urgency of preserving stories that too often go untold. About Andrew Chow Guidone Andrew Chow Guidone is an Emmy award-winning television director, producer, filmmaker and editor. A native Brooklynite with a passion for telling human stories, he’s produced sociological and immigrant-themed documentaries, narrative work and episodic programming. These themes can also be found in his work for local television, news magazines, lifestyle programs, commercials, PSAs and video installations. His work has been seen on PBS, BET, VH1, Food Network and NBC and across cultural institutions nationwide. About Joy Lau Joy Lau is the founder of Storyjoy, a storytelling studio developing and producing work across film, art, digital, and live experiences. Her work focuses on collective storytelling, cultural memory, and creative opportunities for bringing together communities to nurture dialogue and improve cross-cultural understanding. A New Yorker born in Hong Kong with a formative stint in Southern California, Joy’s various experiences of assimilation have shaped her commitment to building bridges across cultures. A NY-Emmy nominated documentary filmmaker, internationally-published illustrator, educator, digital designer, and LEED-AP architect, Joy holds a MS. Construction Project Management from University of Hong Kong, B. Architecture from Pratt Institute. She recently faced her fear of public-speaking head-on when she gave a TEDx talk called “The Power of Feeling Seen”. About Rev. Bayer Lee Rev. Bayer Lee has been coming to Chinatown since 1962. His stepfather, the owner of a hand laundry, was a WWII veteran, and Bayer is currently the chaplain of the Sons of the American Legion, Lt. Benjamin Kimlau Memorial Post 1291. He graduated from a program at City College that advocated social architecture and worked for Gruen Associates on Caesar Pelli’s MoMA renovation in the late 1970s before going to seminary in Dallas. After Dallas, he worked at a Baptist church in Flushing that sent him to a Pratt internship funded by Ford and Revson, as the church was considering an air rights transfer. He is currently looking into three churches in Chinatown with similar potential for affordable housing. His formal ethnographic studies began with a Fulbright in the early 1990s and continued until the passing of his mentor, Professor Hope Jensen Leichter, in 2025. She was the director of the Elbenwood Center at Teachers College, Columbia University, where Bayer completed his Doctor of Education degree. Bayer had been participating in and speaking at the museum class that Professor Leichter had been conducting at MoMA for over 20 years. About Angela Li Angela Li is a community organizer, Executive Director of Fuzhou America, and President of OCA–New York. Through her leadership, she works to celebrate Fuzhounese American history and culture and strengthen community connections. Born in New York City, Angela spent her early childhood with her grandparents in Fuzhou before returning to grow up in Elmhurst, Queens. Her community work in Manhattan’s Chinatown and oral history interviews documenting her parents’ experiences inform her perspective on migration, family, and belonging. She brings both lived experience and a background in Asian American Studies at UCLA to conversations about how Fuzhounese Americans preserve their stories and build community across generations. About Farah Bala Farah Bala, is a Leadership EDIA Executive Coach, Consultant and Speaker. Through her agency FARSIGHT, Farah’s mission is to support organizations and leaders in redefining leadership by making Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-Oppression a core leadership competency. Her clients include executives in the C-suite, creatives and entrepreneurs, and organizations across wide-ranging sectors and industries. She is a recipient of the Diversity Award from the World Zoroastrian Organization, a contributing member of the Forbes Coaches Council, co-creator of Wonder Women, an executive women-of-color leadership development community, and creator and host of the leadership podcast FARSIGHT Chats. Farah holds an MFA in Theater from Sarah Lawrence College and is a Professional Certified Executive Coach (PCC). An accomplished performing artist and producer for over two decades in theater, film and television, she has been nominated for a Barrymore Award for Outstanding Leading Actress and an Audie Award for her voice-over work. Farah has used the tools of theater in arts education to develop social-emotional learning in NYC public schools and international volunteering initiatives, and for the past 15+ years, in professional environments across global industries.