The 2025 Santa Barbara International Film Festival has once again proven to be a hub for groundbreaking cinema, and among this year’s standout selections is “Lucky Star”, a gripping drama that offers a fresh perspective on the Asian-Canadian experience. Directed by Gillian McKercher, the film delves into the complexities of family, addiction, and resilience, bringing a rarely-seen narrative to the big screen. Featuring an outstanding cast led by Terry Chen, Olivia Cheng, and Conni Miu, Lucky Star is a deeply personal story that resonates far beyond its prairie setting.
At the heart of “Lucky Star” is the story of Lucky (Terry Chen), a reformed gambler who, after falling victim to a tax scam, turns back to poker in a desperate attempt to recover his losses. His wife, Noel (Olivia Cheng), remains unaware of how far he’s pushed their financial strain as the family struggles to stay afloat. Meanwhile, their daughter Grace (Conni Miu) finds herself caught in the middle, torn between her father’s spiraling decisions and her responsibility to help keep the family together. The film is a poignant character study, inspired by McKercher’s own family history, exploring the ways in which love, loyalty, and past mistakes shape familial bonds. “The key message I hope people take away is that when times are hard, it can feel like they’ll never end. But you can come out the other side. Things might be different, but you will get through it,” McKercher shared.
McKercher’s direction is masterful, capturing both the intimate struggles of a working-class Asian-Canadian family and the broader themes of financial instability and generational resilience. “Lucky Star” transports the viewer into a world rarely explored on screen, set against the backdrop of Alberta’s prairie lands. The struggles of this family, particularly Lucky’s descent into gambling as a means of survival, are deeply relatable, mirroring the financial hardships faced by countless families across North America. Chen delivers a solid performance, portraying Lucky’s desperation and inner turmoil with raw authenticity. His lowest moment—pleading with his daughter for financial help—is one of the film’s most gut-wrenching scenes.
However, it is Conni Miu (“Doc”, “Priscilla”) who emerges as the film’s true revelation. As Grace, Miu brings a nuanced depth to the role, embodying both strength and vulnerability in a breakout performance that marks her as an actress to watch. Olivia Cheng (“Warrior”), no stranger to powerful roles, brings her signature intensity to Noel, portraying a woman unaware of her husband’s struggles yet instinctively holding the family together. Their performances, combined with McKercher’s keen direction, elevate Lucky Star beyond a simple tale of hardship—it becomes a testament to the power of love and redemption.
As “Lucky Star” continues to make waves on the festival circuit, it cements itself as a vital addition to the evolving landscape of Asian representation in film. With its authentic storytelling, standout performances, and universal themes, it is a film that lingers long after the credits roll. McKercher’s vision, coupled with the emotional performances of her cast, ensures that “Lucky Star” is not just a festival favorite—it is a film that matters.
Following their successful premiere screening, Writer and Director Gillian McKercher and actors Olivia Cheng and Conni Miu sat down with Awards Focus for an exclusive interview. McKercher, Cheng, and Miu spoke candidly about the inspirations behind the film, their journeys navigating the industry as Asian artists, and the exciting projects on their horizons.
Awards Focus: Congratulations on having “Lucky Star” selected for the Santa Barbara International Film Festival. Can you share a bit about the journey to bring this film to life? What inspired its creation, and what does it mean to showcase it here? As audiences experience “Lucky Star” this week, what is the key message or emotion you hope they take away?
Gillian McKercher: The process of making Lucky Star took about five years. I started writing it in 2019 when I was a resident at the Canadian Film Center. I finished my first draft while I was there, and over time, I received additional funding through the CFC—specifically the Canadian Film Center Netflix Development Accelerator—to further develop the project. That’s how I was put in touch with Terry Chen.
Eventually, when we secured production funding, that connection with Terry brought him onto the project first. Then I was introduced to Olivia via [a mutual connection] and basically wrote her a gushing fan letter, saying, I have to work with you. Once Olivia came on board, the rest of the process really came together—especially with Andrew Phung, bringing in Connie, and securing our location in Calgary.
We shot the film in 18 days and had our world premiere at the Calgary International Film Festival, where we won an Audience Award.
The key message I hope people take away is that when times are hard, it can feel like they’ll never end. But you can come out on the other side. Things might be different, but you will get through it.
AF: I noticed you got emotional while saying that. Can you share more about the backstory and your personal connection to the subject matter of Lucky Star?
The backstory of Lucky Star centered on understanding men who let you down. I’ve heard many stories about fathers, uncles, and brothers—mostly fathers—who disappoint their families. Often, it’s the women in their lives—mothers, daughters, aunts, grandmothers—who carry the weight of their lapsed responsibilities.
One idea I kept coming back to while making the film was: strong women enable weak men. How does a family continue to love a father who lets them down?
AF: Olivia, coming off major network series and most recently “Warrior”, how do you typically choose your projects? And what specifically drew you to “Lucky Star”?
Olivia Cheng: How do I generally go about choosing a project? It’s a lot of hurry-up-and-wait at times—sifting through opportunities and waiting for the right role to even throw my hat in the ring for. And then, of course, it has to land on the other side.
So when a project like Lucky Star just falls into your lap, it’s such a gift. That doesn’t happen very often. The fact that it resonated so deeply for me—culturally and personally—made it even more special. And by culturally, I mean I’m an Alberta kid, a prairie kid. Plaid is practically a primary color for us there.
This movie resonated because it reflects the world I’m from and the kind of people I grew up with. It felt like a Sliding Doors moment—this could have been my life in some version of it.
At the end of the day, when a project connects on that level, it’s an easy yes. My agent always says you take a role for love or money—that’s it. And for me, this one was all love.
AF: For broader audiences, especially those unfamiliar with the Chinese Prairie Diaspora and communities like the one you grew up in, can you share more about its origins and what makes that community unique?
Cheng: Yeah, I grew up in Edmonton, Alberta—actually on an acreage just outside the city. My neighbors were farmers, and I remember borrowing their goats to eat the grass when my dad’s lawnmower broke down, or we didn’t have one. I still have a distinct memory of watching the goat… well, relieve itself, and my mom stopping me because I thought it was chocolate. If you’ve ever seen goat droppings, they do look like little chocolate balls. So that was my childhood.
We moved into the city when I started kindergarten, and I grew up in an area called Mill Woods. Eventually, people started calling it ‘Kill Hoods’ because of the rising violence. Around that time, Edmonton had the highest per capita murder rate in the country due to escalating Asian gang violence.
It was a really specific moment in time, and I feel like Lucky could have come from that world—maybe he gave up drug dealing because he had a kid and didn’t want to take the risk.
AF: Connie, your character serves as a strong, supportive daughter to Lucky—he turns to her for money and confides in her about things he’s afraid to tell his wife. What was it like stepping into that role, and how did you prepare for such a dynamic character?
Conni Miu: I think I’m really lucky that a lot of Grace [came] naturally to me.
How do I say this? I feel like the life of Grace is something I could slip into naturally. I’m also an older daughter, and I always feel a responsibility to keep the family together, check in on everyone, and make sure they’re doing okay.
I also have a very special relationship with my dad—it’s a family inside joke that I’m his favorite child. That connection made Grace feel even more personal to me. My dad is a wonderful father—he’s never struggled with addiction or anything like that—but I can imagine that if he had, I would do anything to help him. I would step up in any way I could.
I just really love him, and that part of Grace was easy to understand.
AF: Lucky is a character with a complicated past—while we don’t learn too much about his history, there are hints that he may have sold drugs, and we know he has a gambling background. Interestingly, when we see him play poker, he appears to be quite skilled, actually winning money. With his tattoos and layered persona, what aspects of his backstory weren’t fully explored on screen?
McKercher: I definitely wanted him to be a skilled gambler—that was important to me and very intentional. In the film, we never actually see him lose at the poker table. I talked about this a lot with my editor while cutting the film. We made a deliberate choice that he should be winning at poker, but the more he succeeds at gambling, the worse his family situation becomes. That contrast was very intentional.
For his backstory, I imagined someone who was a party guy with a lot of promise—probably really smart—but someone who applies his intelligence to areas that yield quick results. He’s naturally good at poker, reading people, and understanding cards, probability, and statistics. But while his friends go to university for four years, he doesn’t want to do that. He’d rather work, modify cars, and race. He’s also really into music.
I can totally see him as this sexy 20-year-old heading to Vegas for a tournament—someone women would want to be with. He’s charming, funny, and charismatic, and his tattoos add to that appeal. He has this live for the moment, carpe diem attitude. But what really interested me was the idea of how far good looks and charm can take you before reality catches up.
By the time we meet Lucky, he’s in his mid-to-late 40s, still carrying that same persona—but now it’s caught up with him. He’s not a professional like his friend Darren. He’s at a point where he has to wake up to his reality.
AF: At the start of the film, the audience is led to believe that Lucky has turned his life around—he may not have an easy living, but he’s making an honest one. Does the tax scam serve as the catalyst that pulls him back, or is it simply another layer on top of an inevitable struggle with gambling addiction?
McKercher: I think that if you’re in a relationship—whether romantic, familial, or otherwise—with an addict, it’s always a cycle. When times are good, they’re good, and when times are bad, they’re bad.
At the start of the film, Lucky is already gambling, which means he’s already in a downward cycle. The scam absolutely accelerates his gambling and fuels his desperation, but the pattern was already in motion. He’s lying to his wife, hiding where the money is coming from and where it’s going. He’s asking Grace for more money, and that money is feeding his gambling.
But I think this family has been through more than one cycle of his gambling before—this isn’t the first time they’ve endured it.
AF: This might be a bit of an unusual question, but when I first watched the film, I felt like the story could have been told with a non-Asian cast. At its core, it’s a universal family dynamic—a father who’s a bit reckless and the fallout that follows. But then I thought more about it and realized I’ve rarely seen an Asian family portrayed this way in film or television. Typically, Asian families are depicted as fresh off the boat, affluent, or fitting the model minority stereotype.
Did you consciously think about this while developing the story? And was it important to you to bring a different kind of representation to the screen—one that challenges or expands how Asian families are typically portrayed?
McKercher: I definitely felt I had an opportunity to bring something different to the screen with this portrayal of an Asian family.
I’m biracial—my mom’s family is Chinese—and I wanted to focus on that side of my heritage because, in many ways, it has defined my entire life. Even here at this festival, my mom, my cousin, her daughter, and my daughter are all here together. My mom is looking after my daughter—it feels like we’re a traveling circus. We’re just so ride or die, and I love that.
As a second-generation Chinese Canadian, I also felt like I could bring a different perspective to Asian cinema, especially North American Asian cinema. We’re here, we’ve lost some of our cultural roots, but at the same time, we’ve created something new. We’ve integrated with North American culture—so how do we reflect that fusion on screen?
That was something I could offer with specificity and authenticity, in a way that wouldn’t have resonated as deeply if I had just made this a generic Caucasian family.
AF: It feels like we’re in a moment where there are more opportunities and more Asian stories being told. Do you feel like that shift is truly happening? Are you seeing more roles that align with the stories you want to tell? Or does it still feel like diversity is being prioritized in casting, but not necessarily in a way that reflects characters and narratives that resonate with you?
Cheng: I’ve experienced situations where both of those things have been true.
I was on a project—I won’t name it—but it was big. By the end, I coined a term for how it felt: diversity accessories. It seemed like people of color were cast just to be placed around the main characters, without any real arcs or purpose. We were just… there. It felt like we were meeting a quota, and that was really, really disheartening. I even joked that at least I was their most expensive continuity extra.
But on the other hand, I had a producer friend text me recently to say, ‘Oh, actually, I should let you know that [a studio]—I don’t even know who he’s with right now—has a $150 million independent film fund, and they’re specifically looking for Asian stories.’ That kind of opportunity didn’t exist before.
For me, anecdotally, there was a pre-Crazy Rich Asians era and a post-Crazy Rich Asians era—I saw a real difference as an actor. Statistically, we’re still under 5% of major speaking roles, but that number is also spread across 450-plus shows and counting on all these streamers.
I do think the landscape has changed. So while there’s still work to do, I believe we need to focus on the progress and keep amplifying what’s good—keep it growing.
AF: What do you think the industry needs to do to ensure that this momentum for diversity and representation is sustained? In your view, what steps need to be taken to make sure authentic representation continues to evolve and thrive?
Cheng: I think we need to support filmmakers. If we don’t have people like Gillian being financially supported and funded, then we don’t have the stories. We can’t do anything without those scripts—we can’t do anything without that person who has the creative ability to take an idea and actualize it into a roadmap for the actors, for the crew to come in and light, design, and bring it to life.
From there, the question becomes: Who do we need in positions of power to greenlight filmmakers like Gillian? And who do we need to show up and support these films? Sometimes, people complain that their community isn’t represented on screen, but I always ask—are you coming to the festivals? Are you watching and supporting these films? Are you giving filmmakers, actors, and artists the space to grow? Because we only get better by putting ourselves out there, and if we don’t get those opportunities to practice, we don’t get the chance to develop into great artists.
Ultimately, it comes down to voting with your dollar—whatever position you’re in. But even if you’re not in this industry, if you want to see more representation, vote with your time. That means watching, streaming—it counts as a vote. Show up to the theater, go to the film festivals, buy a ticket, buy a few tickets.
AF: Connie, you’re stepping into your career at a time when representation is gaining momentum, thanks in part to trailblazing actresses like Olivia, who have been fighting for change for years. How does it feel to be entering the industry now, especially in a post-Crazy Rich Asians era where we’re seeing more opportunities for Asian actors on screen?
Miu: Yeah, I was going to say exactly that. I feel like I’m in a position of privilege—I do think about diversity in casting, but at the same time, it hasn’t felt like a major barrier for me.
By the time I was really starting to book professional jobs, Crazy Rich Asians had already come out. I was seeing Sandra Oh, and I was seeing more Asian women on screen—Sandra Oh, Awkwafina—and it was around that time that they were starting to win awards.
Bby the time I was beginning to land roles professionally, there were already more Asian women winning awards. That representation made a difference for me. It’s an amazing era.
AF: I’d love to hear what’s next for each of you. What upcoming projects are you working on?
Miu: Sure! Right now, I have a medical drama airing on Fox called “Doc”. I think they’re on episode five at the moment.
I also produced my first short film last year with my fiancé, Chad Andrews. We’re about 95% done—just need to add credits and tie up a few loose ends. After that, we’ll be submitting it to film festivals this year. It’s been a learning curve for me—I have no idea what I’m doing when it comes to anything behind the camera, so I’m just figuring it out as I go. Film submissions, distribution… I don’t know what happens next, but I’ll stumble my way through it.
The film is called “The Butchers”. It’s a dark comedy thriller about two psychopathic butchers who kill their victims and sell their body parts on the black market to cover up their crimes.
McKercher: At Kino Sum Productions, we have a couple of projects in development. In two weeks, I’ll be heading to camera on a short film I’m producing, so that’ll be fun.
Personally, I’m focused on writing right now. I’m currently developing my next project, a small-town crime drama about sex, secrets, and sisters called “Scar Tissue”. I’m really excited about this one—I wrote the first draft last year, put it away for a bit, and when I brought it back out, I felt ready to dive in again.
Cheng: My directorial debut is coming out soon—I directed a feature-length documentary about Raquel Welch. It’s called “I Am Raquel Welch”, part of the “I Am” franchise. They’ve done “I Am Heath Ledger”, “I Am Bruce Lee”, “I Am MLK”, and now this. I believe it premieres on The CW on March 8th—International Women’s Day. Fremantle has the theatrical rights, so I have no idea where it’ll be released worldwide.
I’m also producing a project, though it’s probably a little too early to talk about. But yeah, just sifting—sifting for that next great opportunity. I can’t wait to find my next acting role, but for now, just sifting in the meantime.
AF: Quick follow-up – what drew you to the Raquel Welch’s story?
Cheng: In the middle of the strike, I got a call from the founder of Network Entertainment. I had worked as a PA for the company before, and we had stayed in touch—they had followed my career. When they called out of the blue, I thought it was about a documentary on an Asian artist they had checked in with me about a few years earlier. But no—they were looking for a female filmmaker who was also an actress for this project. When they mentioned Raquel Welch, to be honest, I didn’t know much about her story at the time. Of course, I knew the famous bikini photo and her big, beautiful hair.
They told me, ‘Why don’t you take an hour, do a little digging, and we’ll call you back?’ So in that hour, I looked her up—probably on Wikipedia—and the thing that got me hooked was a comment from one of her male co-stars. Upon hearing they would be working together, he made a casual remark—something along the lines of, ‘I don’t know if she can act, but… that body.’ It wasn’t the exact quote, but that was the sentiment.
And that’s when I thought, Oh my God, what would it have been like to be a sex symbol in that era? That was the moment I knew I had to tell this story. It was such a fascinating deep dive—almost a history lesson in Hollywood history. And it was so different from what I expected.
AF: What’s the best thing you’ve watched recently—whether from 2024 or something that’s stuck with you this year?
Cheng: Oh, man. I loved “Anora”. I know that’s an obvious choice, but to me, it was such a perfect film—perfectly funny, the perfect set of stakes. It created this small, contained world that still felt completely over the top, but in the best way. I don’t know—I just love “Anora”.
I also just watched Angelina Jolie in “Maria”, and yeah, obviously, I’m very drawn to female-centered films where the protagonists aren’t what you expect—they defy expectations in some way. So those are the two that immediately come to mind.
Miu: Okay, well, I might as well say it—it’s a bit of a brag, but I watched 42 films at TIFF, and I’m very proud of that.
Anyway, I really loved “Souleymane’s Story”—I thought it was fantastic. I believe it was a French film, and though I saw it a while ago, the acting really stood out to me. I know (Abou Sangare) won an award for his performance, and it was well deserved.
I also really liked “The Girl with the Needle”, and I wish more people were talking about it. I loved it. I’m not usually drawn to dark films, but I thought the director did a fantastic job.
McKercher: This year has been crazy. I had a baby. I directed a movie while nine months pregnant—finished the project on a Tuesday and had a baby on Sunday. It was insane. Then I jumped into another project right after, and I’ve been promoting “Lucky Star” ever since.
I haven’t had much time to watch things, but “Dune: Part Two” was the best film I saw last year. I watched it with my dad, and it was so good. Really underrated. Personally, I think it was so much better than “Dune: Part One”.