Steven Thai (Courtesy of Steven Thai)
“It made me feel I was able to change this girl�s life with a two-minute video,� University of Colorado Boulder student and aspiring director Steven Thai said. �That�s when I knew that�s what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.�
As a high school student in Aurora, Thai created a video for the Rangeview High School�s Make-A-Wish child to raise money. A self-taught photographer, Thai had minimal experience with film and low expectations for the video�s success.�However, once released, the video instantly took off, causing the campaign�s �donations to sky-rocket.�
Thai felt empowered and inspired to continue pursuing film, leading to a major in film studies and film productions at CU Boulder.�At CU, he said his studies have �refined (his) craft.� To gain experience, he is a video intern for the CU men�s basketball team and is the multimedia chair for CU Student Government (CUSG).
He also has directed three short films � �My Escape� (2018), �Mirror� (2019) and �Safe� (2020). “Safe” was an official selection for two film festivals: the Indie Short Fest�and the First-Time Filmmaker Showcase. Thai has his own�IMDB profile.
For his short films, Thai�s ideas usually come from �personal experiences� and �key moments� in his life, which he said can be �really dark and really depressing.� Often, Thai will �tweak the idea so it�s more theatrical and universal and everyone can relate to it.�
�It�s really nice when you can show your side of the story through the film. Hopefully, it can inspire others or have them feel a certain kind of way and relate to it,� Thai said.
His latest short film �Safe� is dark but relatable. �Safe� depicts news editor William Quinn, whose life is monotonous and depressing. He experiences a professional betrayal, which changes his life.
Thai�s darker themes can be traced to his cinematic idols. His favorite directors include Christopher Nolan (�The Dark Knight Trilogy,� �Inception� and �Interstellar�), Damien Chazelle (�La La Land� and �Whiplash�), Ryan Coogler (�Black Panther�) and his �all-time favorite,� the �film pioneer� Martin Scorsese (�Goodfellas,� �Raging Bull� and �The Irishman�). Thai draws inspiration from their styles, while also shaping his own distinctive voice.�
�A lot of directors now, including myself, are trying to find our own techniques, our distinguishable styles and who we are as a director,� Thai said.
In the future, Thai hopes to work for his dream studio A24, known for iconic indie films including �Moonlight,� �Midsommar� and �Lady Bird.�
�I want to focus on Hollywood movies that you can see on the big screen,” Thai said. “The dream is to hopefully be making a feature full-length film funded by a studio. I want to be still doing what I do now � writing and making movies. I hope that I am still chasing that dream, that passion.�
Contact CU Independent Head Arts Editor Isabella Fincher at isabella.fincher@colorado.edu.
