The Academy Award-nominated short film “Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó" was born out of the emotional juxtaposition of joy and silliness amid the backdrop of anti-Asian hate crimes. First-generation Taiwanese American director Sean Wang, who had been living in New York City for over five years, decided it was time to return home in 2021 to the Bay Area where his grandmothers resided. At the time, his homecoming coincided with the rise of anti-Asian hate crimes, especially in San Francisco, where 84-year-old Vicha Ratanapakdee was shoved to the ground while he was out on a morning walk.