The U.S.–China co-produced feature film Invitation has wrapped principal photography, with Jieying “Jenny” Liu serving as the production’s assistant director.
Jieying “Jenny” Liu is pictured with actor RJ Mitte at Universal Studios. Mitte is widely recognized for his role as Walter White Jr. on AMC’s Breaking Bad and for his advocacy work pushing for greater disability inclusion in film and television.
Silicon Valley producer and Hollywood assistant director Jieying "Jenny" Liu brings creative rigor, discernment, and careful attention to the world of AI cinema.
Before we ask artists to create stories that bring life to others, we also have to care about the life of the artist.— Jieying “Jenny” LiuLOS ANGELES, CA, UNITED STATES, July 31, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — A significant portion of Jieying “Jenny” Liu’s career has been spent at the intersection where filmmaking becomes most human: bridging a creative vision and the people needed to bring it into reality.
As a first assistant director, Jenny managed schedules, departments, and crews under the intense pressure of production. She discovered that a film’s success depends not only on what ends up on screen, but also on how people are led, how trust is safeguarded, and whether the soul of a story survives the industry’s demands.
That background now informs her role as Co-Founder and Director of the Tyrannus Angel Awards, where she is helping to create a human-centered benchmark for filmmaking in the era of artificial intelligence.
“What I want to protect is the heart of the story,” Jenny said. “A film should not be judged only by how impressive the technology is, the size of its budget or its commercial potential. AI is simply a tool. The creator’s voice, authenticity and emotional impact should remain at the center.”
An alumna of the University of Southern California, Jenny built her career across Hollywood film production, television, documentaries, international commercial campaigns, and U.S.–China co-productions.
Her resume includes the U.S.–China co-produced feature Invitation; commercial work for global brands such as Move Free and Vivo; a commercial featuring NBA legend Kobe Bryant; and the documentary Motionless, created alongside Academy Award-nominated cinematographer Dean Cundey and featuring Academy Award-winning actress Helen Mirren.
Her professional path later extended beyond Hollywood. After moving to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2023, Jenny founded SummerGrace Studio, where she produces and directs branded content, commercials, and product films for technology companies and startups. The studio has worked as a production vendor for ByteDance and has created launch and promotional content for emerging AI tools, including Trae Solo.
Working across both entertainment and technology has given Jenny a close-up view of AI’s creative potential. She believes AI-assisted tools can lower production barriers and expand access, but she is equally concerned about what technology cannot provide: discernment, emotional truth, moral courage, and care for the person creating the work.
“AI can help more people create, but access alone is not enough,” Jenny said. “We still have to ask whether a story is honest, whether it carries meaning and whether it leaves something of value with the audience.”
Jenny’s concern for creators also stems from a deeply personal spiritual journey.
During a period of serious illness, prayer, and healing, she began to see her work not merely as a filmmaking career, but as a calling to serve the people shaping culture.
“I believe Jesus met me there, and what He gave me was not primarily about making my own films,” Jenny said. “It was about becoming a pair of hands underneath the people in this industry who are falling—the ones who make beautiful things but have nowhere to lay down what they are carrying.”
She felt compelled to help create a space where exhausted, isolated, or discouraged artists could breathe again, encounter hope, and rediscover purpose.
For Jenny, the need goes beyond professional recognition. Hollywood helps shape how generations understand identity, love, family, and human worth. She believes cultural renewal therefore cannot begin only with better content; it must also include spiritual and emotional restoration for the people creating it.
“Before we ask artists to create stories that bring life to others, we also have to care about the life of the artist,” Jenny said.
That conviction sets her apart among the five founders of the Tyrannus Angel Awards. Her focus is not only on discovering promising work, but also on protecting both the integrity of the judging process and the humanity of the creator behind each submission.
As the leader of juror relations, Jenny is helping to develop a process that weighs creative excellence alongside authenticity, cultural understanding, faith perspectives, and emotional impact.
“We are looking for stories that truly move people,” Jenny said. “Stories that stay with the next generation in the way the films we grew up with have stayed with us.”
Her understanding of storytelling also reaches into live performance. Jenny directed the Christmas stage productions When the Christmas Rose Blooms in 2023 and The Bell Rings Again in 2024, reaching thousands of viewers through live and digital presentations.
Becoming a mother of two further deepened her concern for what stories leave behind.
“Motherhood teaches you to make room for another life—to nurture something beyond yourself and help it grow,” Jenny said. “It made me think more deeply about the stories we are placing before the next generation and about creating space for storytellers whose work may shape them.”
One film that continues to influence Jenny is Sound of Freedom. She was moved by its willingness to bring a hidden reality into view while affirming the value of every child’s life. For her, it demonstrated that storytelling can awaken compassion, give visibility to the vulnerable, and move audiences toward action.
Through the Tyrannus Angel Awards, Jenny hopes to build more than a ceremony. She wants to help create a trusted community in which filmmakers are evaluated with seriousness and care, creators are reminded that their work matters, and technology remains accountable to human purpose.
“This award is not only about recognition,” Jenny said. “It is about reminding creators that their stories matter and that they should keep going.”
The inaugural Tyrannus Angel Awards ceremony will be held Saturday, October 24, 2026, at City Club Los Angeles. The program will distribute US$50,000 in prizes and grants across Original, Adapted and Animated Works.
Chantel Chang
Tyrannus Foundation Inc.
info@tyrannusfoundation.org
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