Going back to her roots

'Less alone'

"Sharing the film has become an exercise in feeling less alone in the world when you have these kinds of experiences — being the descendant of immigrants and often feeling out of place, always searching for where you belong," said Chi, who has established herself as an accomplished filmmaker.

She has received many accolades, including the Princess Grace Award for Emerging Artist in Film, the Directors Guild of America's Student Film Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement, and the Austin Film Society's New Texas Voices Award.

Her work has been selected for festivals such as South by Southwest, Telluride Film Festival in the United States, and Visions du Reel International Film Festival in Switzerland.

Chi is not the only filmmaker exploring the links that bind Chinese immigrants in Costa Rica and their families to their native culture. The Chinese community accounts for about 45,000 of Costa Rica's 5 million people, making it one of the largest foreign-rooted communities in the country. As such, their culture has attracted a fair amount of interest.

Kim Torres, a 31-year-old Costa Rican director, is also working on a project that revolves around a Chinese immigrant living in Manzanillo, known for its beaches and fishing.

Torres' film is about a Chinese woman, Dai, who operates a grocery store. Dai's store is among some 22,000 mom-and-pop shops across the country, and her story highlights the economic impact Chinese entrepreneurs have on Costa Rica.

Since the 1950s, this group of entrepreneurs has evolved from operating traditional grocery stores and restaurants to farming and agricultural industries to processing products like cocoa for export. Some small local industrial holdings also make everything from dried foods to pastries and rubber products.

History revisited

Like Chi, Torres had set out to explore the cultural identity of Chinese entrepreneurs.

The first Chinese immigrants arrived in Costa Rica in 1855 at the port of Puntarenas. At that time, there were about 77 of them, mostly working in the railroad or agriculture.

Their numbers have swelled over 170 years, expanding rapidly over the past couple of decades along with China's influence in the Latin American nation.

Costa Rica established diplomatic relations with China in 2007, hoping to attract more foreign investment. The two countries signed a free-trade agreement in 2010. Bilateral trade reached $4.4 billion in 2024, according to the Costa Rican Foreign Trade Promoter.

In 2018, Costa Rica signed a memorandum of understanding to jointly promote the construction of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, and a year later, the country's Legislative Assembly approved the Law on the Celebration of Chinese Culture Day and the Incorporation of Educational and Cultural Activities, which encourages public and private educational institutions to promote Chinese culture.

It was the first country in the region to enshrine a Chinese culture day in law.

"The diversified cultural activities, such as mutual visits of artistic groups, virtual performances and exhibitions, help bridge the vast geographical distance, fostering mutual understanding between the peoples of both nations," then-Chinese ambassador to Costa Rica Tang Heng said in a speech in 2022 to mark the 15th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations.