Sheldon Chau
Biography
Born in the San Gabriel Valley (near Los Angeles, CA) of Cantonese descent, Sheldon discovered as a teenager that movies were more than simply entertainment when his uncle introduced him to the Criterion Collection, which sparked his pursuit of filmmaking.
His first project after college was a short documentary on his father where he learned of his parents' journey to the U.S. from fleeing Vietnam after the war. This experience affirmed Sheldon's passion for storytelling, and he went on to earn his MFA in directing and cinematography at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts.
Sheldon's work has screened at major festivals such as Cannes, Sundance, Toronto, and Venice. His notable credits as cinematographer include "Nafi's Father" - Senegal's official entry for the 2021 Oscars; "Nigerian Prince" - an AT&T Untold Stories winner and Tribeca Film Fest premiere; and "Summer Knight" - Best Film at the Tokyo Film Fest.
He is a winner of the Arri-Volker Bahnemann Award for Cinematography, a Visual Communications' AWC Fellow, and part of the ASC Vision Mentorship program under Larry Fong, ASC. As a director, his short film Flying Eggs was a 2021 Slamdance Film Fest selection, and his latest work In Max We Trust can be seen on YouTube's Omeleto short film channel.
Sheldon has specialized in shooting internationally, balancing both large-scale and guerrilla-style crews, and continues to seek stories that are evocative, personal, and emotionally resonant.
