“Ember” by Jane Qian

Set against California’s most iconic landscapes, Ember reflects on the last quiet moments of fading love, a meditation on what remains and the ember that lingers. 

FROM THE DIRECTOR

“Ember began as a visual poem, something gentle and reflective, a quiet ode to stillness, light, and the renewal found along California’s open roads. But as the film took shape, it revealed a deeper truth. What started as an exploration of subtleties gradually became an exploration of the heart.

What I did not know then was that I was documenting the final days of a relationship that had shaped me for a decade. At the time, the moments we captured felt ordinary, almost tender in their silence. Only in the edit did I begin to see them differently. The stillness held distance. The quiet held a kind of ending. The film became a mirror, showing me what I could not yet name.

This film is a meditation on transformation, a look at the remnants of a relationship that once burned bright and now fades softly into memory. It reflects on what remains after love changes shape and suggests that even in its quietest form, something stays lit. And sometimes, the faintest ember is enough to spark again.”

-Jane Qian

CREDITS

Executive Producer// Trust 

Executive Producer// Sarah Brannan 

Director// Jane Qian 

Cinematographer// Jake Bianco 

Editor// Matthew Gabzdyl 

Post// Final Cut 

Sound Designer// Christian Stropko 

Colorist// Phil Choe 

Color// The Standard Art 

Special Thanks// Matthew Palmer 


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