BIOGRAPHY
Christy Hui’s journey from tea enthusiast to award-winning storyteller is a brew of passion, endurance, and cultural fusion. Growing up in China, she was mesmerized by watching her father practice the ancient art of Gong Fu Cha, which planted the seeds of a lifelong love affair with tea.
Passionate about storytelling, Christy created XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN, a global hit animated TV franchise produced by Warner Brothers. Recently, her young adult novel FLYING FILLIES takes readers on a historical adventure.
In 9 Dragons Tea: The Drink That Changed The World, Christy infuses her love of tea, history, and filmmaking, taking viewers on a enchanting journey to uncover long-buried secrets and unraveling a true story never-before-told.
Shot in 4K, the TEA documentary traces the origin of Oolong and Black tea behind the forbidden tea region nestled in the misty mountains of Wuyi Shan and how tea spread from China to the West. Fluent in English and Chinese, Christy infuses her work with multicultural zest. When not behind the camera or writing, she can be found hosting spirited tea talks and tasting events.
Join Christy on this extraordinary journey and discover how a humble beverage changed the world – one cup at a time!
MY WORK
Prior to becoming a filmmaker, I worked with media companies including Sony Pictures, DirecTV, and TV Guide. (You might not remember it, but Google it. Trust me; it was cool.) While at Sony, I was part of a small expatriate team in Hong Kong developing a pan-regional entertainment network named AXN.
In 2000, I founded ActionFliks Media, an award-winning studio with a simple goal: Create enduring entertainment for kids and families.
This endeavor taught me that successful franchises take more than just great ideas. It would help if you had a team of talented individuals and creative-forward networks to make things happen.
My other creations include XIAOLIN SHOWDOWN (produced by Warner Brothers Animation and aired on Cartoon Network worldwide), HULALA GIRLS, XIAOLIN CHRONICLES, and brand video storytelling for companies such as Amprion.
AWARDS
- Two Emmy Awards for Xiaolin Showdown
- Seven Telly Awards for Xiaolin Chronicles & Amprion & other brand storytelling
- One W3 for Amprion
Interested in exploring a project together? Get in touch here.
MY STORY
I am a dreamer. Have been since I was a little girl growing up in China. My family moved to the United States when I was a teenager.
Shy and speaking embarrassingly poor English, I felt so out of place. Not just a foreigner or an alien, more like a “foreign alien.” I befriended burritos and blew up like a balloon. Seriously, my size doubled in 3 months. My self-confidence was shattered. My dreams were on life support. It was not pretty.
A combination of realizations catapulted me out of my collapse; I couldn’t squeeze into my jeans, didn’t understand what the other schoolkids said, and my young spirit was getting loud, “Christy, wake up! This is not who you are!”
So I sought a way out and discovered a new friend – not wrapped in a tortilla. The Tube! Television became my tutor. Watching TV was homework. For kids reading this today, TV is for after homework.
Climbing out of my fat-rut, adapting to a new culture, and learning a language during my teenage years taught me a valuable life lesson:
If life hands you lemons, make a lemonade empire!
This principle guides my life – a journey of constant change and personal/professional growth. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Thank you for visiting the 9 DRAGONS TEA website, and I hope to sip tea with you sometime…
With love & gratitude,
Christy
