Director

Xinyan Yu

Directing

Career Snapshot

Explained

These indicators come from TMDB. They are relative signals, not review ratings.

Directed credits

Emerging

Beginning to build directing work.

TMDB popularity

0.3

Low visibility

TMDB internal trend index. Higher usually means more searches and page activity now.

Directed movies: 1Directed series: 1All crew credits: 3

TMDB ID: 4668253

IMDb ID: nm4678981

Known for: Directing

Gender: Female

Adult content flag: No

Career span: 1983 - 2024

Years active: 42

Average TMDB rating: 7

Frequent jobs

Director (2)Producer (1)

TMDB TMDB IMDb IMDb

Biography

Xinyan Yu is an Emmy-winning journalist and documentary filmmaker with nearly 15 years of experience crafting intimate, character-driven films across continents. From factory floors in rural Ethiopia to wildfire zones in Hawaii, she specializes in vérité and investigative storytelling that blends cinematic intimacy with journalistic rigor through a deeply human lens. A former BBC producer and now an independent filmmaker, Xinyan has directed and produced work for major broadcasters including PBS, BBC and NHK. Her recent projects include Made in Ethiopia, which premiered at the 2024 Tribeca Film Festival, and Maui's Deadly Firestorm for PBS Frontline, which won an Emmy Award and a Scripps Howard Award.

Movies