Beacon Film Society presents…

STARRING JERRY AS HIMSELF

Thursday April 9, 2026
7:30p (7p doors)

Howland Cultural Center 

477 Main Street  Beacon NY  12508

Q&A with producer Jonathan Hsu, director Law Chen and director of photography Tinx Chan to follow the screening.

A genre-bending hybrid documentary/narrative about Jerry Hsu, a retired Taiwanese immigrant in Florida scammed out of his life savings.

After an unsettling call from a Chinese police officer puts Jerry on his heels, he agrees join an undercover operation that sends him into a spiral of secrecy and self-destruction.

What follows is a rare film that exists along the fine line between fact and fiction, one that confronts memory, nostalgia, human frailty and fallibility, the pursuit of the ‘America dream’, and the seductive traps that fraudsters set to prey upon our aging population.

*****

 ~ GRAND JURY AWARD ~
Slamdance Film Festival

*****

“ Starring Jerry as Himself can be filed under ‘truth is stranger than fiction.’ ”

– RogerEbert.com

“… participatory nature offers something new for true crime”

-POV Magazine

“… a remarkable accomplishment”

– Cinema Escapist

“100% Fresh”

– Rotten Tomatoes

Jonathan Hsu has been making films ever since his father gave him the family’s Digi8 Camcorder to document their family travels. Since then he has produced multiple award winning commercials, music videos, and films. He founded his commercial production services company HsuBox Productions Inc. with the mission to share and produce content that is as diverse as his crew and clients.

Jonathan is an alumni of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. He recently Executive Produced the horror movie “A Wounded Fawn” for Tribeca 2022’s Midnight Program and also the short film “Closing Dynasty” for the inaugural Netflix x Gold House x Tribeca 2022 Future Gold Fellowship. He is a member of the DPA, A-Doc, IDA, Gotham, and Film Independent.

Law Chen is an award winning director based in Brooklyn. His narrative, documentary, and commercial films have earned 19 Cannes Lions, as well as multiple Webby Awards and Vimeo Staff Picks. His genre-bending first feature STARRING JERRY AS HIMSELF tells the true story about an ordinary immigrant dad retired in Florida who becomes a spy for the Chinese police. It won the Grand Jury, Audience, and Best Actor awards at Slamdance along with a dozen other awards at more than thirty international festivals. Law is dedicated to telling diverse stories with a focus on immigrants and the pursuit of the American Dream.

Tinx Chan is a cinematographer from Brooklyn, New York with over 15 years of experience in feature films, commercials, TV and documentaries. Tinx has traveled the world bringing award winning directors’ visions to screen. His work has been featured in American Cinematographer Magazine and in festivals worldwide. He was recently the cinematographer of the 2022 Tribeca film Our Father, The Devil as well as 2nd Unit on Todd Solondz’s Wiener Dog. Tinx is a member of the IATSE600 Cinematographer’s Guild and a recipient of ICG’s 2019 Emerging Cinematographer Award.