Private Project

The Summer I Found Myself

DCP Available

At a summer Naval Academy, an ambitious young cadet is
hell-bent on being the top of her class. But when she’s
grouped with bunch of losers:

A Bookworm, A Class clown and a Basket case, her perfect
vision for the summer is derailed.

Together over 5 weeks they train, compete, fall in love
and discover they have a great deal more in common than
they thought.

  • Justin F. Lee
    Director
    Knots
  • Justin F. Lee
    Writer
    Knots
  • Steven Hu
    Producer
    Harpies
  • Sammy Vu
    Producer
  • Brianna Kim
    Key Cast
    "Cadet Gwon"
    Gangnam Project, Red Light Rebel
  • Thomas Beag
    Key Cast
    "Cadet Wu"
    Off Campus
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Coming of Age, Comedy
  • Runtime:
    10 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    August 30, 2025
  • Production Budget:
    4,000 CAD
  • Country of Origin:
    Canada
  • Country of Filming:
    Canada
  • Aspect Ratio:
    9:16
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Available
  • Vancouver Asian Film Festival
    Vancouver
    Canada
    November 20, 2025
    Canadian Premiere
  • Mighty Asian Movie Making Marathon
    Vancouver
    Canada
    August 30, 2025
    Screening
    Best Vertical Film
Director Biography - Justin F. Lee

Justin is a writer, producer, and sailor keen on intimate stories within large spectacle usually exploring his nautical and uniformed upbringing.

His debut short film “Knots” premiered at Reelworld in Toronto and won Best Vancouver Island Film a Comox Valley International Film Festival. The short vertical film "The Summer I Found Myself" won Best Film (Vertical) at the M.A.M.M with the Vancouver Asian Film Festival.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

The Summer I Found Myself is inspired by my time as a Sea Cadet and the niche experience of going off to summer camp.

I chose to make the film as a vertical to challenge the medium pushing for stronger stories and more grounded characters. We approached every artistic choice made from framing shots to take advantage of the 9:16 framing to attention grabbing story beats using what I had learned on set while ADing and Lighting many verticals.