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The Turning Point

In a near future Seattle under federal military occupation, an Asian-american man and his niece must escape the city when targeted by a violent white-nationalist group.

  • Rishi Raj
    Director
  • Rishi Raj
    Writer
  • Rishi Raj
    Producer
  • Kevin Leung
    Producer
  • Sean Shkurhan
    Producer
  • Kevin Leung
    Key Cast
    "Eric"
  • Kaya Toguchi
    Key Cast
    "Amanda"
  • Elliot Glasser
    Key Cast
    "Zeke"
  • Kelsi Umeko
    Key Cast
    "Grace"
  • Mark Toguchi
    Key Cast
    "Chris"
  • Adam LaPine
    Director of Photography
    Prospect
  • Daniel Caldwell
    Composer
    Prospect
  • Freddy Tse
    Stunt Consultant
    Prospect
  • Mason Slider
    1st Assistant Director
  • Kip Smedley
    Sound Design
    Spider-man: Across the Spider-Verse, Ted Lasso, Spider-man: Into the Spider-Verse
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Action, Drama, Political, Thriller, Road Trip, War
  • Runtime:
    22 minutes 45 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    March 23, 2026
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    12K BRAW, 6K REDCODE, 4K ProRes
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.39
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Rishi Raj

Rishi Raj is an award-winning filmmaker based in Seattle, Washington. His passion for storytelling began in his teenage years in Atlanta, Georgia where he started making short films and videos with friends and family.

While pursuing a computer science degree at Georgia Tech, Rishi honed his filmmaking by participating in college filmmaking competitions. He won the top prize at Georgia Tech's Campus Movie Fest all four years. His work earned him three invitations to the Short Film Corner at the Cannes Film Festival in France, which he finally attended in his senior year.

After graduation, Rishi relocated to Seattle to work as a software engineer at Microsoft. Despite a career in tech, he found his way into the local film scene through the 48 Hour Film Project, where his team, Transatlantic Films, won the Best in City twice and received dozens of accolades, including Best Director and Best Writing twice.

In late 2023, Rishi made the leap and left Microsoft to pursue filmmaking full-time. He now works on narrative, commercial, and documentary projects in the Seattle area.

His work has screened at festivals around the world, including HollyShorts in Los Angeles, as well as throughout the Pacific Northwest and Atlanta.

Rishi pairs a meticulous, technically precise approach with a storytelling style that’s driven by emotion. He seeks to craft narratives that are universal in resonance yet deeply personal in feeling. He takes audiences on a journey that lingers long after the credits roll.

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Director Statement

"The Turning Point" is a warning shot. By setting this story on American soil, I wanted to strip away the comfort of "it can't happen here."

At its center is Eric, an Asian-American veteran who has already witnessed the horrors of war and refuses to let it follow him home. When his sister is killed and her husband drafted into the federal forces, Eric is left to raise his niece Amanda alone, in a neighborhood that has become a frontline.

Eric is wrecked with guilt over the loss of his sister and dejected by the state of his country. But it is his stubborn defiance that cuts through the film's bleakness. He has seen where this road leads and chooses differently anyway. "The Turning Point" is ultimately a cautionary tale with a heartbeat. It is a reminder that collapse is not inevitable, but neither is it abstract.