Welcome to NYWIFT, Aayushi Shah!
Aayushi is an award-winning South Asian screenwriter/filmmaker based in New York. Her screenplays have gained recognition from Oscar-qualifying festivals across the USA, while her filmmaking work (directing/producing/assistant-directing) includes shorts and features that’ve been showcased at festivals around the world or have streamed on Netflix and other platforms.
Throughout her film career, she has worked for leading organizations like Bloomberg, The Juilliard School, PVH Corp., Industrial Scripts, and the Berlinale. Recently, she served as a juror for the FOLCS International Short Film Competition.
Her writing has been published online, and her work has been featured in the press.
New NYWIFT Memeber Aayushi Shah
Could you give our readers a brief introduction to yourself?
Hi everyone, my name is Aayushi A. Shah. I grew up in India, but I moved to New York nearly seven years ago to study filmmaking. Today, as an award-winning screenwriter and filmmaker, I am proud to have carved out a place for myself in the U.S. film industry.
What brought you to NYWIFT?
NYWIFT is such a storied organization. What brought me here is the chance to form meaningful connections with more women filmmakers, receive support for my own future film projects, and immerse myself even deeper in the New York film community. I am also eager to contribute and, through NYWIFT, plan to help champion women’s careers in the U.S. film industry.
Aayushi Shah working on-set
How has your South Asian identity inspired your way of storytelling?
My South Asian identity inspired my storytelling especially after I moved from India to New York. In fact, I didn’t realize until my third or fourth screenplay that I was subconsciously drawn to writing female leads who felt like outsiders in one way or another. My heritage has therefore given my voice a specificity and originality. It has also instilled in me a determination to contribute to South Asian representation in the U.S. film industry by writing and directing nuanced stories that feature South Asian women both in front of and behind the camera.
How have your writing and storytelling processes changed throughout the years and experiences?
My writing and storytelling are—and always have been—inspired by my own life. At the beginning of my career, I would pour my thoughts and feelings onto the page with raw immediacy. Over the years, I’ve become more deliberate, even clinical, in the way I approach adapting my personal experiences into structured, film-worthy screenplays.
Aayushi on set in New York
What is the most fulfilling aspect of having been part of the jury for the 13th FOLCS International Short Film Competition?
The FOLCS International Short Film Competition deals in Social Justice-themed films, so as a juror, I watched, evaluated, and reviewed films from all over the world that highlighted such subjects as asylum, women’s education, tyrannical oppression, prison reform, and more.
The most fulfilling aspect of serving as a juror was recognizing the work of fellow filmmakers—filmmakers who made deeply affecting films often in crisis-affected parts of the world. By selecting their films for the festival’s official lineup, I helped bring some awareness to the important themes that these filmmakers often took risks to highlight—which was equally rewarding.
What is the biggest lesson you’ve learned so far in your career?
The biggest lesson I have learned so far in my career is to LISTEN.
New NYWIFT Member Aayushi on set.
What project(s) are you currently working on that our readers should be on the lookout for?
I am currently in post-production on my short film Strange Things Will Happen, which I’m hoping to enter into the festival circuit before year-end. I wrote and directed it, and it’s my most personal—perhaps even autobiographical—project to date. I am also currently outlining two short films: Some Ghosts are Red (horror) and California Dreaming (drama). I plan to write and direct both projects in the U.S. in the coming years, working alongside my industry peers.
Connect with Aayushi Shah by email at aayushiashah21@gmail.com.
(All images courtesy of Aayushi Shah)
Mariana Valencia
Mariana Valencia is an intern at NYWIFT with a background in film and television. A recent graduate of Boston University school of Communications, she moved to New York to pursue her career in film production, and her passion for directing. She is working on the team for the hit show Couples Therapy by Paramount Edgeline Films, and submitting her short film Aftershock to festivals she produced last year. She is passionate about telling the stories that haven't been told yet, and hopes her work reaches all corners of the world.
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