In this episode of Firelight Chats, Rachid Hami blocked & directed his way to the Spacelab to chat with Kane & Mocha about his latest feature film, Pour La France. The film - which was shot in Morocco, France, and Taiwan - is a fictional film based on the true story of his younger brother, who died while serving as a cadet at the prestigious Saint-Cyr Military Academy.
Rachid and Kane dive deep into a wide variety of topics including growing up in Algeria, moving to the banlieues of Paris, discovering life-changing teachers, meeting & working with Abdellatif Kechiche and Arnaud Desplechin, making his first feature film, paying it back & forward, living in Taiwan & other countries, the difficulties of filming during Covid, specific scenes, symbolism, identity, family, character development, greatest inspirations, and the importance of mastering the technical, understanding nuance, supporting indie films, and engaging in healthy criticism, self-reflection, & critical thinking.
Rachid Hami is a French-Algerian actor, screenwriter, and film director. His first feature film, La Mélodie (The Orchestra Class) was released in 2017. His second feature film, Pour La France (For My Country | 榮耀之路), will be released in theaters across Taiwan on September 28th. 

In this episode of Firelight Chats, Anja Whitehead danced her way to the Spacelab to chat with Kane & Mocha by the fireside about her rollercoaster adventures through life. Anja shares stories about growing up in South Africa, making her way to Taiwan as the first stamp on her passport, her passion for education, changes she's seen over the years, starting one of the first burlesque troupes, memorable performances, getting married and moving away to Berlin right before Covid, and finally finding her way back just in the nick of time.
Anja also talks deeply and honestly about getting divorced, hitting rock bottom, the dark nights of the soul, embracing therapy, coming to terms and out with her queerness, fighting fear head on, and finding her voice again after feeling silenced for so long. She also talks about her new life as a freelancer and the many exciting new projects that she's currently working on.
Anja Whitehead is an educator, dancer/performer, stage & production manager, events & arts coordinator, and obstinate lover of physical books. Originally from South Africa, Anja has made Taiwan her home for the past 18 years with a tumultuous yet valuable 2-year intermission in Berlin, Germany.

In this courageous episode of Firelight Chats, Roxanne Barcelo jammed her way to the Spacelab to chat, laugh, cry, and snort with Kane & Mocha by the fireside. Hustling up mountains and descending down into the valleys of her life and career thus far, Roxanne shares a wide range of intimate stories from before birth, her beloved parents, growing up in Virginia, kicking off her career at the age of 4, returning to the Philippines at 13, the singing contest that served as the tipping point, being signed to big agencies, juggling school and work, doing soap operas, receiving so much love and support, the hit songs that took the Philippines by storm, memorable projects and people, her unforgettable 18th birthday bash, grappling with grief, and the reason she stopped singing.
Fans of Roxee B, Roxie, or any other iterations, will not want to miss this epic podcast as Roxanne also shares deep reflections and emotionally gripping revelations that have never been revealed to the public before. Kane & Roxanne get real, recognize real, go deep, and connect profoundly about love, fear, insecurities, vulnerabilities, inner work, and the profound importance of simply showing up. To cap off the episode, Kane reveals the story behind the name Firelight for the first time on the air.
Roxanne Barcelo is a Filipino-American actress, model, and singer. She is now in Taiwan as a Gold Card holder with her husband & two young children, plotting moves for this next chapter of her incredible life.

In this episode of Firelight Chats, Vickie Chang found her way to the Spacelab to chat with Kane & Mocha about her life, snug by the fireside with thunder & lightning crackling in the background and sometimes through the mic. Vickie shares epic stories about her grandfather’s Chiang Kai-Shek connections, 2nd wives, possible succession plots, immigrating to Kansas, daisy dukes, being abandoned, entering the foster care system, returning to Taiwan, relearning Chinese, evil stepmothers, paparazzi kids, racing on bikes with strange boys and no helmets, speakeasy clubs, being an OG bubble tea girl, and discovering her passion through alternative paths.
Returning to Taiwan after 40 years, Vickie and her husband have founded an entertainment/TV/film production and talent agency company, with goals to develop a healthy and robust ecosystem for talented Taiwanese youth. She talks about current projects, future plans, biggest challenges, strategic partnerships, and finding her line producer after knocking on the door of Ang Lee’s studio in Taichung. She also shares a few stories from her life as a high-level makeup artist, including securing agents, traveling the world, memorable sets, and working with stars like Nick Cannon, Will Smith, Bobby Brown, and Paul Walker.
Vickie Chang was born in Taipei, raised in Kansas, has lived in multiple states in the US, and is a graduate of the University of Maryland. Vickie is a proud mother of two daughters and along with her husband Manny, is the founder of Rising Storm Global Entertainment.

In this intimate episode of Firelight Chats, Nortso Tenzin bound her way to the Spacelab to chat with Kane & Mocha by the fireside. Tenzin shares stories about her later-life conversion to Buddhism, getting her name from the Dalai Lama, studying and living abroad in France and the UK, her love of martial arts, winning Silver and Gold medals in international and national Chinese martial arts competitions, and much more.
Back in Taiwan after decades abroad, Tenzin also shares stories about growing up in a Waishengren community in Taipei, finding out that her father was a bodyguard for Chiang Kai-shek, discovering the BDSM and bondage/shibari scenes in Taiwan, finding community and serving as a bridge between Taiwan and international entrepreneurs.
Nortso Tenzin works as a freelance designer, is a moderator for Taiwan Impact Entrepreneurs (TIE), creates immersive sensory experiences through her events production company "As We Art", and will be joining previous Firelight Chats guest J Triangular's "The First Kiss of the Night" film production team as the martial arts choreographer.

In this episode of Firelight Chats, Cait Magee jazzed her way to the Spacelab to chat with Kane & Mocha by the fireside about her life as a so-called diplobrat. Born in Singapore and having lived in Sydney, Canberra, Moscow, Guangzhou, Riyadh, and Taipei, Cait shares some incredible stories, insights, thoughts, and reflections from these years of traveling the world as an Australian Diplomat/Ambassador's daughter.
Among the many fascinating revelations is the fact that Cait has aphantasia, which makes her ability to tell captivating stories about her experiences all the more impressive. As mentioned in the episode, the plan is for Kane to be an upcoming guest on DJ Caitlin's show at ICRT, after which Cait will return to Firelight Chats for Part II, where they can focus on the life in music that Cait is carving out for herself as an adult.
Cait Magee is a Taipei-based vocalist, musician, entertainer, and daytime radio host of Australian and Taiwanese descent. You can tune in to DJ Caitlin's show at ICRT: M-F @ 1-4pm, Sun @ 6-8pm, and find her singing solo or with her band, Zy The Way 中庸, all around Taiwan and beyond.

In this post-typhoon episode of Firelight Chats, Sharlene Ku innocently smiled her way to the Spacelab to chat with Kane & Mocha by the fireside about life, acting, death, and a full-spectrum rainbow of topics betwixt and between. Happily exploring about topics and expressing through language that some might deem sensitive, listener discretion is advised.
Sharlene starts off by sharing stories about her starring role as A-Shui in the upcoming film, The First Kiss of the Night, including her curiosity about betel nut, how she was cast in the film, and the kiss scene on the beach. Other topics include Sharlene's childhood memories, cultural identity, gender & sexual identity, serendipitous revelations, therapeutic epiphanies, piercings, tattoos, BDSM, family issues, inspirational people, learning to not give too many f bombs, future plotting & planning, and much more. 
Sharlene Ku is an actor and graduate of Fu Jen Catholic University. She/they spent their early years in Fremont, California before moving back to Taipei. Those wishing to join the participatory cinema experience can find more through the current Kickstarter campaign.

In this episode of Firelight Chats, Mian Mian Lu burst like a typhoon into the Spacelab to chat about her first feature film, Mickey on the Road (迷走廣州), a coming-of-age story about two female protagonists. Mian Mian shares behind-the-scenes stories about her motivations for writing this story, particular scenes, casting, fundraising, being nominated for and attending the Golden Horse 2020 ceremony, being misunderstood, and the unique challenges of filming in both China and Taiwan.
The director also shares personal stories about growing up in Taiwan under martial law, studying Chinese opera theory in Taiwan, running off to NYC, living in Bushwick, her "I'm not Chinese, b*tch!" story, being a lone wolf at grad school, and living & working in Oregon as a new American. Mian Mian also gives a sneak peak into her next film and makes an open call to any writers & producers who might be interested in helping the project come to full fruition.
Mian Mian Lu is a Taipei-born, avant-garde film director who studied at the New York Film Academy and Taipei National University of the Arts. She currently lives in Eugene, Oregon with her American husband and has begun development on her forthcoming 2nd feature film, which will split filming between the United States and Taiwan.

In the episode of Firelight Chats, Ryan Axelson crashed into the Spacelab to chat with Kane & Mocha by the fireside about his time in Taiwan. As this particular 3-year stint comes to a close, Ryan shares his "Why Taiwan?" story, his first encounter with Kane at the Christmas Gold Card party, his boys' experience with the Taiwanese education system, the bicycle crash that left him with titanium implants, the Taiwanese healthcare and hospital system, his favorite trips around the islands, his favorite places and foods, the perfect location for his Taiwan tattoos, spiritual journeys, spirit animals, and his hopes to try chewing on some binlang (betel nut) before he departs.
As two lovers of culture and travel, Ryan & Kane also indulge in stories about his recent trips to Uzbekistan and Indonesia. Among the topics covered were the silk road, Marco Polo, Emir Timur, cultural relics, goat polo, resource extraction, anointing the queen of Fruits, sun bears and orangutans named Bachelor & Rambo, and deeply emotional reunions with his host family and friends after 32 long years.
Ryan Axelson is a Taiwan Gold Card holder, proud father of a pair of twin boys, a MTATW, a sales & CRM professional, and the founder of a sales & management consulting company called Brass Carrot. A native of San Diego, California, Ryan and his family will soon be returning to the Bay Area for the next chapter of their lives.

In this midsummer episode of Firelight Chats, J Triangular returned to the Spacelab to chat with Kane & Mocha by the fireside about her Taiwan-based feature film, The First Kiss of the Night, which recently wrapped up filming on the first of three segments. Even with only 16 scenes filmed thus far, J takes us on journey of neon dreamscapes, betel nut girls, Taoist exorcisms, addictions, Shaolin & Krav Maga fight scenes, clitoris tattoos, Winnie the Pooh piñata decapitations, and more.
J also shares behind-the-scenes stories and insights about the inspiration behind the title change, the casting process, showcasing non-binary characters, the importance of location scouting, on-set exercises, participatory cinema, the biggest challenges, mini movies within movies, and the prospects of multiple radical endings.
J Triangular is the first official return guest (Ep016) of the Firelight Chats podcast. Originally from Colombia, J has been living and working out of Taiwan for the past several years. Filming will resume in September and those interested in participating & supporting are encouraged to contribute to the Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign.