Valerie Soe - Sewing as Storytelling: Inside The New Movie The Auntie Sewing Squad Resistance Playbook

Valerie Soe - Sewing as Storytelling: Inside The New Movie The Auntie Sewing Squad Resistance Playbook

From Sew & So... by Flint Rock LLC, BERNINA

May 7, 2026 · 26 min · Episode 138

About this episode

Filmmaker Valerie Soe discusses her journey and the impact of sewing in storytelling and community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Filmmaker and artist Valerie Soe joins Sew & So to explore the powerful intersection of storytelling, identity, and sewing. A fourth-generation Chinese American, Valerie reflects on her creative journey—from learning to sew on a 1970s Kenmore machine to becoming an award-winning documentary filmmaker. The conversation centers on her latest film, The Auntie Sewing Squad Resistance Playbook, which documents a grassroots movement that mobilized during the COVID-19 pandemic to produce and distribute masks to underserved communities. Valerie shares how sewing became both a practical tool and a symbol of collective care, how her dual role as participant and filmmaker shaped the story, and what this moment revealed about resilience, community, and action in times of crisis.

People in this episode

Hosts: Flint Rock LLC, BERNINA

Guest: Valerie Soe

Topics covered

  • storytelling
  • identity
  • sewing
  • community care
  • documentary filmmaking
  • resilience
  • grassroots movement

Keywords

  • sewing
  • storytelling
  • community
  • documentary
  • COVID-19
  • resilience
  • grassroots
  • identity
  • masks

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Sew & So, Flint Rock LLC, BERNINA

Books & works: The Auntie Sewing Squad Resistance Playbook

Places: COVID-19, Chinese American

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