Viewfinder: A Memoir of Seeing and Being Seen

In his engaging debut memoir, filmmaker Chu, writing with McCarter (Hamilton: The Revolution), reflects on his life’s journey, from working in his Taiwanese immigrant family’s Los Altos restaurant to his rise to Hollywood fame. Best known for his work on Crazy Rich Asians and In the Heights before directing Wicked, Chu began crafting films as a teen in the 1990s. The dot-com era seemed to offer limited opportunities; in no time, he became “Apple obsessive” while making amateur videos. In 1998, his artistic sensibility was realized through two film school shorts, which sparked a call from Steven Spielberg and a contract to revive Bye Bye Birdie, though that deal fell through during production. Narrating his own work, Chu compellingly details how he picked himself up and kept moving forward. Later, Chu gambled and gained traction in the film industry through his love of music and storytelling. Taking his family’s no-nonsense advice—and selling his Apple, Inc. stock—he set a course to stay true to his craft and bring full-scale musicals back to the big screen.