What Is USA Fellows?

Every year, 50 USA Fellowship grants of $50,000 each are awarded to outstanding performing, visual, media, and literary artists. In the last six years, we have invested $15,000,000 in America’s finest artists.

Meet the USA Fellows

Our selection process

Photo credit Gabriela Herman

Tze Chun

Tze Chun is a screenwriter and director whose films, in his words, “look at universal issues through the lens of culturally specific, character-driven narratives.” Chun’s short, Windowbreaker, played at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival as well as over 30 other international festivals and won the audience award at the 2007 New York City Short Film Festival. His first feature film, Children of Invention, recounts the tale of two Chinese-American children who must fend for themselves when their mother is arrested for taking part in an illegal pyramid scheme. The movie, which premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, screened at over 50 film festivals, winning 17 festival awards including eight Grand Jury or Best Narrative Feature prizes.   

Children of Invention, 2009; photo by Will Serber, poster design by Tze Chun