What We Do

The moon doesn’t create its own light, it reflects it.

Moonlite exists to uncover, illuminate, and elevate the diverse perspectives and expressions that currently exist in our creative community of Asian Americans.

We create wholly unique experiences to build our collective sustainability.

In plain speak, we love showcasing the diverse talents of the Asian-American creative community by creating spaces for them to share their art and, importantly, to help them get paid for it so that they can keep making more.

While our goal is to build up our creative community and foster sustainable careers, we believe wholeheartedly that this is best achieved when everyone is having A GOOD TIME.

Why
Mid-Autumn Fest?

  • The full moon is a symbol of reunion, and during this time, families gather to celebrate this auspicious day. We know how important community truly is, especially among Asian Americans, to advocate, support, and build up one another. We want to create spaces where everyone feels like family—appreciated, connected, respected, loved.

  • We strive to foster the future of the Asian American creative community by providing spaces for members to perform, create + collaborate, sell their products/services, exchange ideas, create new connections, etc. We seek to open doors for them by giving them access to the wider public.

  • The Asian American population is our fastest growing population, with a 34% projected increase in spending power vs. the U.S. total of 24%. We’d like to see some of this spending power pumped right back into our community. We want to see our creative community thrive and get paid for their craft.

The Moonlite Team

Rita Chan

@reetreel

Rita Chan is an Emmy and Peabody award-winning journalist and producer. She’s fascinated with the stories we tell ourselves and others, and the different mediums we use to tell them. Rita was the NY Bureau Chief for Vice News Tonight on HBO. She’s also done work for CBS, NBC, Women in the World, Al Jazeera America and Fox News.

Rita is a West Coast Asian, growing up in Sacramento and San Francisco before embarking on her East Coast “residency”: NY>DC>NY. She got sucked into the Mid-Autumn Fest through conversations with Fred about artistry, with Ben about creative sustainability and with Justina about finding community.

Ben Chin

@saxofshaolin

Benjamin Chin, also known as saxofshaolin, is a saxophonist, composer, and bandleader at the confluence of East and West. He is not only an artist but an experienced marketing strategist, event promoter, and artist manager but also a visionary in capturing and building niche markets across cultures. With a focus on leveraging collective social power, Benjamin has a track record of developing impactful campaigns for both non-profit and for-profit ventures over his 9 years of experience. A New York University alum, he excels in business development, creating immersive, multicultural experiences at the intersection of arts, technology, and impact.

Fred Hua

@fredhua

Fred Hua is the chef/owner of Nhà Mình in Ridgewood, Queens. He’s been firing it up in New York City for more than 20 years. He started in renowned Manhattan kitchens like Bao 111 and Michelin-starred Morimoto, but his flavor curiosity and taste buds led him to mom-and-pop ethnic restaurants and other food-related projects.

Fred hails from San Jose, CA. He started in art and design before creating in the kitchen. He now lives in the scenic, accessible and very-inclusive neighborhood of Ozone Park where he teaches his daughter, Quynh, all about the buy-sell-trade culture of Facebook Marketplace.

Justina Nguyen

@supesbase

Hailing from Houston, TX with a 14-year stint in Chicago before landing in Brooklyn, Justina is a vibestigator of sorts.

By day, she’s an experience strategist, with an extensive background in human centered-design, who brings deep empathy and fresh perspectives into her work, through a tango between art and science.

By night, she’s an open-format DJ under the moniker Supes Base. She loves exploring music deeply and widely across genres, continents, and time periods.

Justina is extremely passionate about uplifting community. Aside from Moonlite, she’s a core member of Peach, dedicated to unifying and celebrating LGBTQIA+ women + femme family through cultural events.

Justina truly believes that everyone should:

  • possess empathy as a strength

  • have a strong/true sense of self

  • strive to continuously evolve as a human

  • hold a genuine, positive outlook on life

Who We Are NOT

Is Moonlite a 501(c)(3)?

We are not a 501(c)(3), but we do partner with them in the belief that we can do good and have a good time at the same time.

If your non-profit organization wants to partner with Moonlite for our existing events or if you have an idea for an event, please reach out!

Is this only for Asian Americans?

We are not only for Asian Americans. Our co-founding group happens to identify as Asian American, but by no means is Moonlite exclusive to the identities we happen to have been born with.

Even amongst ourselves, our journeys as Asian Americans have all been very different. That’s part of the beauty and curse of living with a label placed upon you.

We are here to support and celebrate all in the AANHPI community and beyond.