Tunnel Vision
TITLE
Tunnel Vision
DIRECTOR
Yiru Deng
COUNTRY
USA
YEAR
2025
DURATION
5′
GENRE
Animation
Tunnel Vision
Using tunnel vision, a symptom that narrows one’s field of sight as the main metaphor, the film reveals the female experience of intense pressure and lack of autonomy within East Asian families. The film questions traditional values that can result in generational trauma.
DIRECTOR BIOGRAPHY - Yiru Deng
Yiru Deng is a Chinese animation director and artist based in Los Angeles. She graduated from the Central Academy of Fine Arts in China and earned an MFA in Animation from UCLA. Her work explores identity, women’s experiences, personal autonomy, and the tension between individual choice and social expectations, using 2D, 3D, and stop-motion animation. Her short film Tunnel Vision (2025) uses the narrowing of a person’s field of vision as a metaphor for the loss of freedom and autonomy experienced by women under family and social pressure. Inspired by her mother’s experience with an eye condition, the film transforms a deeply personal story into a reflection on generational relationships, cultural expectations, and the right to choose one’s own path. Deng’s work has been recognized through UCLA’s animation program, where Tunnel Vision received the Best Art Direction Award in 2026. The film had its World Premiere at the LA Shorts International Film Festival.
- DirectorYiru Deng
- Screenplay
- Cinematography
- Cast
- Editing
- Producer/s Yiru Deng
- Production Company
- Distributor/s
- Project TitleTunnel Vision
- Project Type Animation
- Completion Date01 May 2025
- Country of origin USA
- Country of filmingUSA
- LanguageEnglish
- First-time Filmmaker No
- Student ProjectYes
Yiru Deng
Yiru Deng is a Chinese animation director and artist based in Los Angeles. She graduated from the Central Academy of Fine Arts in China and earned an MFA in Animation from UCLA. Her work explores identity, women’s experiences, personal autonomy, and the tension between individual choice and social expectations, using 2D, 3D, and stop-motion animation. Her short film Tunnel Vision (2025) uses the narrowing of a person’s field of vision as a metaphor for the loss of freedom and autonomy experienced by women under family and social pressure. Inspired by her mother’s experience with an eye condition, the film transforms a deeply personal story into a reflection on generational relationships, cultural expectations, and the right to choose one’s own path. Deng’s work has been recognized through UCLA’s animation program, where Tunnel Vision received the Best Art Direction Award in 2026. The film had its World Premiere at the LA Shorts International Film Festival.
