@New_Cameron_Bakery

As soon as you get off the metro stop of Canal Street, you will see the yellow sign of “New Cameron Bakery”, a staple in Manhattan Chinatown that has warmed the stomachs of regulars and tourists alike. To be honest it looks quite shabby compared to the new Korean or Japanese bakeries that have sprung up around the city. However, it is one of its kind because of the unique ecosystem that has grown around it; but you will only get to witness it after many visits, while chit chatting with the Ayis (aunties) who work there. I was one of those chit chatters and gradually found myself immersed in this ecosystem of care and reciprocity in this corner of Chinatown. The uncle from the Canton restaurant next door would come near closing time to drop off leftover food for the aunties here to take home; the aunties would give leftover baked goods to school children who come in alone with not enough money to buy the bread they’ve been looking at; the young man from the restaurant in another part of chinatown would swing by with some of their chef’s soup for aunties because he was worried they’d be cold, etc.. 
In this project, I want to document these ecosystem encounters through participatory documentary film and a community potluck screening event inviting the small businesses around.  

Supported by Asian American Arts Alliance's What Can We Do? Grant