Ruoyun Chen is an independent filmmaker and researcher in urban systems. She did her Master of Science and PhD at Cornell University, majoring in Transportation System Engineering and minoring in Information Science. As well as a fellow at the MIT Open Documentary Lab, she is a mentee in the Immigrant Artist Mentoring Program for Visual and Multidisciplinary Artists. Ruoyun joined the MIT Open Documentary Lab with her project “We Swim Among Oceans” (working title), which is a feature-length documentary that showcases the lives of young Chinese diasporic poets who live and write across languages and regions. Filmed in locations including Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, New York City, London, and Australia, this film is a collaborative effort, made within the community and embodying the principle of co-creation. At the onset of production, the COVID lockdown restrictions necessitated the use of various media, including smartphone footage, live streams, and blog posts. As the project gained a global scope, it incorporated crowd-sourced content and embraced collaborative authorship. The methodology of collaborating with culturally aligned local crews was adopted to ensure a more authentic representation of complex social narratives. Additionally, producing the film within the community itself became a key strategy to authentically capture stories that are deeply rooted in the community.