Leif Bristow is an Emmy winning producer, director, screenwriter, and bestselling author who has spent decades bringing unforgettable stories to life for audiences around the world. But Dancing Through the Shadow is far more than just another project. It is a story that found him personally.

The inspiration came through Tia Zhang, an internationally celebrated dancer, Shen Yun artist, and survivor whose extraordinary life story recently earned her the prestigious King Charles III Coronation Medal for her contributions and impact. Tia once taught ballet to Leif and Agnes Bristow's daughter, and through that connection, the family came to learn the unimaginable truth of her life, surviving oppression under Mao era China, enduring extraordinary hardship, and ultimately escaping to freedom.

Agnes Bristow knew this was a story the world needed to read, which led her to write the award winning bestselling novel Dancing Through the Shadow. Leif, as a filmmaker and storyteller, knew it was equally a story that needed to be brought to the screen.

Podcast audiences will gain a fascinating behind the scenes look at how a real life friendship uncovered one of the most remarkable untold survival stories of our time, the journey of transforming truth into powerful storytelling, the creative process behind adapting books to film, and why stories of courage, freedom, resilience, and the human spirit matter now more than ever.

Website, Facebook, (X), Instagram, LinkedIn, Leif's IMDb page where you can see his entire filmography

Dancing Through the Shadow, Agnes Bristow

Love on Safari (2018) Starring Lacey Chabert and Jon Cor, Brittany Bristow

Mao's Last Dancer (2009) Starring Chi Cao, Bruce Greenwood and Kyle MacLachlan

Dr. Robert J. Wolf, Story-Power episode 138, 20 Miracles and 4 Escapes from Tyranny

Love on the Danube: Royal Getaway (2025)

A Sweet Austrian Holiday (2024)

Beyond Black Beauty (2024)

John Rhys-Davies, Actor, Lord of the Rings, and much more