Directing in LA: How Dante Navigates Culture, Narrative, and International Commercials

What do Chinese electronic brands, US film study, and the LA production industry have in common? Dante Jiayu Liu. 

Some commercials capture public attention long after the ad ends. Sometimes they use popular music or trending design to spark visual appeal. 

Staying power and influence may be the goal of commercial directors, and they are two pillars of Dante Jiayu Liu’s work as a commercial and creative director. 

The award-winning director works with global brands, particularly consumer electronics and technology companies, reimagining their identity, values, and image for Western audiences. 

Experiencing Chinese and American Culture

Liu spent his childhood in China and grew up with Chinese culture all around. He came to the US for high school and received a Western education as an adult.

The perspective Liu gained from dual cultural immersion is integral to his work now. Experiencing youth in the US and China means he was, in his words, “bathed in the pop culture.” 

He says, “I loved talking to people from different countries, and that helped me really understand that the United States is a place where culture merges. We have to be able to listen to other people and really understand the differences between our own originality.”

Listening is the first step in his process, but once Liu hears the message, he must convey it digitally through art and film.

Studying visual art in college helped him understand the practical elements of conveying cultural differences into a similar language. Merging Chinese brands with American culture is not without its struggles for Liu.

His Philosophy: Sharing Culture through Communication

The Chinese and US markets are two different markets rooted in two different cultures, creating a barrier to connection for Liu. His role often involves introducing consumer electronics to US consumers, while the tech makers are Chinese.

He says, “To [the makers], it’s hard for them to speak in a language that will sell their product to American people. Despite that, we live in a modern global world; cultural differences can sometimes become very sensitive in terms of how we convince other people or how we go about the way we live our lives.”

Liu’s task is to understand the branding of the Chinese business and carry it across the cultural divide to reach American audiences for the Chinese electronic business’s benefit.

He notes that many companies try to save on budget by lowering production costs and moving production to their home country or other countries where production is less costly.

Liu tells clients that budget is not the biggest concern. In his professional experience, to sell a product to a different culture, you meet them where they are. 

He explains, “We need to understand and respect the culture, make the commercial on their domestic soil, in their own language, and really become friends with the culture, respect the culture.”

Each time Liu transports productions, he creates jobs in LA film production for local assistants, creatives, videographers, and more. 

If listening is his first step, communicating is his next, and his work shows how communication matters to his practice as a filmmaker and cultural explorer. 

Shokz x HYROX

Art and communication are evident in Liu’s work, but technology, specifically AI, also shapes his style. 

He directed a collaboration commercial campaign between Shokz, a bone-conduction headphone brand, and HYROX, a global fitness race. Liu’s Shokz x HYROX collaboration commercial won the Telly “Silver Winner in Generative AI-Branding” Award in 2026. 

This was not Liu’s first time working with Shokz. He directed a release campaign for Shokz’s flagship product, OpenFit2, in 2025. Later in 2026, he directed another campaign for Shokz’s OpenMeet in Los Angeles.

Liu repeatedly works with brands to bring their identity to Western audiences. In Shokz’s case, the company’s audiences are European and American, so he communicates the identity for two cross-cultural markets.

Dante Jiayu Liu’s Practice: Film, Tech, and Communication

Liu’s long-term ambition is to carry his cross-cultural advertising experience into narrative filmmaking. 

He has seen some success in film with Grandma’s House, a 2020 short film he directed, which later screened at a variety of film festivals, including the 15th FIRST International Film Festival. The film was a finalist at the USA Film Festival.

Listening is Dante Jiayu Liu’s first step to creating stories that audiences of different cultures can enjoy and share, and with his command of technology, communicating across cultures through media appears within his grasp. 

Written in partnership with Tom White