UWindsor alumna Ashley Jun’s short film Legacy aired nationally on CBC’s Absolutely Canadian in July 2025. (Photo courtesy of Ashley Jun)
By Sara Elliott
The short film Legacy was inspired by director Ashley Jun’s personal experience with grief.
“Just two short months after my own dad had passed away, I came up with the idea for Legacy, while the loss was still very fresh,” says Jun, 2024 graduate of the communications, media and film program.
“The close relationship between my dad and I was something that I wanted to convey, and I thought what better way to share that than through art.”
Legacy, along with two other short films created by University of Windsor students from the department of Communication, Media and Film, aired on CBC’s Absolutely Canadian 2025 in July. The show is now streaming on CBC’s GEM.
“As an emerging filmmaker, it is an honour to have my work be one of the few selected for such an incredible opportunity that has allowed me to reach audiences on a national level,” says Jun.
“Not many young people have this kind of opportunity, and my team put a lot of hard work into this film, so I am very grateful to be receiving this recognition right out of graduation.”
Her film follows a young woman as she learns how to carry on the legacy of her late father through the art of painting. Jun says she explored love and loss and the grieving process in a way that makes the intangible tangible.
The other UWindsor directed films airing on GEM are Tulips by undergraduate Larissa Cioci and From Napoli with Love by graduate student Luca Cunial.
Jun created the film while an undergraduate in professors Tony Lau and Nick Hector’s class. Michael Stasko reached out to Jun, along with Cioci and Cunial, to provide distribution opportunities for their films.
“This has been such a great marriage with CBC,” says Stasko.
“Our film students are getting a chance to get their first major film credit by having their film air on CBC, while they are still in school. It's a huge leg up for them as they start their careers and I don't think there is another film school in the country that has this unique partnership.”
Legacy also screened at the Windsor International Film Festival and the Windsor-Essex Short Film Showcase.
Ashley Jun (center) with her film crew on the set of Legacy. The short film aired nationally on CBC’s Absolutely Canadian in July 2025. [Photo courtesy of Prof. Michael Stasko]
“The process of making this film has been an amazing way for me to honour my dad and carry on his legacy while also being an outlet for my personal grieving process,” she says. “I wanted to tell this story because I want to show people that grief can be messy and frustrating and beautiful all at the same time.”
Jun says her program equipped her with the knowledge, equipment, and skills necessary to make Legacy the film that it is today.
“It is thanks to the guidance and advice of expert CMF professors like Tony Lau and Nick Hector that I was able to make Legacy such a huge success, and I am very grateful to Professor Mike Stasko for seeing the potential in my work and providing an outlet to share my film on a larger scale.”
Jun is currently completing training with the Director's Guild of Canada’s Guild Apprenticeship Program as a set production assistant.