Joseph V Lingad

Joseph V. Lingad, director/producer, started his career as a camera assistant on TV shows, commercials, and narrative films in 2008. He got his break in journalism in 2011, when he was hired as a videographer by The Wall Street Journal and soon began producing personal finance videos. He worked with its sister companies, MarketWatch and Barron’s, until 2022, developing news stories on income inequality, the student loan crisis, and America’s epidemic of loneliness. Joseph gravitates to stories about social and socioeconomic issues and corporate accountability.

After a decade working in a newsroom, Joseph returned to school in 2022 to obtain a master’s in business and economics reporting, specializing in documentary. While at school, Joseph developed a 34-minute version of “Don’t Look Away” as his Capstone project under the guidance of award-winning filmmakers Yoruba Richen, Judith Helfand, Sabrina Gordon, and others.

Joseph is turning his short film into a feature-length documentary that will include his own experience living with a cleft lip and palate. The feature film was originally about four adults with various facial differences and how their unique appearances have impacted their friendships, romantic relationships, and careers. Nine years into production, Joseph realized that the four adults and his newborn son had surprisingly helped him finally come to terms with his facial difference: he’s able to look into the mirror without wincing and looking away.