Lisa Mao

Lisa Mao is the director, writer, and co-producer of A Tale of Three Chinatowns. With a career in non-fiction television as a development executive and producer, Mao is responsible for the creation and launch of more than 500 hours of programming for channels including National Geographic Channel, Disney Plus, HGTV, History Channel, Animal Planet, Investigation Discovery, WEtv, Discovery, DIY, and Travel Channel.

Most recently as Vice President of Development at Nat Geo in Washinton, DC, she developed the Emmy nominated series Secrets of the Elephants and the channel’s first-ever birding show Extraordinary Birder with Christian Cooper. She is also the writer and co-producer of Through Chinatown’s Eyes: April 1968, a film documenting the voices of Chinese-Americans caught in the crosshairs of the 1968 Washington, D.C. Riots.