How The Knoedler Gallery Scandal Inspired Jing Ai Ng To Write ‘Forge’: “I Wanted To Make That Story More Me, More Miami” – SXSW Studio

Title: Forge Festival (section): Narrative Spotlight Director: Jing Ai Ng Logline: In Miami, the resourceful Zhang siblings—Raymond and Coco—sell forged paintings to unsuspecting parties. Despite their thriving underground operation, the siblings are still short on cash when they cross paths with disgraced millionaire Holden Beaumont. Sensing an opportunity to make a fortune, Holden convinces the Zhangs to forge long lost masterpieces as a front for his family’s collection. Meanwhile, FBI Art Crimes agent Emily Lee moves from New York to Miami, discovering a plethora of forgeries cropping up in the South Florida art market. As Emily continues to investigate the Zhang siblings’ work, their lives converge to devastating effect in the Zhang family dim sum restaurant. Related Stories SXSW 2025: All Of Deadline's Movie Reviews 'Odyssey' Review: A Woman In Trouble Turns To The Dark Side In Gerard Johnson's Tough London Thriller - SXSW Panelists: Kelly Marie Tran, Brandon Soo Hoo, Jing Ai Ng, Eva De Dominici, Edmund Donovan Watch on Deadline Key quote: The genesis of Forge specifically came from the Knoedler Gallery scandal up in New York and how the Chinese forger behind that $80 million scandal skipped town, no one has ever interviewed him, no one knows any details... I thought that story was fascinating and I wanted to make that story more me, more Miami... For me, thinking about the model minority and Asian American’s experience, art forgery seemed like a natural fit for me when I was writing this script. – Jing Ai Ng Check out the full video discussion above.