Anastasia Lin is an award-winning actress, beauty pageant titleholder, and human rights advocate. In 2015, Lin won the Miss World Canada title, and was to represent Canada at the Miss World pageant in China. However, she was refused a visa and declared persona non grata by Chinese authorities for her outspoken views on the country's human rights violations, notably the persecution of prisoners of conscience and forced human organ trafficking.
The news of her rejection—and subsequent failed attempt to enter China—caused global media attention for weeks, leading to a front-page article in The New York Times and op-eds in major newspapers. Since then, she has been invited to speak at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, the Oxford Union, and the Geneva Human Rights Summit at the UN, and the Oslo Freedom Forum. She has also testified in the US Congress, the UK Parliament, and the Taiwanese Legislative Assembly.
Anastasia has been listed as one of the "Top 25 under 25" by MTV, a "Top 60 under 30" by Flare, and called "The Badass Beauty Queen" by Marie Claire. She was one of 11 stakeholders selected to meet with Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird upon the establishment of Canada's Office of Religious Freedom. Her articles have appeared in The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, The Globe and Mail, and other major newspapers.
The documentary, Badass Beauty Queen, is based on Anastasia's own experience and journey. It will be screening in New Zealand for the first time as part of the La Fiesta 2022 and Women's Day celebrations.
Theresa Kowall-Shipp, the director of Badass Beauty Queen is the award-winning TV/media professional who has produced, created, directed and/or written shows for multiple networks including Discovery, National Geographic, Food Network Canada, Asian Food Channel, BBC, and Discovery Kids. She stated, "In following/documenting Anastasia's story, I have alternately been fascinated, frightened and frustrated. I've uncovered some very unattractive truths juxtaposed against a world of glitter and glamour. I have watched as Anastasia rode the roller-coaster of her private and public life, all the while endeavouring to bring attention to the plight of the Chinese people, including her own father. I've cried with her, worried about her father and feared for a world where a country can reach into the sanctity of another and cause disruption. Not to mention the horrors that country unleashes on its own people. Still girlish, definitely glamorous, brave and brash, this young woman has inspired and taught me a lot over the last two years. My hope is that Badass Beauty Queen, the Story of Anastasia Lin will do the same for viewers all over the world."