May Thyn Kyi (24) was born in Yangon to parents from the Rakhine and Inn ethnic groups in western Myanmar and central Shan State, respectively. Frustrated by constraints for women working in journalism, she left reporting and announcing jobs at the Eleven Media Group and Mandalay FM to instead work in communications for the Rainfall Feminist Organization. Since joining YFS in 2020, she has worked on several projects, such as fellow student Mai Aik Yunn’s A Boy with Dreams. Shifting Sands is her directing debut.