Theater student launches Kwento Comics to boost more Asian roles in Hollywood

“The Mask of Haliya,” the first issue of Waverley Lim’s Kwento Comics, follows the mystical adventures of Filipina teenager Marisol

A Filipino-American fourth-year theater student and her mother have launched a comic book series to boost female and Asian American representation in Hollywood through graphic novels.

“The Mask of Haliya,” the first issue of Waverley Lim’s Kwento Comics, follows the mystical adventures of Filipina teenager Marisol.

The story addresses themes of Philippine social norms, corruption, and mental health, but Lim said she also hopes it encourages young Asian American girls to take pride in their identities.

“Visibility is just so important for any young girl growing up to see themselves reflected, to see a role model, to see something to aspire to,” Lim told the Daily Bruin.

Her move to Los Angeles in 2018 inspired Kwento Comics, when the lack of roles written for Asian Americans pushed her and her mother, Cecilia, into action,

Kwento Comics producer Waverly Lim | Photo from IMDB

As an aspiring actress, Lim said she realized that the lack of Asian characters in the entertainment industry could be filled by creating more Asian roles in other forms of media.

“On-screen representation really starts from off-screen with writers who look like us, who share our stories, who share our culture,” Lim told the Daily Bruin.

As Kwento Comics producer, Lim recruits and facilitates the work of writers and artists who share the company’s mission.

Kwento Comics head writer Kaitlyn Fajilan said the plot of “The Mask of Haliya” builds off a Philippine fable about a beautiful goddess who escapes the dragon Bakunawa by hiding herself with a golden mask.