PORTFOLIO
Hao Guo is a skilled communications professional with experience in PR, content creation, and social media management. Passionate about helping organizations tell more engaging stories for a better future.
He holds a Master of Journalism from UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism (documentary track) and has a background in photography and fine art.
Below is a selection of his recent work.
Filmography & Photography
How to collect your blood sample (Video, 4:00)
Directed, produced, filmed, and edited for iHealth Labs, Inc.
iHealth CheckMeSafe Promo (Video, 0:29)
Directed, produced, filmed, and edited for iHealth Labs, Inc.
Mobility, Reimagined (Video, 4:08)
Produced and edited the segments based in Fremont, CA.
©Pony.ai, Inc.
One Hour Fully Driverless Ride in Fremont (Video, 12:31)
Produced and edited the entire video.
©Pony.ai, Inc.
A Way (Film, 24:41)
A short documentary that tells the stories of three Americans who converted to Buddhism and ordained as monastics. As they go about their lives at their respective monasteries in Mount Shasta, CA, Mountain View, CA, and Newport, WA, we learn about their struggles, their discoveries, and what they left behind.
The Lottery (Video, 2:42)
Bharat immigrated to the U.S. in 2008 as a recipient of the Diversity Immigrant Visa. After working countless minimum-wage jobs for 9 years, he took over a convenient store, with a new understanding of the American Dream.
East Lake Street, Minneapolis (Photography)
On East Lake Street, a vibrant and diverse area of Minneapolis, I held up a sign asking for people's stories in exchange for portraits.
I Wish People Knew... (Photography)
What is something you wish people knew about you? I asked folks this questions and they all had amazing answers after much deliberation.
Lorna (Photo slideshow with audio, 3:30)
A hairdresser in Minneapolis, Lorna is afflicted by dermatitis, diabetes, and alcoholism. She trusted me to document her life and present it to a larger audience. I thank her for being open and vulnerable.
Beautiful Oakland (Photography)
A project about the beauty of Oakland, CA, as well as its people, cultures, history, nature, and everything that makes the city uniquely beautiful.
Nostalgia (Photography)
Living away from home for the first time, first year college students write about the feeling that they get when they miss home.
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COVID-19 and Other Excuses: Anti-Asian Sentiments in US History
When 29-year-old Andy Liu learned that the tragic shootings at three Atlanta spas left eight people dead, six of whom Asian, it was another heavy straw on the proverbial camel’s back. In San Francisco, where he grew up and lives, it seemed like new cases of anti-Asian attacks were coming out every day for more than a month. The day before the shootings, an Asian man was stabbed in the face and another hit in the head multiple times. The day after, an elderly Asian woman was punched by a young white man, but struck back and sent him to the hospital. The video of her crying while berating the attacker got Liu tearing up. “That Asian lady could be my mom,” he wrote in a message.
Free to Pray: Being Muslim and Uzbek in America
“What is that? Is it Pakistan?” This was usually the response Andrew received whenever he told people that he’s from Uzbekistan. “I was proud to say I’m Uzbek.” Andrew, an Uber driver who lives in San Francisco, was used to his passengers never having heard of his homeland. “No, it’s Uzbekistan. We’re well-known for food,” he said, his voice rising as he talked about the pistachios and dried fruits produced in his hometown.
Then Uzbekistan suddenly became famous on October 31, when Sayfullo Saipov, an Uzbek immigrant who was inspired by the Islamic State group, allegedly drove a truck into a bike lane in Manhattan, killing 8 people and injuring 11. Overnight, Uzbekistan was in the news, mentioned alongside ISIS and terrorism. The Central Asian country was now on Americans’ minds, but only because of the horror associated with one of its citizens, much to the chagrin of Uzbeks living in the U.S.
Safe at Last: A Profile of Subhi Nahas
Subhi Nahas knew he had to flee Syria to protect himself when al-Qaeda forces invaded his hometown in 2011 and vowed to “cleanse the city of all sodomites.” Worried that his voice and demeanor would get him into trouble, he hired a taxi driver to drive eight hours to Beirut and navigate the gauntlet of government and militia checkpoints, while he pretended to be mute and deaf. “It was very stressful,” Nahas recalled. “There were a lot of aircraft, gunmen, and extremists.”
Five years later, as he sits in a busy café in San Francisco’s Mission district, Nahas talks about his arduous journey as a gay refugee with a surprising lack of gravity. After all, he has recounted his escape dozens of times while applying for refugee status, and dozens more times since then as an activist. At 30, Nahas is well-coiffed and stylish. A scar on his chin, the result of his father’s abuse, suggests his turbulent past.
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