As darkness falls over Taipei City, an image of a woman named Lala illuminates the night sky. She’s one of Taiwan’s most famous live streamers, a niche group of celebrities who earn their fame through front-facing video cameras. Her face beams from a 100-foot-tall billboard overlooking Taipei.

Across Asia, countless other live streamers joke, eat, and sleep while being watched by thousands on smart phones and computer screens. The most successful among them can make fortunes enough to buy their own islands. But the industry’s hollow promise of intimacy can fuel a lonely existence for both stars and fans.

After a long day's work in a fabric factory, Junji Chen treasures time spent gazing into the eyes of his personal favorite,