Melbourne Documentary Film Festival 2020 – Wave
The film records a day of Akebaierjiang, an Uyghur young man living in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, China, whose life shifts between a passionate popping dancer and an ER doctor.
Interview with Writer/Director/Editor Xiaoan Zhang
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
The person in the film, Akebaierjiang, is my close friend. He has been loving Hip-hop dancing since high school, through seven years of med school to today while working as an ER doctor. I spent two days with him during a holiday when I went back to my hometown. I saw him try to seize a couple of hours to practice dancing before a long night shift. I heard him talking about how he wants to quit the job as a doctor and to be a professional dancer, but he is afraid of this idea and he knows his family may consider him crazy.
I can really empathize with his situation because my endeavor to be a film director and storyteller has also not been easy. No one in my family is in the Film or Art industry and they are not optimistic about my career. So I decided to record a day of Akebaierjiang's life, to tell his story.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
Akebaierjiang lives on a wave flowing back and forth between excited and sober moods, and this can be a miniature of many people, especially in less developed regions, who are working in careers such as a doctor that is more accepted by their family and society but who deeply in their hearts are eager and enthusiastic in creative art.
This film aims to present the struggle and balance between being responsible for a steady job in a real-life and pursuing a dream.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
Shooting this documentary film has been challenging because I had no idea what would happen during his duty at the ER center. The idea of creating this film was a spur of the moment in the beginning. I was there, I saw his life, and I wanted to capture it. I didn't have much time to develop an elaborated plan as I only could stay there for two days. In order to put the story together, I spent a lot of time in post-production.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
I have received a few feedbacks, for example, some found the cinematography not good and that the transition of his dancing and working was too hasty, others commented on Akebaierjiang acting talent.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
The feedback was true and helpful. There was no one helping me, I did everything myself, and was using a new camera that I never used before. After shooting, it really took me some time to grade the footages, which wasn't ideal.
The same goes for the number of footages. During the night shift in the emergency center, everything had to be fast, and I had to be extremely careful to not interfere with his work. I was only allowed to be there for one night, so I did not have much footage.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I would like to show my work to more audiences and to introduce myself and my works to more people in the industry.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Making a film needs an army. Anyone who is willing to help will be much appreciated.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
How do, could, or should we live our lives, being practical or keeping on pursuing dreams even though we may not be able to afford them?
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
How do, could, or should we live our lives, being practical or keeping on pursuing dreams even though we may not be able to afford them?
Interview: June 2020
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
Wave
The film records a day of Akebaierjiang, an Uyghur young man living in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, China, whose life shifts between a passionate popping dancer and an ER doctor.
Length: 5:07
Director: Xiaoan Zhang
Producer: Xiaoan Zhang
Writer: Xiaoan Zhang
About the writer, director and producer:
ZHANG XIAOAN is a writer and director born in Xinjiang, China and currently based in Melbourne, Australia. He received his Master’s Degree in Media Studies at The State University of New York at Buffalo in the USA. Zhang has created many short films of genres of Horror, Thriller, Drama and Experimental. His films have been screened worldwide including North America, Europe, and Australia.
Key cast: Akebaierjiang Abuliezi
Looking for: sales agents, journalists, distributors, film festival directors, producers, buyers
Facebook: Zhang Xiaoan
Instagram: @zxafilm
Hashtags used: #independentfilmmaking #shortdocumentary
Funders: Self-funded
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Melbourne Documentary Film Festival / Online preview - from 30th June 2020 till 15th July 2020.