“What can I get to you?” That’s the question driving a conflicted young hustler who sells everything and anything to make money. As he ‘code-switches’ through various cliques, he’s forced to confront racism as well as the immorality of his occupation. It's only Monday.

Interview with Writer/Director Dinh Thai

Watch Monday here:

Main image: Kwan greets an unexpected yet familiar person.

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

Thank you, WAMS! We made the short for HBO’s inaugural APA Visionaries contest. Surprisingly, we won. So if anyone has an HBO subscription, search for “MONDAY” and check it out.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

Because there are some really funny racist jokes in the film.

Emma wants to talk, Kwan can’t stick around.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

When writing the script, I was influenced by some very personal experiences regarding, race, love, and betrayal. So I tried my best to address those issues while keeping the story entertaining.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?

Casting and rehearsals were two aspects that evolved story and characters the most. During casting, Intae Kim (Officer Choi) simply scoffed at the word, “sir” and that caused me to rewrite the role to a younger version of his character. Kevin David Lin (Kwan) transformed himself into a troubled guy who’s pretending to be otherwise. If you know Kevin, he has a tough time hiding his positive energy. Joe Cadiff (Jerry) was the last actor on the casting day and he was able to perform various versions of his character, Jerry. He really went all out to explore a larger than life interpretation of what was on paper.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

Mostly positive feedback, but as life is, viewers may find it difficult to share their critical notes. Overall, it’s been a blessing. The audience really enjoys the subtle code-switching along with the character and story reveals. As of this interview, MONDAY has been accepted to 48 festivals and received 30 plus awards.

Kwan saved her once, but he was the one who caused her to overdose.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

Of course the positive feedback is good for the ego but the critical feedback gives me a chance to ponder and grow.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

I believe anytime anyone gets an opportunity to share their experience with others, it’s a good thing. We never know when and where inspiration strikes, so I hope there will be something in here that positively affects someone reading it.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

The goal is to turn MONDAY into a TV series. I’ve had general meetings with various networks and studios, but I recently left my managers and currently meeting managers, agents and producers in hopes to help move this idea forward.

MONDAY- Kwan accepts his first call of the day.

And of course journalists play an integral part to the whole. Without viewers sharing their thoughts and ideas in a public space, filmmakers such as myself, who are just scratching the surface, have a tough time being heard and seen. Thankfully, last year Rebecca Sun and Phil Yu both wrote some very positive articles about the film. Here they are if anyone is interested.

Hollywood Reporter

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/hbo-marks-asian-pacific-american-heritage-month-winning-short-998387

Angry Asian Man

http://blog.angryasianman.com/2017/05/adapt-or-die-navigating-worlds-of-dinh.html

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

A MONDAY TV series has a chance to reboot the collective minds that pigeonhole Asian-Americans as model-minorities. Sorry for all those buzz-words. Jeez!

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

Can a bunch of nobody Asian-Americans make a successful TV show for all of America?

What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?

All the cast and crew have been busy creating and working! If anyone is interested in what everyone is up to, check out the IMDB. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt6510684/?ref_=nm_knf_t1

I’ve been outlining a feature idea and some other TV ideas.

Interview: March 2018

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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTIAQ+, scifi, 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

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MONDAY

Length: 19 Minutes

Director: Dinh Thai

Producer: Brian Burgett

Writer: Dinh Thai

About the writer, director and producer:

Both Dinh and Brian have a long history in the commercial production world. They work together and individually on TV commercials and web content.

Key cast:

KEVIN DAVID LIN as KWAN

L.A. WILLIAMS as ANDRE

DIAMONIQUE NORIEGA as NINA

SARAH JOHANNA JEWELL as EMMA

INTAE KIM as OFFICER CHOI

GRACE SHEN as MAMA

Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists): YES! Please feel free to reach out. Happy to send out private links.

Social media handles:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mondayashortfilm/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/MondayShortFilm

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mondayashortfilm/

Other: https://www.dinhthai.com/ and http://www.artandstate.tv/

Funders: Art and State, Inc.

Where can I watch it next and in the coming month?

Streaming on HBO and screening at the following festivals.

March 11, 2018 - http://firstglancefilms.com/schedule/

March 10 & 11, 2018 http://www.taosshortz.com/2016/schedule-2017/2018-program-4/

April 11, 2018 - http://disorientfilm.org/

May 10 - 24, 2018 https://caamedia.org/caamfest/