Set in 1974, American Woman tells the story of the two very different women on the run. One is a fugitive for her actions in protest of the Vietnam war. The other is an heiress-turned-radical after an unimaginably violent break with her past. Adapted from the Pulitzer-shortlisted novel by Susan Choi, which re-imagines one of the most famous "lost years" of the twentieth century.

Interview with Director Semi Chellas

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

From the moment I read Susan Choi’s indelible novel, I saw the movie in it. I was struck by the visual possibilities and cinematic scope of it: a story of two fugitives, in safe houses and on the road, bringing to mind some of my favorite films — Badlands, Bonnie and Clyde, Thelma and Louise. I was fascinated by the timeliness and the timelessness of a story that raises questions of conviction, identity and political action. And I saw it played out in a beautiful, subtle, complex kind of love story.

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

Watch it for Hong Chau's Jenny, smouldering with rage, uncertainty and passion; and for Sarah Gadon's Pauline, luminous and fascinating and unknowable. The intertwining of their opposite lives is the heart of the movie.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

My obsession as a writer has always been with two questions—what makes us us? And how can we change? That is: how can we change both ourselves—and the world we live in?

This story recalls for me another watershed era in American politics, when some idealistic movements of the '60s had come unmoored, turning inward, growing decadent or degraded by violence, and the narcissism and consumerism of the '80s were just on the horizon. The story takes place at a moment where generations collide, and everything is about to change.

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

Absolutely—my understanding of Pauline (Sarah Gadon) shifted again and again over the course of writing the script, and I tried to give that evolving empathy to Jenny (Hong Chau). I wrestled with the question of whether love is a kind of brainwashing, whether violence is ever a way to change minds. The movie evolved as I worked with cinematographer Greg Middleton to find a way to tell the story that relies as much as anything on what is left unsaid. In the cut, we played with many ways to bring the audience to 1974 and to Jenny's point of view. I think that stories never really stop evolving, you only ever come to the end of your time with them.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

It's been incredible. People have been so moved by the relationship between the two women in the movie. And I'd underestimated how much it meant to tell this story from Jenny (Hong Chau's) point of view. I think the movie challenges people's preconceptions, and I think Jenny is an unusual heroine in so many ways.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

Absolutely—without giving anything away, the movie ends with Jenny in a state of deep doubt about everything she thought she knew. And I've loved hearing people argue about their own certainties coming away from it!

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

Like anyone, my greatest hope for the movie is that more people will see it! It can be difficult for small movies to find their way to the audiences that will love them, and it's been so gratifying for all of us who made it when this one does!

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

I want people to see it, and I want for the people who will love it to be able to find it! It will be opening soon and then streaming & I need to get the word out there.

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

I want people to revel in a film that chooses to tell a story from a point of view that we don't see often enough. From a lead actress who is Asian American to a complex take on the intertwining of violence, passion and conviction, I think it's a movie that really speaks to the moment we are in.

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

What does it take to change people's minds?
And how far would you go to do what you think must be done?

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

Developing a mini-series also set in the 1970s for HBO.

Interview: February 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

American Woman

Length: 1:25:00

Director: Semi Chellas

Producer: Christina Piovesan

Writer: Semi Chellas, Susan Choi (novel)

About the writer, director and producer:

SEMI CHELLAS wrote and directed the feature film American Woman. Chellas is best known as a writer/Co-Executive Producer of Mad Men, where she was nominated for six Emmys and shared the Writers Guild Award with creator Matthew Weiner. She joined Weiner again as Executive Producer and writer of Amazon’s The Romanoffs. Her teleplay for Showtime’s Restless Spirits was nominated for a daytime Emmy for the writing; the movie won numerous awards, including the Gold Prize at the New York Television Festival. Among her feature scripts are last year’s Ophelia (starring Daisy Ridley, Naomi Watts and Clive Owen) and the upcoming adaptation of Esta Spalding’s kid series Look Out For The Fitzgerald trouts! Chellas has also written non-fiction, made short films, and worked as a journalist. She was a screenwriter in residence at the University of Toronto; lectured at Cornell University, U.S.C., York University, and the City College of New York; and has mentored/taught at the Maisha Film Lab of East Africa, TriBeCa Festival’s Through Her Lens and this fall through the Sundance Institute.

Key cast: Hong Chau (Jenny Shimada), Sarah Gadon (Pauline), Ellen Burstyn (Miss Dolly), John Gallagher Jr. (Juan), Lola Kirke (Yvonne), David Cubitt (Agent John Spivey)

Looking for: journalists

Twitter: @americanwomanf2

Instagram: @americanwomanfilm

Hashtags used: #AmericanWoman

Other: IMDb

Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Female Eye Film Festival/Toronto - March 6th, 2020