Melbourne Documentary Film Festival / The Women's Film Festival 2020 – I Love You Too
A gentle, reflective documentary about the relationship between a young woman (the filmmaker) and her mother. The filmmaker held a live Chinese painting performance to support her mother reclaiming her artist past.
Interview with Writer/Director/Editor Chouwa Liang
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
I had the idea of making this film the moment I found out my mom was taking anxiolytics.
I used to believe she was the only happy person in my family. She was always surrounded by countless friends, former colleagues and customers. She was also very active on the internet and posted at least 20 pictures of her life on social media every day. During the first 5 years I spent abroad, the only consistent habit I had was checking her social media posts every evening to see what was going on in my family.
One day, however, when I went back to China, I saw a tiny white bottle on her bedside table. It was a medicine bottle covered with a beautiful hand-writing label “little happy pills”. I asked her what that was. She told me she had been taking anxiolytic for two years so she renamed the anti-anxiety pills into “little happy pills”.
Later on, I discovered my mom started painting again after her retirement, so I planned to use this opportunity to make a film together. After all, I thought, if I am going to reveal other people’s vulnerability, I should first be able to reveal my own vulnerability.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
Everyone will experience, be experiencing, or experienced a midlife crisis. Anxiety happens everywhere, especially within families. As a family member, to learn how can we deal with anxieties and help people we love is important. That’s why, I believe, this personal film is deeply related to everyone’s life. Generally speaking, people who are interested in female, Asian, or family topics will be interested in this documentary.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
My film focuses on the universality of identity creation, and on the relationship (we could say, struggle) between personal identity and the identity promoted by nationalistic discourses. This is the point in which the personal history of the participants of my documentaries collide with the history of their nation. In this broad theme of identity, you can include gender, race, etc.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
During the process of developing my script and the film itself, I have been really emotional. It is a personal issue related to my family, so the consequences are obvious. The hardest part of this process is to learn how to jump out of the cycle of self-movement and find the commonality of everyone’s story. All mother-daughter relationships are different, that’s the truth, but nevertheless, people could get the essence of the dynamic of my own relationship with my mom. Actually, after three months developing the script, I think I did it.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
“This very uncomplicated film, in its presentation, reveals the emotional depth of the relationship between two women at its heart while simultaneously showing the birth of a striking artwork. All is done with deceptive simplicity. Organising a live event and filming it, and at the same time exploring the deep emotional issues between the filmmaker and her mother could present enormous challenges in less skilful hands”. (Daryl Dellora, a multi-award-winning director, writer and producer who has been making documentary films for many years).
“Embarking on a film with loved ones – especially when you are part of it – is a huge challenge for so many reasons but I think Chouwa did a great job navigating this process in a mature and thoughtful way”. (Natalie Cunningham, a Melbourne-based director and editor)
“The performance was beautiful, and the warmth and love were oozing off the screen. There was some background information about her anxiety and a little archival material - the photo at the beach is terrific”. (Rob Stephenson, films as writer/director/animator/producer)
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
I feel the feedback connected with my own opinions about the film as a final output, so in that sense, they did not challenge my point of view. What was a real influence was interacting with my participant throughout the filming process, and I think that dimension can be found already in the comments I have received so far.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
I am looking for more opportunities to release my film on different platforms. Also, I am looking for an opportunity to extend my films into a longer version. I am also happy to discuss further ideas with filmmakers who are interested in this topic.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
I would include producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, and journalists.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I hope the film is received as a work on the intricacies of family relationships, no matter which specific cultural background. My lens does not point towards happy moments but complicated issues (this time health and the passing of time) that serve as a standpoint for the analysis of the relationship between a mother and her daughter.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
What does it mean to share the suffering of a family member in the era of positivity and social media?
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I am developing an independent documentary about sexual assault cases had happened in China and now I am in the process of researching.
Interview: July 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
I Love You Too
A gentle, reflective documentary about the relationship between a young woman (the filmmaker) and her mother. The filmmaker held a live Chinese painting performance to support her mother reclaiming her artist past.
Length: 9:44
Director: Chouwa Liang
Producer: Sophie Cellier
Writer: Chouwa Liang
About the writer, director and producer:
CHOUWA LIANG is an Australia-based Chinese documentary filmmaker, researcher and language teacher. Currently, she is undertaking a Master of Fine Arts: Film and TV (Documentary Filmmaking) at the Victorian College of the Arts, University of Melbourne. She also worked as a Chinese lecturer/tutor at the University of Sydney and published a research paper about Australian-Chinese heritage language identity development.
Originally from France, SOPHIE CELLIER moved to Melbourne in 2016 to complete a Bachelor of Commerce at The University of Melbourne. She has a passion for films since a young age, leading her to do the Master of Producing at the Victorian College of the Arts, as well as a part-time acting course at the 16th Street Studio. She also works as a free-lance producer RedCab Media, which specialises in TV advertising.
Key cast: Sophie Cellier (Producer), William He (Cinematographer), Guangyi Zhang (Cinematographer), Tess McArthur-Dowty(Sound), Fabrizio Evans (Still), Ruby Davis (Art Designer), Rachel Tierney (Production Manager)
Looking for: sales agents, distributors, film festival directors, journalists, producers, buyers
Facebook: Chouwa Liang
Hashtags used: #family, #women, #Asia, #independentfilmmaker
Funders: Self-funded
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Melbourne Documentary Film Festival (Online)/Melbourne - 30th June 2020; The Women's Film Festival/Philadelphia - June 19, 2020