Las Vegas Film Festival 2019 – Moth
Christine is a working actress fading into obscurity. Day by day, she works tirelessly with the futile hope of her career getting a second wind. As countless others in Los Angeles, she blindly follows her dream like a moth to flame, taking a toll on her family and herself.
We observe the banality of Christine's daily routines like a fly on the wall. Through her tasks, we get a glimpse of Christine's deteriorating mental state and an impending transformation.
Interview with Producer Shincy Lu
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
The team had a great collaboration in previous films and would love to recreate that energy. We wanted to challenge the rules of storytelling and the education we have been receiving, taking risks to create a new film experience. We wanted to be bold about our voices and allow audiences to be able to have a different experience about the beauty of dreams. We worked to show a different journey about Asian protagonist that hasn't really been told before. And we created Moth.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
Moth isn't like a regular narrative short film with a formal structure and a well-rounded ending. Moth is a meditative piece that is essentially a very personal story for every one of us. It takes you through our main character Christine's life, and let you immerse yourself in your own story. The unexpected ending will enlighten you about the journey that you had and provide you with a very spiritual awakening.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
Moth is not just a story about a female, an Asian, or an actress. It tells the story of people who are living to search for the meaning of life and stay true to themselves. It amplifies the journey of dreamers, who fights to chase our dreams as filmmakers and navigates in the world of fame and superficiality to get to who we really are. Like moths, we might touch the light and burst in flames; yet we ultimately reach an inner calm after the search, and make peace with ourselves.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
I think deep in our hearts, we have always known what we wanted to say. The most amount of discussion took place at forming who the protagonist is and her journeys. The scaffolds have always been there and even after almost half a year of development class and feedback, it didn't change much. We allowed for a lot of improvisation during shooting and that opened a door for us. In editing, it was also pretty straight-forward and the final cut didn't differ too much from the first cut. I think the film really benefited from not overly development and stayed true to the filmmakers' initial creation.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
The feedback we received was pretty much from both side of the spectrum; some loved it, some don't get it. Many who have experience in Hollywood, and those who have experienced the game of power and desire, resonates a lot with the film and adores the transformation.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
We have expected such feedback and know that this is what we would like to see. Moth is a very particular and private film, in all aspects including its visual, sound, editing, music and pacing. It delivers the audiences to a different destination so we expect that some people may find it a bit disoriented. It hasn't surprised us; as a matter of fact, we hope to open up the audiences' experience and introduce them to different perspectives.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
We hope more people see Moth and feel the journey of Christine. Moth is a film made by a team of people from different cultural background, and it is very encouraging to see a collective experience shared among filmmakers and audiences. We encourage more films that express universal experience and values to be produced with a diversified team.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
We would like more people to be more open about stories and storytellings, especially for formats like short films, where one can relatively freely create and embrace the risks. Through Moth, we also wish to show more behind the scenes in Hollywood and break the onscreen stereotypes of Asian protagonist that have been portrayed.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
The story was initially about an aging white actress, but after a long discussion, our team decided to have her be Asian. While race is a part of our everyday life, it brings us to think about the role of race, and the role of gender, in our path to our dreams. I personally do not wish to see myself in any way at disadvantages being an Asian female filmmaker, and I hope to tell stories about characters that do not wear a hat of "Race" and "Gender" as if these are the things that get in the way of success. But in reality, is that what's actually happening? And how do we, as Asian or female filmmakers ourselves, choose to tell our story? For me, race and gender aren't just a hashtag or a politically-correct topic; these are part of our lives, identities and heritages that we live and breathe every day. I think this has been a question that has been raised both onscreen and behind the screen for this film.
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
I am currently developing a limited series, an animation and a feature drama script for my production company based in LA and setting up co-production partners in China. The director and writer are developing a limited series together. Our editor, production designer and DP are working on projects that have won awards across the world. It is very exciting to see people that are dedicating themselves to the things they truly love and stories that they truly feel, and not just the light of fame and power of the entertainment world.
Interview: October 2019
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
Moth
Christine is a working actress fading into obscurity. Day by day, she works tirelessly with the futile hope of her career getting a second wind. As countless others in Los Angeles, she blindly follows her dream like a moth to flame, taking a toll on her family and herself.
We observe the banality of Christine's daily routines like a fly on the wall. Through her tasks, we get a glimpse of Christine's deteriorating mental state and an impending transformation.
Length: 17:00
Director: Shu Zhu
Producer: Shincy Lu
Writer: G. Wilson
About the writer, director and producer:
SHU ZHU received an MFA from Directing at AFI and a graduate from NYU with a BFA in Film and TV Production. After a period of assistant work for Martin Scorsese’s Sikelia Productions and Chinese artist He Xiangyu, Shu co-founded a boutique production company, Noface Productions while freelancing as a producer and cinematographer for independent projects in New York. The films Shu's directed/produced have been showcased at festivals around the world, such as New York City Independent Film Festival, NewFilmmaker New York, China Independent Film Festival, Asian American International Film Festival, among others.
G. WILSON was born and raised in Las Vegas, NV. During his studies at UNLV, he was honored with the College of Fine Arts DeVos Scholarship. Several of his films have screened at the Las Vegas Film Festival, and he was awarded the festival's Young Cinema Lab Grant in 2015. After obtaining his BA in Film Studies, he was hired to write and produce content for Vegas.com. Graduated from screenwriting discipline at American Film Institute, he enjoys writing about heavy stuff like society, life, existence, etc.
Born and raised in Canton, China, SHINCY LU graduated from UCLA and later received an MFA degree in producing from the prestigious American Film Institute Conservatory. As a passionate creator of independent arthouse films, Shincy is among the pioneering force of the younger Chinese independent filmmakers to connect the arthouse markets across the world. Her works have premiered across the globes in festivals and exhibitions, such as TIFF, LA Shorts, Woodstock Film Festival, Girona Film Festival and more. Shincy is now the executive producer for Monday Pictures LLC in Los Angeles and YiLu Pictures in Guangzhou, China, focusing on content and stories that are cultivated under the social-economical political environment of the 21st century.
Key cast: Jeanie Lim(Christine); Ricky Pak(James); Harmonie He(Annie); Joshua McHugh(Archie); Hana Wu(Dolly); Audrey Cain(Jennifer); Troy Hatt(Bobby); Chad Steers(Agent).
Looking for: distributors, buyers, journalists
Facebook: MOTH
Instagram: @moththefilm
Website: www.moththefilm.com
Other: IMDb
Where can I watch it next and in the coming month? Sept 26 5:00PM Centro de Capacitación Cinematográfica, Panoramica Independent Film Festival, Mexico City, Mexico; Sept 27 4:00PM Museo Nacional de las Artes, Panoramica Independent Film Festival, Mexico City, Mexico; Sept 27 5:30PM Dyna Theater, Albuquerque Film and Music Experience, Albuquerque, USA; Oct 9 2019 8:00PM Pulqueria Insurgentes, Panoramica Independent Film Festival, Mexico City, Mexico; Oct 10 2019 5:00PM Centro de Capacitación Cinematográfica, Panoramica Independent Film Festival, Mexico City, Mexico; Oct 26 2019 2:00PM UME Cinema, ChongQing Youth Film Festival, Chongqing, China; Oct 26 2019 3:00PM SIFF Cinema Uptown, National Film Festival for Talented Youth, Seattle, WA, USA