An adult man's journey to find his childhood again.

Interview with Writer/Director Le Huy Anh

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

The origin of the project is a commercial one. I was tasked by a client to develop a creative campaign for the Vietnamese Lunar New Year, a festive occasion that celebrates family, a chance for all to reunite with our loved ones after a long year of hard work.

With the client's trust and support, I set out to produce a short film to tell a more unconventional tale of mother and child relationship, of people caring for other people. In the process, I wanted to depict love and reunion during the new year in a more genuine and cinematic manner, without the forceful cliché and hints of commercial product placement. Luckily, everyone was on board. It was a rare chance in Vietnamese marketing.

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

My endgame, whenever making a piece of visual storytelling, is always about connecting to audience cinematically. I always try to find a balance between the left and right side of our brain when it comes to watching contents. I want both to connect with the audience emotionally and entertain them visually.

In many ways, I wanted the film to feel very big aesthetically, subtle and relatable in tone at the same time. And hopefully, if the audience is invested enough in the first few dozens of seconds, there's a bit of a soulful payoff at the end.

The film itself was never meant to be a straight serious drama, but more like an anthem, a song, a poem.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

The experience of growing up in an Asian family with high expectations in many aspects of life is never an easy one. While my personal story could never be unique, I feel like the character of the Son in the film is a fictional creation of real thoughts and imaginations on my side. Love and resentment between members of the family are always blurred by time.

Although, my bigger thematic goal was never personal. I wanted from the beginning to put the spotlight onto the most unexpected, neglected or unknown of human relationships - the people who take 'giving' as their mantles in life. I am always curious about humans' limitless ability to give.

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

The backbone of the script from the start has always about the long journey home, ending with a touching revelation. However, it was a tad more ambitious in the first draft where we follow multiple characters and routes. As an effort to fit the idea into a smaller budget, the story was revised to revolve around one single character. The change made the story much more intimate. I also came up with more ideas to make the journey more epic and unique, hence the addition of the whole segment of the Son's family and his backstory and setting. The final script was not by any means a lesser challenge to film but in fact, giving me a chance to build the characters more wholesomely.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

Generally, the feedback has been positive. Although, I totally understand the nature of the film is a bit more on the "commercial" landscape of filmmaking so I feel like it has not reached a certain type of audience yet.

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

Similarly above, I want to connect to the largest possible audience. And of course, a certain type of audience that WAMS can bring is much appreciated.

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

Every chance to make a film, no matter long or short, big or small for me is precious. Working in the advertising world, I feel the need to reach outside of exactly that. The Mother is somehow the closest thing to an artistic achievement that I feel confident enough to share.

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

To connect to the vast ocean of talented people in the world. Honestly.

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

What are the most of valuables can one give to another? Is it love? Is it fortune? Is it even definable?

Would you like to add anything else?

A link to my personal reel: www.l-h-anh.com

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

As the crew and creatives and myself mostly work in the advertising world, we will soldier on. Personally, I am developing a couple of ideas for feature films. Those things take more than just hard work.

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

The Mother

An adult man's journey to find his childhood again.

Length: 4:42

Director: Le Huy Anh

Producer: Children Of

Writer: Le Huy Anh

About the writer, director and producer:

Le Huy Anh is approaching the 13th year of his advertising career and is now directing and producing his own creative ideas and writings.

Children Of is a Content Creation Studio formed by an alliance of filmmakers, writers, visual artists, musicians, crafters and production crews. Bonded by one common purpose: to create best-in-class communication products.

Key cast: Quang Su

Looking for: film festival directors, journalists, producers

Facebook: Le Huy Anh

Instagram: @andthereiseverythinginbetween

Hashtags used: #themother

Website: www.l-h-anh.com