SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN -- Wayne Wang Interview
Series: Behind the Scenes
From: Andrea Chase
Length: 00:16:21
Wayne Wang started his career with films exploring the Chinese experience, most notably, CHAN IS MISSING, an indie hit about a cab driver in San Francisco's Chinatown. After a sojourn working in studio films such as THE JOY LUCK CLUB and then THE LAST HOLIDAY, he returned to his indie and ethnic roots with THE PRINCESS OF NEBRASKA and now, SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN, adapted from the novel by Lisa See. When we spoke on July 6, 2011, he discussed using the feminine side of his nature, understanding the effect of high heels by wearing a pair for a day, and why he changed the novel's plot by including a parallel story set in present-day Shanghai. He also speaks frankly about the pitfalls of making a film with Asian characters for a non-Asian audience, and how he ended up on a radical Quaker ranch when he first arrived in the United States from China.
Also in the Behind the Scenes series
OTTER 501 -- Mark Shelley and Katie Pofahl interview
(00:18:25)
From: Andrea Chase
Executive Producer/Director of Photography Mark Shelley and star Katie Pofahl talk otters, kelp forests, and doing the right thing.
LAST CALL AT THE OASIS -- Jessica Yu interview
(00:09:58)
From: Andrea Chase
Filmmaker Jessica Yu talks water, spin, and denial.
SOUND OF MY VOICE -- Zal Batmanglij and Brit Marling interview
(00:13:24)
From: Andrea Chase
Zal Batmanglij and Brit Marling talk metonymy, subversion, and embracing the apocalypse.
BERNIE -- Richard Linklater interview
(00:10:02)
From: Andrea Chase
Richard Linklater talks law, justice, and small town life.
THE PIRATES! BAND OF MISFITS -- Co-director Peter Lord interview
(00:12:57)
From: Andrea Chase
Peter Lord talks animated dreams, ukulele outbreaks, and creative anachronisms.
MARLEY -- Ziggy Marley Interview
(00:08:06)
From: Andrea Chase
Ziggy Marley talks reggae, filmmaking, and overcoming fear.
THE PEOPLE VS. THE STATE OF ILLUSION -- Filmmaker Austin Vickers
(00:19:11)
From: Andrea Chase
Austin Vickers talks attitude, imagination, and particle physics.
THE LUCKY ONE -- Nicholas Sparks interview
(00:12:21)
From: Andrea Chase
Nicholas Sparks talks romance, editing, and why dogs are an author's best friend.
DETENTION -- Director/co-writer Joseph Kahn interview.
(00:10:11)
From: Andrea Chase
Joseph Kahn talks short forms, intricate plots, and falling in love with Britney.
THE CABIN IN THE WOODS -- Drew Goddard and Amy Acker interview
(00:08:14)
From: Andrea Chase
Director/co-writer Drew Goddard and co-star Amy Acker talk existentialism, office parties, and the enduring appeal of the Whedon-verse.
Related Pieces
Piece Description
Wayne Wang started his career with films exploring the Chinese experience, most notably, CHAN IS MISSING, an indie hit about a cab driver in San Francisco's Chinatown. After a sojourn working in studio films such as THE JOY LUCK CLUB and then THE LAST HOLIDAY, he returned to his indie and ethnic roots with THE PRINCESS OF NEBRASKA and now, SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN, adapted from the novel by Lisa See. When we spoke on July 6, 2011, he discussed using the feminine side of his nature, understanding the effect of high heels by wearing a pair for a day, and why he changed the novel's plot by including a parallel story set in present-day Shanghai. He also speaks frankly about the pitfalls of making a film with Asian characters for a non-Asian audience, and how he ended up on a radical Quaker ranch when he first arrived in the United States from China.
Intro and Outro
INTRO:Andrea Chase takes you Behind the Scenes of SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN with director, Wayne Wang. It's a tale told in two centuries about the power, pain, and pleasure of female friendship. The same actresses, Gianna Jun and Li BingBing portray two sets of low tung, or old sames, women who have signed a formal contract to be each other’s best friend forever. In the 19th century, they are Snow Flower and Lily, one rich, one poor, who suffer foot-binding on the same day, both in hopes of landing a good match, and remain close despite the vicissistudes of separation, changes in fortune, and familial obligations. In the present, they are Sophia and Nina, the former an unloved step-child of a class-conscious woman, the other an adored daughter of a struggling family who have pinned their hopes on their daughter’s achievements. Though it is only the former pair of friends who use Nu Shu, a secret women’s language, to communicate, the subtlety of long-term, committed relationships makes for its own specific, inside language used by the friends to communicate with one another, or not, as the case may be. Wang directed from a script by Michael K Ray, Ron Bass, and Angela Workman, which in turn was based on the book by Linda See. Wang burst upon the indie film scene with his groundbreaking CHAN IS MISSING, set in San Francisco’s Chinatown, and has since gone on to direct THE JOY LUCK CLUB, SMOKE, and THE PRINCESS OF NEBRASKA.
OUTRO:Andrea Chase has taken you Behind the Scenes of SNOW FLOWER AND THE SECRET FAN with its director, Wayne Wang.
