It’s tough being a teen.
On the heels of his Oscar-nominated short film “Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó,” director Sean Wang’s new film “Dìdi” explores the growing pains of adolescence through the lens of Chris, a Taiwanese American teenager. GBH’s Executive Arts Editor and The Culture Show host Jared Bowen sat down with Wang to discuss the resonance of his first feature film ahead of a screening event at Coolidge Corner Theatre.
Wang said his film drew “a lot, and a little” from his own upbringing in the mid-2000s as the son of Taiwanese immigrants.
“I do think the things that I was trying to mine from my personal life were the things that I felt like I knew like the back of my hand, a lot of that Warped Tour music, emo, pop-punk,” he said. “I felt permission to fictionalize and dramatize to serve the themes of a story. To me, the autobiographical [aspect] was just what textures and details that feel lived in and raw.”
The film’s main character exemplifies the feeling of “searching for an identity in a time where everyone around him is also searching for an identity.”
“He’s a 13-year-old boy, and that comes with a whole set of insecurities and confusion and turbulence that is amplified by having an immigrant mom … and the sort of intergenerational family dynamics that are happening under one roof with his grandma,” said Wang. “[The film] is trying to capture all of that in a way that wasn’t trying to shy away from the pain that came from a lot of that, the sadness and the confusion, but also the irreverence, the joy and the silliness.”
Chris’ mother, Chungsing, is played by legendary Chinese American actress Joan Chen, who Wang described as “incredible” to work with.
“Joan is a legend, she’s a proper movie star,” said Wang. “She was so flexible and malleable and knew the feeling I wanted to capture with this movie.”
He explained how Chen helped shape the film. They reworked the script and cut lines that she felt were “getting in the way” of her acting.
“Beyond her performance and her presence as an actor, I think of her as … someone who supports young independent filmmakers like me,” added Wang.
Chen’s presence on set helped Wang with what he described as a difficult task: directing his own grandmother, who plays Chris’ grandmother in the film.
“My Chinese is pretty limited, and so with my grandma, I would try to give her notes and it’d be like, ‘I don’t know how to say that in Chinese,’” said Wang. “With Joan being right there next to me, sometimes I would literally turn to her and be like, ‘How do I say this word in Chinese?’”
“So much of the reason I think that the relationship works is because Joan, as the experienced actress, has to be the water that holds it all together,” said Wang. “At my grandma’s very best, she’s not performing, she’s just being in the moment. … I have to be flexible and make sure that I am not getting in the way of her performance.”
With all of the successes of his nascent career, Wang is passionate about his path.
“I think I’m really living the dream right now. I’m getting to make stuff with people I like being around, and my friends, and we all get to do it together,” he said. “I think as long as I get to keep doing that with projects that excite me, I’m happy.”
To hear more from Sean Wang, listen to the full interview above. Listen to The Culture Show daily at 2 p.m. on 89.7.
