Whilst putting together her thesis film, US-based Chinese filmmaker Yanghuixiao Gao (Gaoyang) returned to her hometown in China and spent a considered amount of time with her mother and grandmother which in turn shaped and drew her to the natural denouement of her short What If. Although Gaoyang initially felt a pull to depict the struggles women experience with their reproductive health, over time that focus became part of a central narrative exploring motherhood and the beauty, pain and awkwardness that exists in mother-daughter relationships. Shot with an accomplished simplicity in the filmmaker’s hometown and harnessing natural light to bring home the almost mundane realism in the film, What If‘s apparent simplicity belies a richly layered and emotionally complicated story. With What If currently enjoying a successful festival run, we spoke to Gaoyang about honing the development of the film’s characters after examining her own relationship with her mother and grandmother,...
- 10/19/2023
- by Sarah Smith
- Directors Notes
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