NARRATIVE FEATURE
OCTOBER 20, 2022 | UPDATED NOVEMBER 18, 2022
USA | 78 minutes | 2022
Drama feature film directed by Evelyn Lee
Starring Shirley Lee, Evelyn Lee
Mother Daughter
After receiving devastating news, a mother and daughter must process their new reality and relationship with each other.
CineAsian Films boarded the film as its sales rep earlier in the year and brokered the deal with Goldenview.
Interview
CineAsian Films (CAF): Congratulations on making a feature film! That’s no easy feat. What inspired you to take on this gargantuan task and tell this story?
Evelyn Lee: Thank you! I’d been meaning to make a feature for many years, but the stars never aligned. We lost financing and scheduling was such a difficult task. It’s a much longer, complicated process than tackling short films and it’s definitely something you have to sit with for a long time. Someone once told me that I have to really believe in the story before taking it on for a feature – it’s so true. It’s such a long, tedious process that if the passion just isn’t there, you’ll want to give up very early on.
This story was inspired by my own personal experience. It was a very terrifying diagnosis to deal with, but ultimately we soldiered through and came out of the other side. The film explores more of the mother’s point of view and the moments where both mother and daughter process this kind of uncertainty and fear. This was a pretty cathartic experience for me and I realized while making this that I never really processed that entire ordeal fully and just kind of blocked it out.
CAF: Did the difficulty with scheduling lead you to take on multiple roles? How did you make that happen?
Lee: Yes, that played a major role as well as our loss of financing. We had to strip everything down to the bare minimum and find the core of the story. There were still so many helpful and wonderful people who supported us along the way and I’m so deeply grateful. But ultimately, in addition to acting, directing, writing, and producing, I also shot, edited, and composed the film. I had done it in the past on short films, but a feature required much more preparation. Especially since I would be in front of the camera and shooting at the same time. A lot of blocking and framing had to be done well in advanced to shooting to make sure everything would work out. It was a lot, and I definitely sound insane for saying this, but I’d do it again.
CAF: What do you hope people can take away from this story?
Lee: I hope that it makes people feel less alone and appreciate the little things in life more. You never really think anything will happen to you until it does and it reminds you of just how limited our time here is – so go out and make the most of it. We all have so many fears and uncertainty, but sometimes the best way to handle it is to keep moving forward.
CAF: What’s next for you? Are you working on anything new and exciting?
Lee: I’m working on several different things all in different albeit early stages right now, so there’s a lot I’m not allowed to say. But I really do hope to make another feature soon (financing willing), while continuing to make shorts in between. I’m also working on a several series ideas and a podcast, which have been really fun learning experiences so far.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Mother Daughter is one of the many great projects shared with CineAsian Films through our submissions process. If you’d like to join them, submit your project.
Credits
Director, Writer, Cinematographer, Editor, Composer: Evelyn Lee
Producers: Shirley Lee, p.g.a., Evelyn Lee, p.g.a.
Production company: Carnation Pictures
Distributor: Goldenview
More from Evelyn Lee: Recapture, Wish, Nox
CineAsian Films 