NATE & LI (2023) | Yale Thesis Film
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- čas přidán 17. 04. 2024
- A Chinese-American high-schooler's insecurities cause him to seek social status over honoring his relationships.
A short film made as part of Professor Jon Andrew's Advanced Writing and Directing class for a Senior Thesis in the Film & Media Studies Department at Yale University.
Starring:
Zhuangming Wu
Joshua Krol
Qi Wang
Jesse Chen
Sean Rogers
Writer, Director, Editor - Ryan Zhou
Producer - Zoe Sinclair
Assistant Producer - Jessica Wang
Director of Photography - Charlie Gleberman
Sound - Tim Perdoch
Composer - Caroline Ho
Original Songs - Sven Yamaha & Roy Okaga
For My Mom
To Learn More About Foothills Film, Please Visit:
www.foothillsfilm.org/
So proud to have been a part of this film:') and so excited that the world now gets to see!!
Thank you Zoe! None of this was possible without you ❤️
RYAN! I have no idea how I came across this video but WOW! This was INCREDIBLE!!!!! I have a lot of scatterbrained thoughts but 1st, I must say this film was beautiful, so here are my stream-of-consciousness thoughts! I am blown away by the way that Nate embodies the insecurities of Nathan. I love the fact that Jason is constantly having to calm down Nathan's insecurities throughout the film. I love that his insecurities are there but never speak in the car with Mom. Once we arrive at the party Nathan's insecurities take the leading role and seem to be ahead of Nathan taking charge, greeting people, and finding the smallest things he knows he is confident in. At the party, we notice both Nate and Nathan drinking, showing the amount that Nathan is drinking in an attempt to quell his insecurities. Watching Nathan try to control Nathan as his social security blanket while actively pushing him away is so fascinating to watch. It is interesting watching Nathan repel people with his obsessive nature with his dice playing. It is so interesting to watch this display of toxic masculinity in order to fit in. At the same time, watching Jason try to take care of his friend that is super drunk is at first very painful to watch. You can see he really cares about his friend but he also leaves him completely alone. The fact that Nate is actively against his mother calling him is a clear sign of the fear that Nathan’s Mom gives Nate. It makes him really nervous to have her around as there seems to be a silencing of Nate that occurs through their interactions. The pivotal moment is when there is the big confrontation between Nate and Nathan. How, Nathan wants to apologize but Nate strikes hard. He hits with things we have heard earlier in the film “Nobody one likes you”. This confrontation was the moment I realized that Nate was not real. However, by the end of the film, I realized Nate is way more real than anything else in this film, as Nate is the embodiment of Nathan’s insecurities. Now, the only thing I am very unsure of is what Nathan did to Jason. He threw him to the ground and cussed him out? Was that it? I actually have a theory that Jason called his Mom in order to help him out. Mom arrives and I am angry that I did not have subtitles to know what Mom said through this part of the film because this was so heartbreaking to me. From her demands to apologize. She says this over and over again. Mom is the silencing of insecurities. Nate disappears when Mom arrives. Nate also stops Nathan from doing what Mom would want. As Mom is trying to get Nathan to talk to her he refuses and I broke at this moment because it was so powerful to watch. It was so difficult to watch as Mom wants the best and Nathan wallows in his embarrassment. I am almost certain Nathan was more embarrassed by how he acted rather than his mom’s influence. I also have a theory that Nate is actually very active in this car interacting and that is why Nathan curses at his mother and says some horrible things or is this the moment where Nate and Nathan become ONE or is this a moment that lets the audience sit with the fact that Nathan has been name dropped, this part I need to watch again. Finally, I need an "Ending Explained" video for this film because I am a black man and I heard that Asian families are similar to the black community, and I just cannot figure out how Nathan could talk to his mother that way.
Mr. Harris! This absolutely made my day. It's so hard for CZcamsrs to get started and this means so much to me, I'll remember this comment forever. You're totally on the nose about absolutely everything - I am so honored that you gave my work such close attention and commitment. I will try and make a video to talk about how the film was made and what my purpose was!
@@RCZFilms I'm anxiously awaiting the ending explained video!🤣🤣 Thanks for sharing this awesome work of art!
More thoughts later but damn … chills. Ryan you are amazing and I’m in awe of the art you create always
thank you Phoebe :')
Yo, this makes me so happy :))) absolutely stellar storytelling. Got super lucky being able to work on this with you (it’s Nate btw)
Thank you Josh 🤞
mama always told me i had to get my songs in a movie
this one was missing the baby talk outro but ig it was still pretty epic.
can't catch 'em all