It took Thuy Vy just three weeks to direct
‘Still Life’ – a short film that debuted at ADFEST 2018 as part of our Fabulous
Four program.
Despite the intensely tight deadline, he
did an incredible job, casting actors from the most unlikely places. ‘Still
Life’ went on to win the Popular Vote at ADFEST, winning over the audience with
its beautiful exploration of nostalgia. From there, it was a finalist at Young Director
Award 2018 in Cannes.
Based in Sydney, Australia, Vy is one of
four emerging directors who took part in the 2018 Fabulous Four short film
competition, which is designed to kick-start the careers of commercial
directors based in the Asia Pacific and Middle East.
We’re happy to report he’s doing amazing
things since attending ADFEST 2018. He has just finished directing two music
videos, is currently exhibiting at the Perth Centre for Photography, and is now
working on another exhibition to open in 2019.
‘Still Life’ was a popular vote winner at ADFEST, and went on to be a finalist at YDA 2018 in Cannes. Has this opened any doors for you?
I learnt a lot through the process of
making the film and doing it in such a short time. Being at ADFEST also opened my eyes to the
richness and breadth of advertising in the region. From speaking to many industry people,
everyone is keen to develop and push the boundaries of creativity within the
limits of advertising.
Winning the popular vote at ADFEST and
being nominated for YDA has given me confidence in pursuing my work and
continuing to do it without compromise to my aesthetic and philosophy. It has opened doors… I’ve made so many
contacts through ADFEST. I’ve yet to get back to all of them. I’ve been
contacted by producers and am speaking to a few people about future projects.
Let’s start with your idea for ‘Still Life’, a story about a girl whose camera takes pictures of the future. How did you get the idea for this script?
I don’t remember exactly how I arrived at
the idea for ‘Still life’. I think it
eventuated from all my obsessions and interests and slowly came into
being. I studied photography at uni and
I’m always working on multiple series and exhibiting. One of my ongoing series
is on garage sales and trash and treasure markets. The people, things I
photographed informed the concept of ‘still life’. This combined with reading about photography,
time, nostalgia, ‘saudade’, ‘mono aware’… our need to photograph to preserve
moments in time…. And then questioning it all. Why… what if?
You had around six weeks to make ‘Still Life’. What were the biggest challenges of working with 7 kids, adult doubles, two dogs and obsolete or expired Polaroid stock?
We had six weeks from finding out our
scripts were chosen as the next Fabulous Four to making the film. I was busy on
other things and didn’t start working on getting ready until we hand three
weeks to go.
Having no funding, or limited self-funding,
made it difficult to get casts interested – especially trying to match seven
young kids and adults and do it in a short timeframe. We ended casting through
word of mouth and people we knew. The
lead girl was at my daughter’s dance school.
It was her first day there. I saw her and asked her mum about the
possibility of auditioning…
On set, all the cast were great. The
challenge was the time we had to shoot… and working with polaroid stock that
was obsolete and out of date. The story relied on the clarity of some of the
polaroid shots, especially shots of the dachshund or when seeing the difference
in size. While shooting this sequence we
went through packs of polaroid and couldn’t get the right exposure. We would
get the perfect shot of the dachshund and then the polaroid wouldn’t turn out…
eventually we got a polaroid and we had to go with because we were running out
of time. I’d thought about using a
substitute digital print to cheat this … but the film was about polaroids and
memory and how sometimes you can’t choose the perfect image/memory… it’s
chance.
As well as directing, you often work as a DoP. Which do you prefer?
I love doing both. I started off as
photographer and am always thinking in images and frames. At the same time I
really enjoy coming up with stories, concepts and executing them.
I also love working collaborating with
other DoP and directors. When doing both, it’s a lot of work… so it’s also nice
to concentrate on one.
You share lots of your work on Instagram and find beauty in mundane Australian locations, like roadside diners and motels. What catches your eye as a photographer?
It’s hard to say. I think when I’m
photographing I am drawn to moments where there is a mood, a suggested story, or
some kind of symbolism that I see. I
like to imagine what happened before the photograph was taken and what might
occur afterwards.
Your ‘ancestors’ portraits are beautiful. Why did you set out to capture family portraits this way?
This series was exhibited at the Centre for
Contemporary Photography in Melbourne in 2007. One of the images won the Head
On Portrait Prize in the same year. I hope the Artist Statement for the
exhibition can answer your question.
“This
project is a gesture of respect, and an acknowledgement of origin to our fore
bearers. It has been inspired by the framed portraits of deceased ancestors
that can be found on the altars of most Vietnamese and Chinese households …
Each of our grandparents’ face is imbued with a lifetime of stories. Each line of wrinkles are impressions from
endured hardships, smiles of joy, and frowns of grief. In each individual face is a library of
knowledge, acquired experience and wisdom, all waiting to be read. Transplanted
into a western society, our grandparents are isolated by a new landscape. Their
role as a family elder and is diminished.
Their values are seen as old fashioned and mean little to the younger
generation of grandsons and granddaughters.”
Are you directing anything interesting at the moment?
I’ve just finished a couple of music
videos. They’re being edited and
graded. I can't wait to show them. There’s more video clip ideas to pursue.
I’ve a photograph that is a finalist in the
IRIS AWARD that is currently exhibiting at the Perth Centre for Photography. In
May, two of my portraits won a Finalist in the Percival Portrait Prize and
exhibited at Pinnacles Gallery in Queensland, Australia.
Besides that I’m writing and continuing
working on more photographs and an exhibition next year.
* ADFEST is now recruiting next year’s Fabulous Five. We’ll provide them with return economy airfare, ground transportation, accommodation, and a full delegate registration to attend ADFEST 2019. To find out more about eligibility and script submissions click here.
