When you look at the average ages of the movie protagonists, there is a miscalculated representation that everyone who goes on an emotional character arc is young. In “Springtime”, writer/director Erica Liu created the character of Xiao Zhu, an elderly woman who decides that she never had her “springtime” in her life so she goes to the big city to find something exciting and new.
We were so happy to talk to Erica about her Festival Award-winning short film and ask her about filming in a city, why there aren’t as many elderly characters and what are the films that have inspired her.
Heartland Film Festival: The short film follows Xiao Zhu for every scene as she searches for her personal springtime. What was it like working with Tsai Yu Chu Huang to create this very real character?
Erica Liu: Huang Tsai Yu Chu is actually my grandma, so I always tell people it feels like I got 26 years of pre-production/rehearsal with her in some ways. The trust was already there and I knew enough about her life that we could have discussions about her own experiences to help her get into character. My mom was also on set as Grandma Wrangler/Translator, which made her feel more comfortable. Before each scene, the three of us would just talk instead of rehearse, since it was sometimes difficult for her to remember all of her lines. Plus, that’s exactly the way my grandma is in real life. At 86years old she’s still bouncing around, taking ukulele lessons, wanting to open a food truck…I always feel like a hack because it was really less about “directing,” and more about just helping her feel comfortable in front of the camera and being herself.
Heartland Film Festival: As Xiao travels into the city she is surrounded by more strangers than when she was in her home. What was it like filming those scenes? Were those extras or did those people not know they were in a movie?
Erica Liu: Those people didn’t know they were a movie haha which is why you’ll sometimes see people looking right at the camera and why we had to cut a lot around bogies in some of the shots. They were very run and gun, but I think it turned out okay. I will say shooting on the streets of Taipei was actually really easy—no one really cared, we borrowed a ladder from a nearby store for the last shot, it’s not like in LA where the police would arrive before you’ve even leveled the tripod.
Heartland Film Festival: With the plot of an older woman searching to restart her life, the tone can go into a number of different ways from wacky to Disney-style where everybody is super helpful to her. What made you decide to go for this type of realism?
Erica Liu: I guess it’s because I love films that reflect real life and contain both tragic and humorous elements, so I always try to take the same approach in my own work. It also helped that Xiao Zhu’s character was based on my grandmother, so I had a real template to guide me and prevent me from doing anything too outrageous. And lastly, I realized the premise itself was already kind of out there, so I knew I would have to temper it with realism if I wanted people to believe it.
Heartland Film Festival: Why do you think there aren’t as many films made about older characters?
Erica Liu: I’m not really sure, but it makes me sad. My jaded instincts say it’s because Hollywood is largely driven by the teenage demographic. I know when I was a teen, I didn’t yet appreciate my grandparents’ stories and experiences. But now that I’m older, I love stories with older characters. They’re layered, like an onion, and complicated in a way that young characters can never be. From a logistical standpoint, I think film shoots are also hard for elder actors…the 12+ hour days, memorizing lines, the physical actions required take after take. I know on my film, I’d always feel bad asking my grandma for another take. We were always conscious of limiting our shots, even if it meant not getting all of the coverage we would’ve wanted. Still, by the end of our week-long shoot, I could tell my grandma was completely exhausted.
Heartland Film Festival: Are you working on a next project?
Erica Liu: I am currently working on my thesis film, which will also be shot in Taiwan, hopefully this winter. It’s called “Blacksheep,” and it’s about a young man who inherits an ancestral family spirit/ghost from his eccentric grandfather. It sounds kind of crazy, but I intend to treat it with the same grounded, quiet humor of “Springtime.” I’m also working on a feature-length script for an ensemble comedy about a family of magicians living in San Francisco.
Heartland Film Festival: What are the moving films that have inspired you as a filmmaker?
Erica Liu: My favorite film is Miyazaki’s Spirited Away, but I love all of his films because on the surface, they seem like magical flights of whimsy, but somehow they always leave you feeling different. It’s like he slipped a kernel of wisdom about the human condition and world at large into your lap when you weren’t looking. I also love films about plucky underdogs, of any genre, but especially Little Miss Sunshine, Mary & Max and Michael Mann’s The Insider.
“Springtime” plays in the program Festival Award Shorts 1 and you can buy tickets for the following screenings…
- Friday, October 18 at 10:45a.m. at AMC Castleton Square 14**
- Friday, October 18 at 7:00p.m. at AMC Castleton Square 14**
- Saturday, October 19 at 10:00a.m. at AMC Traders Point 12**
- Sunday, October 20 at 12:45p.m. at AMC Castleton Square 14**
- Monday, October 21 at 2:45p.m. at AMC Traders Point 12**
- Tuesday, October 22 at 7:30p.m. at AMC Castleton Square 14
- Friday, October 25 at 9:00p.m. at AMC Castleton Square 14
- Saturday, October 26 at 2:00p.m. at AMC Traders Point 12
**Erica is scheduled to attend the following screenings.
