In conversation at the London Film Festival on Sunday, Oscar-winning director Chloé Zhao spoke candidly about Hollywood, the difficulty of financing films, the impact of neurodivergence on her storytelling and much more.
Zhao’s devastating historical drama “Hamnet” – about the personal tragedy that led to the creation of William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet”, starring Paul Mescal and Jessie Buckley – had its European premiere at the festival on Saturday night, where it was received with great emotion (and a surprise appearance from producer Steven Spielberg). Speaking about making the film, Zhao said the experience made her “very passionate about rediscovering and remembering some old ways of telling stories that have been forgotten in our society.”
“Before we made everything factual and reasonable, there was a time when we saw stories in different ways: from our dreams, our visual quests, by going into nature and listening to birds,” she said. “So the language of ambiguity is, to me, vital to the health of a society. And I think even in Hollywood, in the film industry, we’re not very good at preserving the language of ambiguity. If logos and mystery fit together, we would live in a much better world.”
However, Zhao acknowledged that it is often difficult to finance stories like these for the big screen. Although enjoying a movie isn’t her end goal, the filmmaker acknowledged that “money is really important.”
“Maybe it’s because I’m Chinese, I don’t know what it is, but I’m so afraid of owing people money. I don’t like it. I don’t like being in debt. I want people who invested money in my films to get that money back,” Zhao said. “I don’t believe that my vision and no matter how big my movie is should make people lose money. It’s just not for me. I try very hard to get financiers or studios to say how much are you comfortable giving me so that you can survive as a company, please. And then I’ll do it within that framework. So I think it’s really helpful because the limitations, I promise, are your best friend. ”
Asked by an audience member at the end of the talk how being neurodivergent impacted her storytelling creativity, Zhao proudly responded, “I think it’s a superpower, I really do. »
“I think we’re all on the spectrum of something. Everyone’s brain is so different, so unique – nature and nurture combined. And I find that I sometimes wonder: Am I not typical or has our world become a little too habitable? Is it too loud, is it too bright, is it too fast?” she continued. “So I try not to think of it as lesser or different, but to think that if I adapt to the way that I operate, then I’m going to create a world, not just on camera, but off camera as well, that is healthy for me. And those who gravitate towards me like that about me, so that’s probably what they like too.”
She concluded: “It’s very important and it’s actually a good service to society that you honor what you need first, because that might also be exactly what your environment might need. »
“Hamnet” had its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival last month, where it created a splash and Oscar buzz, and won the People’s Choice Award at TIFF. In VarietyIn his review, chief film critic Peter Debruge wrote that the film is “so emotionally raw that it is almost excruciating at times.”
Zhao broke through with his 2020 drama “Nomadland,” starring Frances McDormand, which won Academy Awards for best picture and best director. With her directing victory, Zhao became the first woman of color to win in the category. “Hamnet” is his latest film after directing the Marvel film “Eternals” in 2021.
“Hamnet” will receive a limited theatrical release in the United States and Canada from Focus Features beginning November 27 before going wide on December 12. It will be released in the UK on January 9 via Universal Pictures.
