Dìdi (弟弟) is a coming-of-age film written and directed by Sean Wang. The film follows Chris, a 13-year-old Taiwanese American boy, through the summer before high school, experiencing awkward teenage growing pains. Dìdi (弟弟), which means little brother in Mandarin, showcases the relationships between Chris and his family and how three Asian American generations navigate living together under one roof.
The film features a diverse young and promising cast, Izaac Wang (plays Chris) and Shirley Chen (plays sister Vivian) and paired with industry legend Joan Chen have all been in Sundance films before. Plus, writer and director Sean Wang’s literal grandma, Chang Li Hua, plays the grandmother in Dìdi (弟弟).
Dìdi (弟弟) premiered at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival in January of this year and was shortly picked up by major distributor Focus Features for wide release.
Cold Tea Collective’s Natasha Jung spoke with Izaac Wang, along with Wong Fu Productions’ Wesley Chan and Gold House’s Christine Yi, about the film.
Izaac Wang takes on the role of being Dìdi (弟弟)
Izaac Wang plays the titular Dìdi (弟弟), also known as Chris, or “Asian Chris,” as he was called in a house party scene in the film.
Playing a 13-year-old wasn’t too far from the reality of being only two years older than his character. Having been homeschooled himself, Wang says he was able to draw upon his own experiences in transitioning into attending high school with other kids his age to bring his character to life. “Back in my first year of freshman year of high school, I really [wanted to] fit in, be cool and be like all the other high schoolers,” says Wang.
He also shared how he personally resonated with a scene where Chris and his mom argue in the car, reflective of how challenging that child-parent relationship can be in an Asian family with generational and cultural differences.
Wang, alongside a cast of mostly first-time young actors of Asian descent, makes us laugh, cry and cringe. Reflecting on his experience in filming Dìdi (弟弟), he says it felt like “one big summer camp,” thanks to Director Sean Wang. “Sean’s such an amazing director. I think his goal was to make work seem not like work, but more like we’re just messing around, having fun, while also working at the same time,” Wang shares.
Wang hopes Asian American audiences, young and old, will leave theaters with the message to embrace the past with humility and a sense of humor. “If I got pantsed by one of my homies in front of my crush, looking back on that now, that’s more funny than it was embarrassing.”
PSA: getting pantsed is still a thing in 2024.
Navigating multi-generational Asian family dynamics
We also have to acknowledge writer and director Sean Wang’s exploration of multi-generational Asian diaspora family dynamics.
Often, immigrant and first-generation immigrant parents are sandwiched between two generations with very different morals and cultural upbringings. Throughout the film, as Chris tries to learn who he is as he navigates his pre-high school journey, Joan Chen takes on the role of mom, who is on a journey of her own, too.
Chen doesn’t play the stereotypical tiger mom role but a more supportive one who is also trying to find her own voice as a mother and matriarch of the household (if she could only get her mother-in-law to listen) while trying to support her daughter’s imminent move to college and her son’s start to high school, alone.
Chen’s performance brings more humanity to Asian moms than we’ve seen in other films. In all honesty, as a mom myself now, it made me feel sadness and guilt for my own mother’s journey.
A classic coming-of-age recipe needs more Asian flavor
At the risk of sounding like a negative criticism, the storyline itself isn’t special; it isn’t unique, it isn’t genre-bending – and that’s great.
If you think about the dozens, if not hundreds, of your standard coming-of-age American films, why haven’t we seen more Asian American families at the center of the story? Oh, right, it’s because of Hollywood. The formula is tried and true. The nostalgia hits hard and will surely resonate regardless of viewers’ heritage.
Details matter. The cultural specificity from the casting, set decorations, wardrobe and hair to the use of language and addressing cultural stereotypes and cultural expectations is used to the film’s advantage. The intentional details make this coming-of-age story all that more special; it’s the depiction of a universal experience through the specific lens of a Taiwanese American family.
That is why it needs to do well at the box office – to show that Asian Americans can be the main characters in their own stories.
Supporting the next generation of Asian American filmmakers
The specific nostalgia of 2008 when the film is set reminds us of how it was truly the dawn of a new generation. A generation that was led by the original Asian YouTubers that paved the way for the next wave of filmmakers.
Wesley Chan, co-founder and director at Wong Fu Productions, connected deeply with Dìdi (弟弟). “As a filmmaker that found his passion when the internet itself was coming of age, I’m reminded of the same exhilaration and inspiration that Sean Wang naturally injects into the film,” shares Chan.
“As a Dìdi (弟弟) and the son of immigrants myself, I felt the honesty in the family dynamics that Izaac Wang and Joan Chen portrayed so beautifully,” shares Chan who also grew up in the Bay Area. “I feel nostalgic for the long summer days that defined so much of my own awkward adolescence.
Wong Fu Productions recently celebrated 21 years of filmmaking, which paved the way for many AAPI creatives. Wong Fu crawled for so long, navigating changes to the industry, technology, social media and filmmaking – so that Dìdi (弟弟) could skate.
“As a cofounder of Wong Fu Productions, I feel proud knowing our work played a part in bringing a unique perspective to the big screen. I love Dìdi (弟弟),” says Chan.
Fast forward to 2024, Dìdi (弟弟) is now out in select theaters in the U.S. with a wide release scheduled for August 16th. And in case you missed it, Dìdi (弟弟) writer and director Sean Wang is also an Oscar-nominated filmmaker, with his short film Nai Nai & Wài Pó having been nominated in the category of “Best Documentary Short Film,” starring both his maternal and paternal grandmothers.
From where we are, the future looks bright for Asian American stories and our experiences on screen, but we mustn’t forget the importance of community support.
Leaning on community to bring Dìdi (弟弟) to life and the future of filmmaking
If you’re a millennial (or possibly Gen Z) creative, you’ve likely been part of an Asian or AAPI-focused Facebook Group. Since 2018, the proliferation of these groups have focused first on connecting the Asian diaspora of Facebook users through memes that speak to specific cultural experiences but also on creating community amongst those in specific areas of interest, such as the creative fields. It’s exactly where we first met some of our earliest collaborators and supporters, and for a long time, this grassroots approach has taught us about what upcoming films to support.
From the Farewell to Crazy Rich Asians, Shang-Chi and more, the Asian creative community became more connected online, and it is where Sean Wang himself released the casting call for Dìdi (弟弟) in early 2023 and shared previous projects in the years before as well.
A marked difference between now and then is that support for these projects has extended to offline communities, industry leaders, decision-makers and funders.
Dìdi (弟弟) came to life with the support of a long and diverse group of executive producers and funders from the Asian American community and allies and filmmakers who believed in Sean Wang’s vision.
The film also received investment from Gold House. “We first heard of Dìdi (弟弟) through early collaborators and producers, including Carlos Lopez Estrada, in 2022, before our Creative Equity Fund, Gold House’s independent film fund, was established in May of 2023,” shares Christine Yi, General Partner for the Gold House Creative Equity Fund.
Gold House initially supported the film by amplifying open casting calls on social media. Then later, Gold House extended an investment opportunity to its investor community, treating the film as if it were a startup venture fundraising opportunity. After some time, Dìdi (弟弟) was brought back to the team and gladly provided a check to support its successful Sundance premiere and now its theatrical release.
Yi also shares her views on representation in film. “When we think of representation, we often think of seeing people who look like us on screen. But to see those people living through authentic lives and stories that feel so distinctly like our own is a level of representation I’ve never experienced before; that was really something special.”
Watch Dìdi (弟弟) now playing in select theaters and across the U.S. starting August 16th.
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