Filmmaker Spotlight: Cathy Yan
This installment of Filmmaker Spotlight highlights Cathy Yan, the first woman of Asian descent to direct a superhero feature. Yan helmed Warner Bros.’ Margot Robbie-starring Birds of Prey directly after her feature film debut at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, an impressive credit for the director’s sophomore endeavor.
Yan wasn’t always pursuing a career in filmmaking, though. She shared in an interview with Yahoo Entertainment that the passion for it had always been there, especially as a cinephile from an early age. “I was an only child so movies kind of became my best friend,” Yan recalled. Her chances of success as a film director seemed daunting, though. “I think it just felt completely unachievable, especially for a young, Chinese-American immigrant,” she noted.
Yan studied public and international affairs at Princeton University, and after graduation, she became an overseas correspondent for publications such as The Wall Street Journal. The inspiration for her breakout Sundance film, Dead Pigs, actually came from her work as a reporter in China. The dark comedy reflects the strange, real-life event in which thousands of pig carcasses were found floating down the Huangpu River.
Writing and directing the film was a big turning point for the auteur, who had graduated with a dual master’s degree in film and business from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. She told The Washington Post that after deciding to pursue a career in filmmaking, becoming a director still seemed unattainable. “As a woman, as well, it felt a little more achievable to become a producer,” Yan recalled.
Yan has certainly found success in making it to the director’s chair, though, considering that she has her own entry in the DC Universe with Birds of Prey. And Yan shared in an IndieWire interview that making the blockbuster allowed her to have a broad impact on viewers. “The thing that has been the most rewarding for me about Birds is the messages from people who feel like they see themselves on the big screen,” she said.
Yan’s upcoming projects include directing episodes in the third season of HBO’s Succession. She’s also slated to co-write an adaption of Jenny Zhang’s short story collection Sour Hearts, as well as direct the feature for A24. Yan’s additionally set to adapt Rachel Kong’s short story The Freshening for FilmNation and will direct that feature, as well. Fans of the auteur can anticipate how she’ll bring the source material to life, especially considering Yan’s preferred mode of operation with actors. “There’s improv throughout all the scenes [in Birds of Prey],” she asserted during an interview with TheWrap. “That’s just the way that I like to work, giving the actors a little bit more freedom to adlib.”
Yan told Insider that allowing thespians the space to explore, in general, is an important aspect of her process. She used Chris Messina’s dynamic performance as Victor Zsasz in Birds of Prey as an example and even shared an anecdote of how he landed the role. “He sent in this bonkers audition tape, completely balls to the walls, and me and Margot [Robbie] loved it,” she disclosed. Time will tell what inspired performances result from Yan’s upcoming projects, but in the meantime, she’s certainly earned her filmmaker’s spotlight.
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