Behind the scenes with Amy Wang

Amy Wang is a Chinese-Australian director, writer, movie buff and UTS alum. Now based in L.A., Amy recently joined the all-Asian cast and creative team for the sequel to Crazy Rich Asians as writer.

Her credits include directing the young adult horror series The Birch and various independent films. She also wrote for two upcoming Netflix shows: the Reese Witherspoon-produced limited series From Scratch, based on the popular book of the same name, and The Brothers Sun, starring Michelle Yeoh. 

Amy has had a deep passion for movies since she was a teenager and the excitement for her craft is evident when she talks about her favourite directors (for the record, Michael Haneke and Denis Villeneuve) and how her experiences as a Chinese-Australian woman influences her writing.

Here she shares her advice for students and emerging filmmakers, what it’s like to work in television versus movies and how she’s built confidence in the notoriously tough film industry.

Congratulations on being named writer of Crazy Rich Asians 2! How does it feel to work on the movie?

Thank you! It feels really great – I'm still in shock!

I'm very grateful to be given this opportunity and be able to do something that could potentially reach and connect with millions of people around the world.

What is your writing process like for the movie?

The movie will be quite different from the book, without giving too much away. A lot of the main characters from the first movie aren't featured as prominently in the second book, so I had to create new storylines for fan favourites.

I've finished the first draft of the script, so right now everyone involved in the movie is reviewing it and making notes. I'll take their notes, implement them and rewrite as much as I can. We then rinse and repeat until we're ready to shoot.

How important is it for movies and television series with Asian characters and storylines to have an all-Asian cast and production team?

Nothing can really replace lived experience. When you write, act or direct, how you move through the world as an Asian-American or an Asian-Australian bleeds into the script and the characters. On the creative side, having Asian people take charge of an Asian story is really important.

I'm so proud of this movie. Crazy Rich Asians was the first movie since The Joy Luck Club 25 years before it to have an all-Asian cast and Asian director. Because of the success of Crazy Rich Asians, Hollywood realised there was a real hunger for Asian stories to be told. I feel like, without the success of Crazy Rich Asians, a lot of movies wouldn't have been financed and made or seen by as many people.

Crazy Rich Asians was a big gamble in many ways, but it paid off in the end. It proved that a movie with an all-Asian cast could make a lot of money, and I'm really grateful that it seems to have opened up the floodgates for other films.

What do you hope to achieve with your filmmaking?

I believe making films and television shows gives you a lot of power in influencing culture and how people think. I can only influence culture in the way that I see the world.

Through the stories I tell, I want people to realise it doesn't matter who you are or where you come from – everyone has similar experiences and similar emotions. Whether you live in Iran or in New York City, we're all the same. By telling these very specific stories, I hope to influence people in a positive way.

I wanted to be a filmmaker when I was 15 because I wanted to make people feel a certain way. It started when I watched Fight Club. I felt emotions and accessed things within myself that I wouldn't have known if I was just living my life. My interest in films changed my life, pushing me to become a filmmaker.

Your experience spans feature films and television, including working with Netflix. Are there different processes for each medium?

Being a feature writer and being a television writer is very different. When you're writing for television, you're working with a team of writers and every day you go into a room and bounce ideas off of each other. Whereas, when you're writing a feature, you write and do everything by yourself.

I like working with both styles, and I get different skills from each. With television, pitching is constant, and you’re continually being shut down or having to think of new ideas. This plays into that part of the brain where you need to think on your feet, be confident and listen to feedback. This then feeds into my feature writing when brainstorming with the producers. I’ve gained confidence from the writers’ room to speak with more conviction.

You’ve lived and worked in both America and Australia. How do they compare?

I moved to Los Angeles six and a half years ago to attend the American Film Institute (AFI) [Amy received her Masters as a directing fellow]. I feel that America has a lot of opportunities and a more diverse capacity to tell particular stories. 

In terms of the filmmaking industry, Hollywood is a big business. In Australia, the industry is much smaller. If you want to make a crazy sci-fi or a religious film, there’s an audience in America. The marketplace in the U.S. is so much bigger than in Australia – for me, this is one of the biggest reasons I left. 

How has your degree prepared you for your career?

I did a Bachelor of Communication (Media Arts and Production) at UTS. The biggest thing I took away from my experience was the people. I’m still close friends with so many people I went to university with, whether they’ve stayed in Sydney or live in L.A. 

As a filmmaker, your peers and your group are so important. They help you to stay sane. Having people know what you’re going through in the industry is everything.

I went through my degree not being top of the class or not getting the highest marks. Knowing I wasn’t ‘the best’ at an early age gave me the foundation to push as hard as possible to prove everyone wrong. That’s been silently driving me for my whole career and is something I really value.

What advice would you give young filmmakers completing their degree?

I want to tell all the UTS students doing Media Arts and Production, who have dreams of being great filmmakers: it’s okay if you don’t get your short film into a big festival when you’re young. Knowing that and still following your dreams and working hard – that's a huge thing I took away from my time at UTS. 

The secret to success is hard work! Talent is needed, but it’s showing up and doing the work that’s the most important. You also have to keep believing in yourself while you’re honing your craft.

As a filmmaker, the most important thing is life experience, staying curious and looking to expand your horizons. Anyone can learn the tools, but you can’t learn the stories you want to tell and the life experiences that will inform your writing. 

And I would add, don’t make university your only thing. Travel and experience life.

Lastly, it's so important for students to prioritise their mental health. Can you share any tips?

The biggest thing I want to say is don’t put your self-worth in the industry. I lived and breathed movies and television shows when I was a teenager. That obsession was okay, but being in the industry now, I find it's so easy to put your happiness in other people's hands.

Yes, films can still be your life and your number one passion – you need that to succeed – but at the same time, spend time with your family and friends. Value your downtime. Have other hobbies. Concentrating on things you can control is important to separate who you are as a person and who you want to be in this industry. 

Live life, experience everything, hone your talent and stay curious.