As a migrant navigating between multiple cultures, Ying Wang is fascinated by stories that reveal the geopolitical complexity of global migration. Inspired by her sister’s experiences, Wang wrote and directed her first feature film, “Sisters,” in 2005. Her credits as a documentary filmmaker also include producing “Tricks on the Dead: The Story of Chinese Labour Corps in WWI,” a Canada-China-France co-production that won two 2016 Canadian Screen Awards and the 2015 Vancouver International Film Festival Audience Must See Award.

“The World is Bright” was scheduled to screen at the 2020 Hot Docs Canadian International Film Festival. A digital version of the fest has been organized due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “The World is Bright” is screening in Hot Docs Festival Online, which launched May 28 and is geo-blocked to Ontario, Canada. More information about the program and how to tune in can be found here.

W&H: Describe the film for us in your own words.

YW: The film title is a literal translation of Shi Ming’s Chinese name: Shi Shi means World; Ming means Bright.

Born in 1972, Shi Ming was the only child of Mr. Qian Hui Deng and Ms. Xue Mei Li, who were both retired and living a modest life in Beijing. In 2005, six years after Shi Ming moved to Canada, his parents received notice from the Canadian government that their son had died and been buried on Canadian soil.

With no further details provided other than his death certificate and a box with his belongings, Mr. Deng and Ms. Li decided to travel from Beijing to Vancouver to investigate the truth. Following the decade-long journey of this couple, the film is a rare revelation of immigration, mental health, and a Kafkaesque state bureaucracy at the heart of global migration.

W&H: What drew you to this story?

YW: I moved to Canada from Beijing in late 1990s, first as an international student, and then I became a landed immigrant. Navigating between “homes” in different places, it became my urge to tell stories about contemporary migration.

My younger sister developed a mental illness after immigrating to North America. Inspired by her experience, I wrote and directed my first feature film “Sisters.” “The World is Bright” is my second film tackling the topic of immigration and mental health from a broader sociocultural perspective.

I got to know the parents after they came to Vancouver in 2007. During that time, a few deaths associated with international students had already caught my attention. The mysterious circumstances around this case was particularly intriguing; their desperately lonely situation reminded me of my early immigrant life, and their determination to seek truth was inspiring. Coming from the same hometown, the parents and I had an immediate connection when we first met. I began to follow their quest without knowing it would be a project that lasted for over ten years.

I was driven to tell their story. The trajectory of the Deng family, as migrants moving from rural to urban environments, and then to new countries, represents the collective journey of millions of people who leave their homes in search of a better place. Their experience is a reflection of the dilemma we are all facing in a world undergoing profound social, demographic, and economic transformation.

W&H: What do you want people to think about after they watch the film?

YW: This is a hard question to answer. Within three months, the world feels so different now. The pandemic reminds us once again how close we connect with each other, and that political tension might push us apart even farther. The conflict between China and the rest of the world might also affect how people feel about this film now. Soon, the world will be in motion again, and people will resume their travel.

I want to share this quote from the Japanese author Haruki Murakami: “Each of us is a unique, irreplaceable soul enclosed in a fragile shell. This is true of me, and it is true of each of you. And each of us, to a greater or lesser degree, is confronting a high, solid wall. The wall has a name: it is ‘the system’. The system is supposed to protect us, but sometimes it takes on a life of its own, and then it begins to kill us and cause us to kill us – coldly, efficiently, systematically.”

Also, John Donne’s poem: “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main …. any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind…” During the long process of creating the film, I often went back to contemplate these words when I was stuck. I hope the film can bring our hearts closer together.

W&H: What was the biggest challenge in making the film?

YW: Putting the film together was the biggest challenge. This is a story of epic scope and complexity, involving many layers, ranging from immigration to mental health and the complicated and maze-like legal system. All these elements are entangled against a trans-cultural and trans-continental backdrop charged with history and politics.

How to carve something out of mountain of materials piled over 10 years? How to tell a story that is complex and clear at the same time? How to balance the emotion and serious social discourse? How to make this one family story universal and resonate with people from different cultures? These questions are among the many obstacles we had to overcome.

W&H: How did you get your film funded? Share some insights into how you got the film made.

YW: Getting the film funded was another big challenge. I used my own money to start the project in 2007. In 2016, we finally received grants from British Columbia Arts Council and Canada Council for the Arts. However, the long process of editing exhausted all the grant money. Besides a small amount of private investment, I had to borrow from friends and bank loan to complete the film. Many people working on the project also contributed lots in-kind support.

It’s a tough process. I don’t know if my experience will be helpful — and not discouraging — for other filmmakers. Looking back, I don’t know if I could do it differently, or if the financial situation could be less stressful; this is a situation many new filmmakers have to cope with.

W&H: What inspired you to become a filmmaker?

YW: All those pirated movies I watched in my youth in China. That was the only way we could access foreign films, and those were the original source of the dream. Then I became a writer, journalist and a photographer. After moving to Canada, I gradually self-taught my way to becoming a filmmaker.

W&H: What’s the best and worst advice you’ve received?

YW: With this particular project, the best advice I got was from a producer friend. He had just finished a documentary that took them three years to edit, and when he saw the first assembly of my film, he said to me: “It’s an important film, but there’s still a long to go before it becomes a good film. You need to be patient.”

The worst advice I’ve received was from a decision-maker from the biggest Canadian broadcaster. She suggested that I dub the parents’ voices into English, saying “Subtitles don’t work for our audience.” I kept thinking, “Who is their audience?” I didn’t take her advice.

W&H: What advice do you have for other female directors?

YW: Work hard to tell your stories, work fast to tell as many stories as possible, and be bold and stay steadfastly committed to your vision. Self-doubt is your worst enemy.

W&H: Name your favorite woman-directed film and why.

YW: I really admire Japanese filmmaker Naomi Kawase. She is almost the only Asian female filmmaker who has produced a rich body of works; through all these works, she is able to create her own world.

W&H: How are you adjusting to life during the COVID-19 pandemic? Are you keeping creative, and if so, how?

YW: I often work alone, so I didn’t require special adjustment for the COVID-19 lockdown. However, after two months, I find myself really missing the physical connection with friends and family. I miss the moments to hug friends and chat away with a beer, and I really miss my younger sister who is living alone in Seattle, as well as my family in China.

I’ve been doing more reading, learning Chinese calligraphy, and writing a new script. Amid the turbulence of what is happening in the world, I am very grateful that I am alive and can work.