Ash Mayfair was born and raised in Vietnam, and received her MFA in filmmaking from NYU. Her short films — including “The Silver Man” and “No Exit” — have been screened at numerous international film festivals. “The Third Wife” is Mayfair’s first feature film, and the screenplay won the Spike Lee Production Fund in 2014.
“The Third Wife” will begin screening at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival on September 8.
W&H: Describe the film for us in your own words.
AM: “The Third Wife” is a coming-of-age story about a child forced to grow into a woman and the consequences of her self-discovery. Set in 19th century Vietnam, May is 14 years old and is given away in an arranged marriage to become the third wife of a much older man. The film explores the heroine’s journey to achieve personal freedom, even though the price might cost May her life.
W&H: What drew you to this story?
AM: The film is inspired by my family history. Like many other women in the same period in Vietnam, my great-grandmother and my grandmother had arranged marriages at a young age. My great-grandmother was in a polygamous marriage from when she was a teenager until the end of her life. The roles expected of women in society have always been something I wish to explore in my work. The protagonist can only be a wife and a mother, even though in reality she is a child. She faces severe repercussions if she chooses to be anything else.
This situation in 19th century Vietnam is sadly still pervasive in so many parts of the world right now. Young girls are being forced into situations beyond their control and many women are often torn between familial duties and personal passions. The characters of this story may belong to a distant past, however, their narrative and struggles are very much present in our contemporary society.
W&H: What do you want people to think about when they are leaving the theater?
AM: I hope to immerse the viewers in the landscape of the film, and the emotional core of the characters. Above all, I want the audience to feel, taste, and smell the world and experience the way life was. I hope to touch the audience in some ways that break down the cultural and linguistic barriers so that we can all be reminded, for a brief moment, that every one of us is capable of feelings like love, lust, fear, and bravery, regardless of the color of our skin.
W&H: What was the biggest challenge in making the film?
AM: The historical context of child-marriages is a difficult subject. May’s exploration of her own sexuality and identity against this background was very challenging for me because I do not wish to portray her as a victim, but rather an emotional being capable of so much more than is expected of her. I chose to handle the character’s growth into womanhood with as much candor as possible because I believe that this is the only way to bring forth the emotional truth of the role.
Casting the right actress who could bring this combination of sensuality, delicacy, and innocence to life was paramount to the success of the film. We traveled all over the country for nearly eight months and auditioned more than 900 girls for the part.
When Tra My came to audition for the first time and I saw the qualities we were looking for, I broke into tears. Our actress was only 12 years old when she took on this fiercely demanding role. I am so grateful to her sensitivity, tenacity, dedication, and the support of her family. “The Third Wife” would not exist without them.
W&H: How did you get your film funded? Share some insights into how you got the film made.
AM: “The Third Wife” started off as a script developed during the third year of my graduate film program at NYU. The support I received at Tisch was instrumental. The script received several awards, both monetary and in kinds, which slowly turned into investment opportunities once I finished the program. Once we won the Spike Lee Film Production Award, the Hong Kong Financial Forum (HAF) award, and the Autumn Meetings Grand Prix in Vietnam, there was much better traction to obtain production funding.
It took us more than three years to gather the necessary budget, and several months after the shoot to raise more for post-production. Independent Film Project (IFP), the Jerome Foundation, and HAF once again were very helpful to us during this period. The exposure and guidance we received helped to get the film through post.
The old adage, “it takes a village to raise a baby,” definitely applies to filmmaking.
W&H: What inspired you to become a filmmaker?
AM: At the age of four, I remember making a puppet theater out of an old carton of noodle packets on the sidewalk outside my house. It was summer and the kids would fill the small alleys in Ho Chi Minh city with their games and laughter. I was making up stories as I crafted tiny paper people that filled the cardboard stage with their drama and adventures. I remember at some point looking up and realizing that suddenly, I had a small audience of all the neighboring children. I kept going, just a little more loudly, sharing tales of heroism and intrigue. My makeshift cardboard theater and the troupe of paper actors did not survive the years, but I will never forget the light in the eyes of the kids on my street.
Storytelling is embedded in my blood. If I was not a filmmaker, I would find some other way to express the desire to create narratives. I left Vietnam at 13 to study overseas, and have lived in so many countries since then. Cinema has given me a satisfying way to reach beyond cultural barriers.
At the heart of it for me, being a filmmaker came from a desire to connect and understand. Working on “The Third Wife,” the desire for this film to become something that may inspire others to share their own experiences also surfaced. Being able to make this film is a privilege. I hope that this is the first of many stories about the complex beauty of humanity that I will get to tell.
W&H: What’s the best and worst advice you’ve received?
AM: The best advice about filmmaking came from my mentor Tran Anh Hung, who said “Allow the language of the medium to speak. The language of cinema is all about images and the sequencing of one shot after another.” He urged me to look at this from an emotional space first and foremost. The questions of what is beautiful and what is emotionally truthful suddenly become one and the same when I was able to understand what this means.
The worst advice: Keep your story secret. I understand that certain writers need to be protective of their work before it is ready. For me, I find that the reverse is true. The more people with whom I share my ideas, the more my creative process blossoms. In a lecture at NYU, David Fincher said that if you tell your story more than a thousand times to everyone, be it the dolly grip or the person who sews the curtain on set, the fat will eventually fall away and you are left with the meat of what really matters. I agree.
W&H: What advice do you have for other female directors?
AM: Preserve your own voice. Fight for it. Lift other women around you. Fight for them.
W&H: Name your favorite woman-directed film and why.
AM: Jane Campion’s “The Piano.” Every frame of this film transfixes me. I love everything about it.
W&H: Hollywood and the global film industry are in the midst of undergoing a major transformation. What differences have you noticed since the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements launched?
AM: The #MeToo and #TimesUp movements tapped into a sense of collective pain that I hope will continue to be a catalyst for change. I cannot speak for any observable changes on an industry level as yet because any differences since the start of this year still have not really balanced the scale.
On an individual level, however, I notice that artists around me are much more willing to speak up about their trauma. The knowledge that this act of sharing, despite so much sadness, leads to healing and possible prevention of future assaults is very powerful.
