By Andrew Hamlin
NORTHWEST ASIAN WEEKLY
Chinese American writer/director Tom Huang came to his latest film “Dealing With Dad” with solid skills and impressive history under his belt. But for this project, he had to go where he hadn’t gone before—into his own family’s history and struggles.
“While I was in film school, my dad was laid off from his longtime job at General Electric, unbeknownst to me,” recalled Huang, who brings “Dealing With Dad” to Tacoma and Seattle in time for Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month and Mental Health Awareness Month.
“When I came home for break, I saw him leaving every morning like he was going to work, but I later learned he was faking it.
“The next time I came home, I found my normally very active dad sitting in the dark in his living room watching daytime television. I asked my mom what was wrong with him, and she told me, ‘Oh, he’s just a little sad, he’ll be fine.’ To which I said, “Mom, he’s watching ‘The View,’ I don’t think he’s fine.”
This triggered an eight-year stretch of trying to pull his father out of depression.
“It took a long time, partially because I at first didn’t understand the disease, and once I had an idea, it took even longer trying to convince his friends and family that this was more than just temporary, that it was a disease that needed to be treated.
“It was hard enough to get my parents to go to the hospital if they broke their leg or something, but for something like this, it was nearly impossible. Once people were able to see this as the disease that it was, it became easier to find the support my dad needed.”
Huang grew up in the San Francisco suburb of Fremont, and he’s old enough to remember Fremont as predominantly white, before the Silicon Valley boom brought a substantial Asian population.
“I remember coming home from college and suddenly being in a whole new world of hundreds of Chinese restaurants and seeing my younger cousins grow up feeling quite comfortable with their race. My high school became so full of academically-minded Asian Americans, they couldn’t field a football team one year.”
He loved Godzilla movies on TV, and play-acting “Star Wars” with friends.
“’I’d play Chewbacca because there apparently were not any Asians in the Star Wars universe at the time.”
But standing out ethnically left its mark.
“Growing up Chinese had a heavy influence, mostly making me feel insecure. In addition, my parents were successful immigrants, both alpha dogs, and constantly were berating me and each other, which further made me want to separate from things they were associated with.”
He changed several things between his family’s own story and the film script, but preserved the essence of family interactions and strength of character.
“The mom is very much based on my mom and the actress, Page Leong, actually is wearing a lot of my Mom’s clothes! Sometimes Page would nail my Mom so closely, the hairs on my neck would rise and I’d be like, ‘Woah, that’s too close for me.’
In addition to Leong, cast members include Ally Maki as the daughter, Hayden Szeto as the younger brother, and Peter Kim as the older brother.
“One of the important roles was the dad, and on the top of my list was Dana Lee, a veteran actor who’s been in so many things over the years. He had a natural gruffness to him that was exactly what I was looking for, and I found out he spoke Mandarin as well.
“He’s a pro actor who got the character, but also really understood the depression aspect, as he has friends who have been depressed, and knew what I was needing to portray that.”
Asked about future projects, Huang mentioned a few scripts awaiting funding, including “a mobster movie set in Taiwan and a film noir set in the Japanese Incarceration Camp Manzanar during World War II.
“I’m also finishing a script that I will likely shoot next, a sequel to one of my successful earlier films, ‘Find Me.’ The [new] film is about a trio of inner-city Oakland, California kids who decide to spend their last spring break together checking out National Parks across the West.”
“Dealing With Dad” plays May 24 at Tacoma’s Grand Cinema, and May 24 at Seattle’s Northwest Film Forum, with writer/director Tom Huang in attendance at both.
For showtimes, prices, and other information, visit https://www.grandcinema.com/films/dealing-with-dad and https://nwfilmforum.org/films/dealing-with-dad-in-person-only.