—Filmmaker Nanfu Wang Explores the Meaning of Personal Freedom Through the Eyes of a Young American Drifter—
When 20-something Chinese filmmaker Nanfu Wang first came to America in 2011, Florida seemed like an exotic frontier full of theme parks, prehistoric swamp creatures, and sunburned denizens.
Staying at a hostel on a break from her studies at New York University, she encounters Dylan, a blonde, charismatic, 22-year-old drifter who has left a comfortable home and loving family in Utah for a life of intentional homelessness and unfettered adventure.
Fascinated by his choice and rejection of society's rules, Nanfu follows Dylan with her camera, living with him on the streets.
But what begins as a portrait of a uniquely American quest for freedom is soon upended, unfolding instead as a haunting and unforgettable story of family, illness, and love.
“I Am Another You” premieres on INDEPENDENT LENS Monday, Jan. 29, 2018.
“When I first met Dylan he seemed like a symbol for free America,” said Wang. “But the longer I spent observing how he used his freedom, my feelings changed.”
Told in three chapters, “I Am Another You” begins with Wang’s unorthodox decision to accompany Dylan as he goes about his daily life – even if that means sleeping on the streets and eating out of garbage cans.
Sympathetic strangers offer them beds, food, and cash, but Wang is soon unsettled by Dylan’s cavalier way with this charity; when he throws away a bag of bagels presented to them by a kind shopkeeper, she packs up and heads home.
The story continues a few years later when Wang is in Utah working on another film.
Deciding to pick up Dylan’s trail, she finds his father and siblings — each in their own way as extraordinary as Dylan.
As their story unfolds, Wang’s initial tale of a carefree drifter becomes something much more unexpected.
“Nanfu Wang is a storyteller we need to keep an eye on,” said Lois Vossen, INDEPENDENT LENS executive producer. “She follows her curiosity wherever it takes her and in this film it took her from living on the streets of Florida to playing detective with a real-life Utah detective. ‘I Am Another You’ seamlessly shows us how delicate are the ties that bind us to our family, and puts a new face on the millions of people living on the streets across America.”
AWARDS:
SXSW Special - Jury Award for Excellence in Documentary Storytelling
Ashland Film Festival - Special Jury Mention
WATCH ON YOUR SCHEDULE:
This film will be available to stream on demand for a limited time after broadcast.
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CREDITS:
Nanfu Wang (Director/Producer/DP) is an award-winning filmmaker based in New York City. Producer is Lori Cheatle. Co-Producer/Camera/Co-Editor is Michael Shade. Creative Consultant is Peter Lucas. Lois Vossen is executive producer for INDEPENDENT LENS.
