The Princess of Nebraska (2007)

Director:

Wayne Wang

Writers:

Yiyun Li (short story)
Michael Ray

Release Date:

20 June 2008 (Spain)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

The story of a pregnant Chinese girl's life in the U.S. Based on the the short story by Yiyun Li.

Plot Keywords:

State In Title | Title In Title | Place Name In Title

Cast

Li Ling	...	Sasha
Brian Danforth	...	Boshen
Minghua Tan	...	May
Zhi Hao Li	...	Driver
Hiep Thi Le	...	Mother at Mall
Djinn Ong	...	Father at Mall
Roxy Ong	...	Daughter at Mall
Finn Carlito Ong	...	Son at Mall
Jay Patumanoan	...	Security Guard
Jason W. Wong	...	Alvin (as Jason Wong)
Nanrisa Lee	...	Mary
Jacintha Charles	...	Party Guest #1
Pamelyn Chee	...	X
Patrice Binaisa	...	James
Qing Lin	...	Karaoke Woman (as Qxing Lin)
Bing Chen	...	Wolf
Andrey Chow	...	Clinic Receptionist
Emily Beck	...	Claire

Directed by
Wayne Wang

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Yiyun Li		short story
Michael Ray

Produced by
Grace Eng	....	line producer
Stephen Gong	....	executive producer
Taro Goto	....	line producer
Ethan Gunning	....	associate producer
Yukie Kito	....	producer (as Yuki'e Kitô)
Yasushi Kotani	....	executive producer
Taizo Son	....	executive producer
Donald Young	....	producer

Original Music by
Kent Sparling

Cinematography by
Richard Wong

Film Editing by
Deirdre Slevin

Casting by
Sarah Kliban
Heidi Levitt

Art Direction by
Amy Y. Chan

Production Management
Grace Eng	....	production manager
Ethan Gunning	....	post-production supervisor
Chihiro Wimbush	....	production manager

Sound Department
Jim Choi	....	location sound
Sean England	....	foley recordist
Lora Hirschberg	....	sound re-recording mixer
David C. Hughes	....	sound
Zach Martin	....	sound recordist
Ronald G. Roumas	....	sound re-recordist
Kent Sparling	....	re-recording mixer
Kent Sparling	....	sound
Paul James Zahnley	....	adr sound

Camera and Electrical Department
Veanne Cao	....	still photographer
Seng Chen	....	gaffer
John Fong	....	grip
Gen Ito	....	additional grip
Clint Kasparian	....	assistant camera

Casting Department
Lauren Fernandes	....	casting associate
Sarah Kliban	....	extras casting

Other crew
Jay Patumanoan	....	production assistant
Nicole Tse	....	continuity

Production Companies

• Center for Asian American Media (CAAM)
• Entertainment Farm (EF)

Distributors

• Golden Village Entertainment (2008) (Singapore) (theatrical)
• Magnolia Pictures (2008) (USA) (theatrical)
• Primer Plano Film Group (2008) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• Imovision (2008) (Brazil) (all media)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

USA:77 min | Canada:77 min (Toronto International Film Festival)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Mandarin

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Canada:18A | Hong Kong:IIB | Singapore:M18 | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Oakland, California, USA

Company:

Center for Asian American Media (CAAM)

Not my cup of Chinese tea.

I should have walked out of this film, but I stayed, hoping that it'd get better. It didn't. In fact the longer it went on, the worse it became. The story line (did I say story line?), is as thin as cigarette smoke. The lead character is obnoxious and monosyllabic. Nobody else in the film was either pleasant or of interest. The camera work was hand-held and jerky when it didn't need to be. The shots were so 'tight', the viewer is denied any sense of 'place'. No scene followed logically from the previous one. The ending was so totally incomprehensible, it demonstrated that the director had completely run out of ideas. The moral dilemma at the heart of the film was neither articulated or resolved. Wayne Wang has made some interesting features. "The Princess From Nebraska" is not one of them.