Kieu [p.4]

THV: We definitely made a commitment to make this not about her occupation. We didn’t want to have the sexual side of her occupation in the movie. The only hint you get is the scene with all the “johns” (who were) objectified, nameless and faceless. All you saw was their crotch. It was more about her experience and what she felt she had to do to get through it. And that was my experience with the women—it was definitely a job, and it was work.

NHA: How do you think these women are viewed by the rest of the Vietnamese American community?

THV: Good question! I think it’s not talked about. We pass it by, it’s just hush-hush. That’s one main goal of the film, to get people into a dialogue. A lot of women who do sex work for a living are also mothers and sisters.

NHA: So how do those women relate to the Vietnamese community?

THV: Keeping their identity confidential is very important. Keeping this work separate from the reputation of their family is very important. Meeting outside the massage parlor was impossible. Most of the women had double lives—I had to remember what names to call them (in different settings).

NHA: What’s the next step for the film?

THV: To do the DVD cut. And I would love for it to be shown in other Asian American communities in the U.S. We’re going to screen it at the VC Film Fest (in LA) and the Chicago Asian American Showcase. And we’ve gotten emails from people all over the country who want to see the film. My main priority is to get it out to the workers themselves as much as possible, to create this common understanding and self-compassion.

NHA: What would you say is the state of Vietnamese American filmmaking?

THV: Oh my god, it’s kind of exciting right now! There is a lack of women’s voices. But in the last few years, with Victor Vu’s and Haøm Traàn’s films, there’s a wave of telling stories that have never been told before. We’re trying to get the community to be supportive and come out and see the films instead of waiting for them to come out on DVD!

NHA: What other stories are you hoping to see?

THV: I would love to see more stories from a woman’s perspective. And definitely more boat escape experiences. Millions of people have gone through escaping, myself included. So everyone’s story is different. Refugee camp experiences. I want to see more documentaries. Up till this point we’ve been so silent about our pain and suffering, about what’s happened to us during and after the War.

I compare it to the Japanese community, and how stories about internment weren’t talked about until very recently. It seems like it takes a whole generation to be able to emotionally detach in some ways. So I think this first generation is going to make that leap towards telling stories of our parents, stories our parents can’t talk about.

NHA: What is your own experience?

THV: I escaped with my older sister and two brothers when I was 9. We were all considered orphans and minors. We made this trip without our parents, with 35 other people. No relatives, just random people we didn’t know. There was one near-term pregnant woman.

NHA: What year was that?