24 Apr An interview with Yiran Wang, director of “Women in Red”

Posted at 11:23h in Interviews by


Yiran Wang

 

«Through cinema, we speak, reflect, and resist.»

 

BIO

Yiran Wang(Cynthia) is a filmmaker and theater director from China. After earning a BA in Film Production from Emerson College, Yiran continued to refine her craft by pursuing an MFA in Film Production at Loyola Marymount University (LMU). With experience as a theater director and producer, Yiran has also worked as an acting coach at Shanghai Musical Theater. Growing up in East Asia and receiving education in the United States, Yiran brings a nuanced approach to emotional storytelling, offering unique perspectives on social issues and cultural diversity. Aspiring to become a writer-director in narrative storytelling, Yiran strives to create works that authentically reflect social realities, both on the theatrical stage and in the world of cinema.

 

 

“Women in Red” tells the story of Laura, a young woman navigating an unplanned pregnancy in a country where abortion is illegal. In times when democracy is under threat, history shows that women are often the first to lose their rights. “Women in Red” seems to speak directly to that urgency. Do you see this film as a political act?

 

During pre-production, I made a point to sit down with my DP and deeply discuss Laura’s emotional arc. Since the story follows her journey through an abortion, the visual tone needed to reflect her shifting mental state. If we were to chart her sense of disturbance on a scale, it begins at a 6, peaks at 9, and eventually drops to a 3. Home, while imperfect, is still her comfort zone. So we made the clinic feel cold, sterile, and deeply unsettling. The contrast between extreme warmth and extreme cold became a visual metaphor for her emotional journey, supporting the character arc from within the frame.

 

 

Your personal story—being a young woman living alone in a foreign country—resonates with Laura’s experience. Have you ever felt as overwhelmed or vulnerable as your character? How did that inform your storytelling?

 

I’ve always believed the characters I write carry parts of me. When I moved to the States at 18, I faced loneliness and fear in silence, especially during COVID, alone in Boston. I didn’t want my family to worry, so I hid the truth. That helplessness, that feeling of being trapped in your own body, became Laura’s story. I placed her in a bathroom. Not just a hiding place, but a space of silent devastation. And just like I had my girls to help me through, I gave Laura her sister, Moana. Because sometimes, survival is about letting someone in.

 

 

Much of the film unfolds in confined spaces: the warmth of domestic interiors contrasts with the cold, impersonal clinic. This opposition seems to echo Laura’s inner claustrophobia. How did you use space and visual tone to translate her emotional landscape?

 

During pre-production, I made a point to sit down with my DP and deeply discuss Laura’s emotional arc. Since the story follows her journey through an abortion, the visual tone needed to reflect her shifting mental state. If we were to chart her sense of disturbance on a scale, it begins at a 6, peaks at 9, and eventually drops to a 3. Home, while imperfect, is still her comfort zone. So we made the clinic feel cold, sterile, and deeply unsettling. The contrast between extreme warmth and extreme cold became a visual metaphor for her emotional journey, supporting the character arc from within the frame.

 

 

 

The bond between Laura and her sister Moana becomes a lifeline, a form of resistance. Do you think that, in a world where institutions fail, it is still women who save each other?

 

Sure I do! In my experience, women have always been the most important presence in my life. I have good male friends, but if you haven’t lived the same experiences, you won’t think the same way. You simply can’t fully understand. Especially when you come from a group that carries so much privilege, it can be hard to even see the weight others bear. The understanding, the support, the quiet strength—I’ve learned so much from the women around me. That’s why I truly believe that when institutions fail us, it’s female relationships that can save us. Even now, I find myself looking at elderly women and thinking, that’s who I want to become. And I know I’m working hard every day to grow into that kind of woman.

 

 

What are you currently working on?

 

I’m currently working on my first feature film script and my third short film. Both are deeply rooted in Chinese culture, exploring local myths, religious traditions, and the people shaped by them. And as always, both protagonists are women. I’m still fighting to tell female-centered stories within a patriarchal system—but now I’m also on another mission: to bring local East Asian stories to life, with all their texture, spirituality, and emotional truth.