5 Questions with Javian Ashton Le
“Contours” is a quiet exploration of a young woman holed up in a luxury hotel after cosmetic eyelid surgery. We asked director Javian Ashton Le how the project started, how he found the right tone and pacing, and what comes next for him…
1) Can you talk briefly about your background, and how you first got interested in filmmaking?
I pursued an undergrad degree in Economics at NYU with the intention of finding some sort of corporate job, realizing too late that it wasn’t for me. But during my junior year, I took several cinema studies classes as electives and was introduced to films by Ozu, Kurosawa, Fassbinder, Sirk, and Tarkovsky. The critical analysis of these films and filmmakers opened up my eyes to the possibilities of cinema as a form of artistic expression. I began to consume arthouse films, and eventually, that sparked a desire to create my own.
2) What’s the backstory here - what was the initial idea and how did it evolve from there?
My inclination as a filmmaker is to explore themes loosely inspired by complex emotional experiences in my life. As a first-generation American born to Vietnamese refugees in a predominantly white suburb, a specific issue that continually haunts me is the psychological impact of exclusion and misrepresentation in mainstream media. Growing up in 90s New Jersey, I was secretly ashamed of being the ‘Asian kid’ in school. I didn’t want to be defined by emasculating stereotypes and would do everything I could to distance myself from those types of persona. I wasn’t consciously aware of whitewashing or yellowface at the time, but its negative impact on my social development is unquestionable. Without any real or complex depictions of Asians in pop culture, it’s what I feared people might see in me and what I was afraid to see in myself.
This theme of racial insecurity is something I’ve long wanted to explore through cinema but couldn’t figure out how to execute in a compelling way. Then one day, I came across an internet article about an Asian-American news anchor from the 90s and her decision to undergo cosmetic eyelid surgery at the behest of a Caucasian executive who told her she’d never become a top anchor if she looked “sleepy” and “disinterested” all the time. The existence of such an extreme procedure was a revelation to me, but the pressure to conform was all too familiar. Fascinated, I began to research this surgery, fully expecting to find confessions of secrecy and shame. I came across a few accounts like that from first-generation Asian Americans, but to my surprise, the perception in Asia is entirely different; blepharoplasty (cosmetic eyelid surgery) is especially popular in South Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, and Vietnam. In fact, it is seen as a status symbol and is a common high school graduation gift that wealthy parents bestow their daughters. After learning this, the idea for “Contours” soon emerged, focusing on an impressionable first-generation Asian American teenager who struggles to come to terms with her identity while stuck between the demands of two vastly different cultures.
3) I love how minimal it is, despite the fact it’s about a drastic life change. Can you talk a bit about you found your way into the tone and pacing of the piece, and how you decided what to show and not to show? Were there scenes or portions of scenes that you filmed that you decided to omit, and why?
Ultimately, the piece is an examination of Chloe’s emotional experience with racial insecurity at a significant turning point in her life. She isn’t consciously aware of the institutional mechanics behind her inner turmoil, but they affect her deeply. In collaboration with Allison Anderson (Director of Photography) and Jessica Ray Harrison (Costume and Production Designer), we aimed to create a visually precise yet sparse atmosphere that serves as a representation of Chloe’s feelings within the confines of her social construct. I presume viewers will be engaged in this film because they want to understand why Chloe chose to get the procedure. The minimalist approach is designed to strip away potential distractions and place greater emphasis on Chloe’s mundane routine. Actions as simple as eating a salad or turning off a television are things we usually wouldn’t think twice about, but in this context, the viewer becomes compelled to scrutinize these details and consider how it relates to her motivation to go through with eyelid surgery. The film leaves a lot open to interpretation to elicit critical thinking about the impact of media representation (or lack thereof) and its influence on our collective consciousness. By spurring these tough questions, I hope viewers come away with a more profound curiosity about these social mechanisms.
4) What’s a film you’ve seen recently, new or old, that you really loved and why?
I recently revisited Brady Corbet’s “Vox Lux” after seeing it twice in theaters last year. It’s an incredibly bold film that forsakes conventional storytelling and compels you to question your preconceptions about its themes and subject matter. The performances are incredible, and Sia’s music takes it to another level.
5) What’s next for you?
I am in the process of raising financing for my microbudget feature film “Smoke and Steel,” a drama about a young man who stumbles on his younger brother's body after a tragic freak accident and then must plan the funeral with his estranged father. It's a heartbreaking story that reflects on the cultural divide between first-generation children and their immigrant parents and explores themes of loss, familial duty, and identity. We have a few investors and a great team attached, but we’re still knocking on doors and hustling to close the gap, hopefully soon. Stay tuned!
Contact Info:
Instagram: @eljav1er