Phuong Mai Nguyen is opening Cannes Critics’ Week with the animated film “In Waves,” about shy teenager AJ who falls in love with Kristen. She loves to surf, and slowly, AJ starts to appreciate it as well. But “In Waves” isn’t just about surfing.
“Before making this film, I didn’t have much of a connection with surfing or skating. When I heard about the story, I went: ‘OK, this is about surfing, and I’m not really into it,’” she tells Variety. Later, she discovered the philosophy behind the sport she wanted to express.
“When you’re gliding into the water, you’re connecting to something greater than yourself. It reminds us of our humility as humans in relation to nature.”
Produced by Silex Films, distributed by Diaphana and sold by Charades, “In Waves” is based on AJ Dungo’s graphic novel — and his own painful experiences after discovering that his first love was gravely ill. Nguyen decided to dedicate the film to Kristen. “It’s a very intimate story,” she says. “I didn’t know AJ at first, but I realized I needed to meet him.”
Dungo and Kristen’s family welcomed her to California, where the film is set.
“I was really moved by the graphic novel, but also by this entire experience,” she says. “They opened their doors and gave me a glimpse of their lives. This was my way of showing them how grateful I was.”
Building on Dungo’s work, she wanted to ensure Kristen would be remembered.
“We all wanted to honor the promise made to her — art keeps Kristen alive. I didn’t know what she was like, but AJ depicts her in his drawings, which is why I use so many of them in the film. They helped me to fill in the gaps.”
In the movie, voiced by Stephanie Hsu and Will Sharpe, Kristen lifts AJ up. She also helps him overcome his fear of water. “She basically teaches him how to live,” says Nguyen.
“I was a stranger, but I could connect to AJ because he’s an artist and he’s dealing with grief through art. Ultimately, it was this connection that made me want to do it, because initially, I was very intimidated by how personal this story was. Also, we are both part of the Asian community — he’s Filipino American — and we are children of immigrants. We actually have so many things in common.”
Hailing from Vietnam, Nguyen graduated from animation schools Les Gobelins and La Poudrière.
“‘Spirited Away’ was the first animation that really blew my mind. That was the starting point of me wanting to make animation and I came to France to study art,” she recalls. “I used to draw a lot as a kid. It became a way of expressing myself. Animation allows for more poetry: you can be less realistic. In the film, there’s a moment in the hospital where the bed sheets become like waves, too.”
Figuring out how to animate them was challenging.
“Water is really one of the characters here. We had to find a way to create these waves, because I wanted them to have texture. I have to underline that I didn’t use AI at all when making the film. It was done digitally and it was done by people,” she stresses. “The waves are mirroring what everyone is going through — there are calmer moments, when the waves are soft and gentle, and then it gets stormy. It’s as if the waves and the ocean had their own emotions.”
She added more color to the film, inspired by her time in California: “I wanted to capture the light there. The first time I went there, I was shocked — the blue sky and seemingly endless horizon were so striking. I was amazed by it.”
Nguyen tackles difficult topics in the film but she doesn’t see “In Waves” as being solely for adults.
“Sometimes you watch animation and you might not understand everything, but you are still attracted to the images. When I was very young, I remember watching ‘The King and the Mockingbird’ [an animated classic directed by Paul Grimault], which is very strange and very surreal. I didn’t fully understand the story, but I was captivated by it,” she says, adding: “I love the idea that you can rediscover a movie later in life and notice new things about it.”
