Nazrin Choudhury Discusses Red, White and Blue

How would you describe Red, White and Blue?

The film’s title alludes to the United States of America where the Supreme Court’s decision to effectively reverse Roe v Wade almost half a century after they first ruled on it has significant implications and repercussions for millions of Americans across the country. Red, White and Blue, however, is essentially the story of what it means to be a mother.

 

What were some of the challenges of making the film?

There are inherent challenges to making any short film with limited resources but we were determined to implement production values that spoke to the film’s aesthetic. We had an ambitious five-day shoot that involved a road trip and a young cast. On the final day of filming with just minutes to go before we needed to wrap one of our young actors for the day, we ran into an issue in which the carousel that serves as a focal part of our story broke down. We had to pivot and rescue the situation with some very creative solutions.

 

How did you manage to keep it 22 minutes?

I really believe in being able to tell a story in an efficient and transportive manner. My goal was for audiences to feel like they experienced the same depth of storytelling as they would in a 90-minute feature over the span of 22 minutes that only felt like 5 minutes in the watching. Hopefully, we achieved that.

 

What is one part (without giving too much away) that you are most looking forward to people seeing?

I hope that once you reach the end of the film, it merits a rewatch for all the nuances and layers of storytelling that we wanted to land.

 

What is the biggest message that you hope viewers get from watching?

While we hope that people will understand that reproductive rights is a human rights issue, we did not set out to tell a didactic story. We simply wanted to reflect one experience from the plethora of different reasons why people might need a necessary procedure and, in doing so, for an audience to tap into their humanity. Although our film is entirely fictional, it reflects characters that may resemble people in our own lives and a shared humanity that I hope will inspire people to offer a helping hand instead of judgement. 

 

This movie takes on such an important topic of abortion and women’s rights. How difficult was it to take it on, especially in this day and age?

Abortion continues to play out on the political stage in a polarizing way but it is essential for me, as a filmmaker, to not shy away from telling stories that don’t pull their punches. In some ways, this serves as a “State of the Union” story that I hope allows for necessary conversations to take place around our dinner tables and in our communities. I told this story for all the people who are not able to tell their stories for themselves but who nevertheless deserve to be seen and heard.

 

What’s next for you?

I recently completed work on the final season of Fear The Walking Dead which just aired. I am actively developing a number of projects in the TV space as a showrunner whilst also working on a full-length feature film that I plan to direct.

 

Describe Red, White and Blue in three words

I would prefer others to ascribe their three words to our film but if I had to distil it down to that myself, I hope I would be able to say: Powerful, poignant, profound.