Sean Wang's Dìdi (弟弟) Is an Authentic Look At Coming-Of-Age

In Dìdi (弟弟), writer-director Sean Wang exemplifies the adage “write what you know,” bringing a joyful authenticity to his coming-of-age tale of 13-year-old Chris Wang (Izaac Wang). Living with his devoted mother (Joan Chen), older sister (Shirley Chen), and grandmother (Chang Li Hua) in Fremont, California, Chris struggles to fit in, be it on Myspace or at the mall. Indeed, The Guardian writes that Dìdi (弟弟) is “easily one of the best, most seamless films I’ve seen on the experience of growing up online.”

Like the film’s protagonist, Wang started making videos and short films when he was a young skater. Over time, he’s made scores of short films in his personal, innovative style, including Nai Nai & Wài Pó, which was nominated for an Academy Award in 2024. Variety writes, “Vulnerable and honest, Wang sees himself in the character, and so do we.”

So, we spoke with Wang about making the feature film he would’ve wanted to see as a kid.

Dìdi (弟弟) is now playing in select theaters, so get your tickets!

What was the inspiration for creating Dìdi (弟弟)?

It started from a place of just being a fan of movies about childhood. A powerful performance from a young actor has always been so transformative to me. I’m thinking of films like, Stand by Me, The 400 Blows, Beasts of the Southern Wild, and Where the Wild Things Are—films that had a sort of magic in their performances. I wanted to explore that age, which is 13 or 14, on the cusp of … innocence? Adolescence? But I've never seen a film that starred a kid that looked, talked, or felt like my friends and me. If I can see myself in all of those movies in which I don't demographically align, then I felt bringing the specifics of the world and upbringing that I knew could provide an access point for similar emotions and an angle that has never been seen before.

Your film has lots of autobiographical elements. Did that make telling this story easier or more difficult?

What’s helpful is that you have a finely tuned BS meter. You know when something isn't working and when it needs to be calibrated. I didn’t need to ask an advisor, "Is this culturally accurate?" When you have that lived experience, you can really trust your intuition in a way that I think is incredibly helpful.

The flip side is that when you're really close to material, it can be hard to be objective. I told my key collaborators, “If there's anything I'm insisting on because of a personal attachment, but it's an objectively bad decision, you need to check me.” Sometimes they would, but I’d tell them it’s really important to me, even if I can't say why. And other times, they were right. We were going to shoot at this mall I loved when I was a kid. They told me, “Look, Sean, I know you love this mall, but it is a terrible location. It’s really sterile, they're charging us too much money to shoot there. Please try to think of something else.” In the end, I had to remove myself from my memories of it.

How did you find Izaac, the actor who plays Chris?

Izaac is the only kid in the movie, besides Shirley, who was an established actor. He's already been in a bunch of animated shows and movies. But they were all child performances, and he's growing up and growing into his own here. When we had a casting call looking for a 13- to 14-year-old Asian boy, of course, his agents sent him. He was one of the first kids we saw and became the measure for the others we auditioned. We kept asking ourselves, "Where are we going to find a more impressive kid to lead this movie?" While we searched, I kept working with Izaac, doing callbacks and chemistry reads.

All the kids in the movie are amazing. How did you find them?

Our casting director, Natalie Lin, and her team spent eight months flipping every stone, collecting audition tapes, searching the internet and TikTok, going to middle schools and skate parks to find kids who felt real.

What was it like filming in your hometown of Fremont?

I feel we captured less the city and more the tone, vibe, and texture of the place. From the start, I believed if we were setting the film in Fremont, the fact that it’s such a multicultural city would have to inform the characters in the film. We didn’t create such a diverse cast just to be diverse, but because that is honestly the ethnic makeup of Fremont's population. Hopefully having all these characters from all sorts of different backgrounds can be a reflection of something larger than Fremont.

How did you work with the production designer to create such a specific look for Chris' home?

Since we shot in my old bedroom, I pointed out how it was set up. I told them, “I had magazine tear-outs on that wall, a computer over there, and a bookcase against that wall.” Overall, I worked with my DP and production designer to achieve the house’s tone, which we wanted to be warm and stifling at the same time. We wanted the home to be a safe haven for Chris, but also feel like a cage.

In addition to being a coming-of-age tale, the film is about a mother and her son. Has your mother seen the film?

She saw it at Sundance for the first time at the premiere and was very moved. She didn’t know that I had dedicated the film to her until she saw the dedication in a crowded theater with everyone saying, “Aww!”

The soundtrack feels spot-on. How did you choose the songs for the film?

It all started from a personal place. I think a lot of the music is culled from things that shaped me, whether it was skate culture or an emo, Warped Tour, pop-punk culture. I wanted the music to be less obvious, not the top 40 hits of that era. I hoped that if that music meant something to me and was reminiscent of the era, then it would mean something to someone else out there.

What would you like people to take away from the film?

I hope they can see it and give their younger selves some grace, forgiveness, and kindness.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.