Alum Cathy Yan to Write and Direct New FilmNation Feature

Monday, Feb 8, 2021

Cathy Yan Photo Courtesy of Stephanie Diani

Cathy Yan Photo Courtesy of Stephanie Diani

Just off the cusp of FilmNation’s critical and fan favorite “Promising Young Woman,” the company has enlisted alum Cathy Yan to write and direct the sci-fi love story “The Freshening.”

The film is an adaption of Rachel Khong’s short story, which is set in a near future where tensions over race and gender have reached a violent extreme. The U.S. government institutes a public health initiative known as ‘The Freshening’: every American receives an injection, after which everyone only sees others as the same race and gender as themselves. But when a street drug hits the scene, promising a chance to see the world as it really is, will she choose to disrupt this ‘freshened’ world?

In a statement for Variety, Yan said, ’The Freshening’ is exactly the type of daring and timely film that excites me as a writer and director, and that Ash and I started Rewild to produce. I’m delighted to get to work with like-minded collaborators Ali Wong, Hyperobject and FilmNation to bring this bold and impactful story to the screen.”

Read more at Variety.