Date of Award

5-2022

Document Type

Project

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Communication Studies

Department

Communication Studies

First Reader/Committee Chair

Metts, Rod

Abstract

A good screenplay is first and foremost a good story. Elements of a good story include compelling characters, a theoretical structure, and a well-executed premise. The Rain Over Hanoi is an extremely intimate and personal project about an Asian American expat living in Vietnam. Our protagonist’s journey and coming of age is explored via the interactions she has with her old and new family. Communication through food, symbolism, and cultural exchange are also present throughout the screenplay, utilizing a realistic point of view for the benefit of a full story submersion experience to the reader/viewer. Themes of self-exploration, growing up, maturing, and intergenerational trauma are presented in the screenplay to heighten the dramatic impact of how a structured story is told.

This project contains a screenplay that explores themed elements weaved together to represent the stories of people who look like me and share the same experiences as me. Our stories are typically not told in Hollywood so The Rain Over Hanoi serves as a vessel to give our experiences a chance and a voice.

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