This article originally appeared in Honeysuckle Magazine.
By Katie Chambers
In a media landscape dominated by outraged, emotional debates over our nation’s immigration crisis, DACA, ICE, detainment, and children’s immense suffering, writer/director Diane Paragas’ long-in-the-making film Yellow Rose has burst on to the scene. And it could not be more timely.
The musical film follows 17-year-old Rose (Tony Award nominee Eva Noblezada), an undocumented Filipino girl who dreams of one day leaving her small Texas town to pursue country music. Her world is shattered when her mother is picked up by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Rose is forced to flee the scene, leaving behind the only life she knows, and she embarks on a journey of self-discovery as she searches for a new home in the honky-tonk world of Austin, Texas.
This is the narrative feature film debut for Paragas, an award-winning director, editor, cinematographer and producer of commercials and documentaries, and it has thus far garnered rave reviews and numerous awards, including the New York Women in Film & Television Ravenal Foundation Feature Film Grant, the Cinematografo Originals Grant, and “Best Narrative Feature” Awards at the Bentonville Film Festival, CAAMFest, and the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, among others.
In anticipation of the film’s next showing as the opening night film at the 42nd Asian American International Film Festival in New York on July 25th, Paragas took a few minutes to discuss her path.
NYWIFT: How did you come up with the story of Yellow Rose? Did your own upbringing influence the story?
Diane Paragas: I began writing this story over 15 years ago. It’s based on my experiences growing up in Lubbock, Texas as one of the only Filipinos in my school. I played music but not country music. I thought if this character loved everything about Texas and most specifically the music it would be like a grand unrequited love.
15 years – wow! Please talk about that process, and what inspired you to keep going.
When I started the process, I was very naive and worked with a Hollywood writer thinking it would help me get it off the ground sooner. I also was insecure, I think, as a writer. But the first couple of years were tough. There were some opportunities but mostly if I compromised the story. So then I dropped the project for a couple of years, and concentrated on directing, writing other scripts and starting a production company in NYC. After making my first big feature-length documentary Brooklyn Boheme, I returned to Yellow Rose and it’s been a long steady road since.
The film is coming out right as media attention on America’s immigration crisis is spiking. What do you hope to add to the conversation around immigration?
Already with the few festival screenings we have had, I can see the profound reactions from our audience. I really believe film has the power to expand our understanding of the world around us, because there are real characters that go through a journey we can relate to. I had a screening with a very conservative predominantly white audience, and they were all so moved. Even a Trump supporter who watched got so moved he said after the screening, “I think Trump should renew DACA.”
You’ve got an incredible cast. How did Tony Award-winner Lea Salonga and rising star Eva Noblezada get involved in the project? I assume this was before Eva hit it big with Hadestown on Broadway.
I am so blessed to have the cast we have. I have been a fan of Lea Salonga for as long as I can remember. She in fact was the only Filipino in entertainment I knew about. As for Eva, she was always at the top of my list as potential actresses to play Rose, but she was in the London and then the Broadway company for Miss Saigon. So it didn’t seem an option. But when I saw her in Miss Saigon, I really knew she was the one. I offered her the role right after watching it.

Eva Noblezada and Dale Watson in Yellow Rose (dir. Diane Paragas)
Music is a big part of the film – not only as a key plot point but also as a way for characters to express themselves. How did you use music to move the story forward?
Another blessing in the film was that Dale Watson was so much part of our film. He provided so much of the music and he served as a musical inspiration for the original music we wrote for the film. We wrote a few songs for the short together with Thia Megia (who played Rose in our short) that made their way into the feature. And for the feature more original music was written including music by Eva and myself. I think writing with the characters in mind helped give the authenticity of Rose’s voice.
Congrats on the recognition you’ve received so far! That must be validating after so many years of work on this project, right?
I am so grateful for the recognition we have received through grants and awards the film has won so far. But really the most rewarding thing is reaction from our audiences. The outpouring of love for the film is the ultimate reward from Filipinos from around the world feeling they get to see themselves on the big screen for the first time, to undocumented people coming forward thanking me for telling their story. It is the ultimate reward that people have embraced the film.
What is next for you?
I am working on a lot of other projects including developing scripts for TV and film. But the project I’m in early production for now is a film called the Three Lives of David Wong, which is an experimental hybrid documentary that follows the harrowing journey of Chinese restaurant worker who is wrongfully accused of a murder. We are telling using live-action puppetry as a visual metaphor for the inhumanity of his circumstance. We recently received funding and support from both CAAM [Center for Asian American Media] and Sundance Institute. I’m very excited to finally have the door open to me to continue to tell more underrepresented stories.
Catch Yellow Rose at the 42nd Asian American International Film Festival in New York City on July 25th.
Related Posts
Meet the New NYWIFT Member: Christy Veeder
Welcome to our new NYWIFT Member, Christy Veeder! Christy is a screenwriter, former climate scientist, and erstwhile bureaucrat whose first major work of fiction, a personal interpretation of The Dark Crystal, was written in response to not being allowed to see Jim Henson’s fantasy epic in the theater with her other third grade friends. But what Christy really loves is 30-minute comedy and the ways in which it can illuminate our hopes, defang our fears, and help us keep going in this thing called life. Christy’s screenplays culminate a career spanning years of editing and writing about the culinary arts, publishing academic journal articles, handing out coupons at the Port Authority while dressed as a box of cough syrup, impersonating celebrity cats on Twitter, and drafting federal legislation in the U.S. Senate – all of which have been rich preparation for the process of creating worlds on the page. Christy discusses her diverse career background, her experience as a writer, and how she first got into the field.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Guneet K. Singh
Welcome to NYWIFT, Guneet K. Singh! Former NYWIFT intern Guneet K. Singh is a producer and writer with a passion for diverse storytelling. She was most recently the producer for the poignant play, Irreparable, which premiered at the Act One One-Act Theater Festival. She has worked in television development for NBC and Peacock, working on programs such as That’s My Jam, Password, Joyelle Nicole Johnson: Love Joy and 5 More Sleeps ‘Til Christmas. Her first producing role was as the Digital Producer for the Emmy nominated The Kids Tonight Show. She began her career as an NBC Page, working on shows like Saturday Night Live and The TODAY Show. In our interview, Guneet discusses her exciting time in NBC’s legendary Page Program, the power of networking, and finding her calling as a writer and producer.
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Monique Gabriela Curnen
Welcome to NYWIFT, Monique Gabriela Curnen! Monique Gabriela Curnen is an actor and producer known for a string of critical and commercial successes, including Half Nelson, The Dark Knight, Contagion and Birth/Rebirth. While working with Warrington Hudlin at the Black Filmmaker Foundation, she started producing short films. She continued producing independently, including the Joe Holt short Noël, which sold to ShortsHD. She served as executive producer on the award-winning feature documentary, A Run For More (PBS, Amazon) directed by Ray Whitehouse. She’s currently in development on the narrative feature Sheila & the Punk Rock, written and directed by K. Lorrel Manning. Monique discusses the roots of her career, her experience working on large-scale productions, and how she overcomes challenges within these realms. Get to know her in our latest interview!
READ MOREMeet the New NYWIFT Member: Sonia Malfa
Let's give a warm welcome to new NYWIFT member Sonia Malfa! Inspired by nature and myth, Sonia Malfa is a writer/director who creates visually poetic films that draw from her Puerto Rican-American roots. From music video and commercials to documentary and narrative film, her directing work has been featured in Tribeca Festival, AdAge, Vogue Italia, and won both Webby and Clio Awards. Sonia is currently in development on her narrative feature debut, It's Always Sunni, which was selected for the Gotham Project Market and Film Independent’s Fast Track. Most recently, Sonia was selected for the NALIP/Netflix Woman of Color Film Incubator and the Actors Studio Directors Unit. In our interview, Sonia discusses her deep connection to nature, commercial projects, the importance of creative community, and her road trip film - with a twist!
READ MORE
Comments are closed