CHICAGO (WLS) — During the celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month at ABC7 Chicago, local audiences had the opportunity to watch a documentary this week.
It’s called “New Wave.” The film shines a light on the 1980s music scene that became a refuge for many Vietnamese Americans.
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It’s a window into a moment when big beats and even bigger hair forged a brilliant subculture that, for some Asian Americans, defined their youth.
“New Wave” Director Elizabeth Ai reflected, “We were rebels. We were punks. We got in trouble, and we figured out how to make our own music and make our own scene.”
“New Wave” chronicles the Vietnamese American obsession with New Wave music in 1980s Southern California.
Those synth-pop rhythms were rooted in two worlds.
Elizabeth Ai further added, “They sang in English. They sang in Vietnamese. We couldn’t be Vietnamese enough at home. We couldn’t be white American enough in our schools, and so to find this third space where they gathered with their friends and could build an identity that was uniquely their own felt really special.”
The film follows the lives of Vietnamese American New Wave pop stars and their fans, many of whom fled Vietnam with their families after the fall of Saigon.
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In an age of cassette tapes, VHS and Aqua Net, New Wave culture was a refuge.
“It was a safe space for them,” Ai said.
But the film is about more than music and memories.
Ai, through her own experience, takes a critical look at the generational impact of unresolved trauma: a topic too often ignored in the AAPI community.
“There’s another layer to this, which is the vulnerabilities in our communities, to be able to discuss them openly and to share these histories,” Ai said.
On Wednesday night, “New Wave” was screened for a Chicago audience at the Gene Siskel Film Center’s Asian American Showcase.
“We grew up with uncles and cousins who also listened to that type of music; so, it was really nostalgic for me,” Tammy Pepito said.
“New Wave” has won multiple film festival awards, and is looking for distribution.
Visit instagram.com/newwavedocumentary for information about screenings.
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