In their debut six-part crime drama, Blue Season, director Zen Nguyen and producer Sylvia Wang break traditional broadcasting rules. Shot in just 14 days and placing British Asian leads firmly at the center of a gritty police corruption narrative, the series side-steps the traditional commissioning route entirely. Now streaming on platforms like Apple TV, it stands as a masterclass in resourceful, self-determined filmmaking.
We spoke to Zen and Sylvia about pulling off a high-stakes shoot, the absolute necessity of authentic representation behind the camera, and why indie filmmakers should stop waiting for permission.
Blue Season was made without a broadcaster commission, through self-funding and private investment. What made you decide to take that risk yourselves rather than wait for the traditional route to open up?
Zen: We were fortunate to connect with a company that was interested in working with us and investing in the project. They were looking to develop a miniseries and liked our pitch. As they were both a production and distribution company, it felt like a good opportunity to develop the project collaboratively. So, we decided to take the opportunity and make Blue Season happen.
You managed to shoot a six-part crime drama in just 14 days. How on earth do you make something like that work logistically, and what did you have to sacrifice – or get creative with – to keep the production moving?
Zen: It all comes down to understanding our budget and shooting schedule from the beginning. With only 14 days to shoot six episodes (30 mins each), the script, pre-production, and artistic direction all had to work together.
During script development, we worked closely with the writer to make the most of our locations without compromising the story. We also spent a lot of time rehearsing with the cast so that everyone was well prepared before we stepped onto set.
Logistically, we concentrated the production around four to five main locations, which we then adapted to create different sets. For example, one large house was transformed into five separate settings. Our production design team did an incredible job making those spaces feel distinct.
Our DOP, Mari Yamamura, shot the entire series handheld. This was both a practical and a creative decision, paying homage to the landmark 1990s police drama NYPD Blue. So, we made our limitations work for the story rather than allow them to define it.
Sylvia: I’d also like to add that having a resourceful director helps a lot. Planning gets you most of the way, but there’s no 100% guarantee that surprises won’t happen on a fourteen-day shoot. Zen is a very fast thinker and a natural problem-solver. She’d find a way through almost immediately: we combined angles, or restructured the scene to commit to the schedule and budget while keeping the creative direction intact. That’s one of the main reasons we stayed on schedule.
The series puts Asian leads at the centre of a British police drama. Was representation something you set out to address from the beginning, or did Earl Wan and Catherine Dauphin’s characters naturally lead you there?
Zen: It was something we wanted to address from the outset. We wanted British Asian characters to be at the centre of a British police drama, not just appear in supporting roles or have their identities define their entire story.
Earl and Cat both bring something uniquely authentic to their characters and the show. We deliberately avoided the usual stereotypical tropes you see on screen. Their presence shows that they do have other things going on in their lives, which we think the East Asian diaspora can relate to and find refreshing to see. For us, representation is about creating space for these characters to exist naturally within the stories we tell.
Sylvia: It was set out from the beginning to be a show with Asian faces at the centre, and I think Earl and Cat did an amazing job with that.
And it mattered behind the camera too. We had Asian crew members in senior roles, and that changed the room. It isn’t about getting details technically correct; it’s that when a crew or a cast member shares their experience, nobody has to explain themselves or justify it. That gave Earl, Cat, and the rest of the cast the confidence to bring much more of their own thinking to their characters.
The story deals with corruption inside the police, which puts it in conversation with shows like Line of Duty and Luther. What did you want Blue Season to do differently from the British crime dramas that have already established that territory?
Zen: We know that British crime dramas have a strong tradition, like Line of Duty and Luther. With Blue Season, we wanted to explore that world through our own perspective: by placing British Asian leads in the center of the story. As an independent production, we had the freedom to approach the material our own way. We wanted to create a strong story with its own identity and show how people respond when their values are tested.
Zen, you came from nearly a decade of making commercials, while Sylvia, you came from technology consulting in finance. What did each of you bring from those very different careers that unexpectedly helped when you started making a six-part drama?
Zen: I’ve worked as a producer for almost 15 years in commercials and films. I’d also worked as a line producer on a feature film and directed several short films, but Blue Season was my first long-form project as a director. Having a production background helps me to make the most of limited resources and make decisions efficiently without losing sight of the creative vision.
Sylvia: My job in finance involved large projects with fixed budgets, hard deadlines, many stakeholders, and a lot of risk to manage. And that’s also exactly what a film production is. They are different fields, but the core work is the same.
The other thing is perspective. I didn’t come up through the traditional route in film and TV, so I’m less bound by how things are usually done. Blue Season is an example. A six-part drama with limited time and resources – plenty of people would say that’s close to impossible, and I didn’t start from that assumption. It turns out it isn’t impossible.
Once you’ve made a series independently, there’s still the question of getting anyone to actually see it. What was the process of finding a distributor like, and was there a point where you wondered whether you’d ever get Blue Season in front of an audience?
Zen: We’ve been actively attending film festivals and markets, including Cannes, the Asian Contents & Film Market (ACFM), ATF, the European Film Market (EFM), and TIFFCOM. We met different distributors, built relationships, and gained a better understanding of what different markets are looking for. We believed there was an audience for Blue Season, but finding the right partner takes time. Seeing the series reach audiences through platforms such as Galaxy Play in Vietnam and Apple TV in Europe has made that process worthwhile.
Sylvia: I’d echo Zen’s point. I believe that there’s no such thing as an unsellable show, but there are shows in the wrong market. That’s why positioning matters so much at the development stage. You need to know who this is for before you make it, not after. We stayed fairly confident through the process because we knew what Blue Season was and which markets it belonged in, so the conversations were about finding the right partner rather than hoping someone would just take it.
Now that Blue Season is available to buy and rent on Apple TV, what would you say to other British filmmakers looking at the current commissioning landscape and wondering whether they should stop waiting for permission to make the thing they want to make?
Zen: If you have a story you really believe in, don’t let anything stop you. Surely independent production comes with real challenges: financing, resources, and distribution. You need a realistic plan and people who believe in what you’re trying to do. Blue Season has taught us there are other ways to bring a project to life. Understand what you can achieve with the resources available to you, be creative about how you use them, and foremost, build a team that shares your vision.
I’d also encourage filmmakers to think about distribution early. Festivals, markets, and relationships with international partners can help a series find its audience. Making the series is only the beginning – you have to keep pushing for people to see it.
Sylvia: I’d always encourage filmmakers to take action when they’re confident in the work, rather than waiting to be chosen. What makes action possible is treating it as a project to manage, not only as a piece of art. It may sound boring, but it’s the part that gets the work made. Sketch it out, plan it properly, be honest about what you actually have, and I think people would be surprised how much further existing resources go once they’re organised.
And the market is more open for good stories than people assume. Take Obsession as an example, shot in twenty days for well under a million dollars, and it’s now one of the highest-grossing independent films ever made. Audiences respond to the work, and that’s what should give any independent filmmaker confidence.
Blue Season is a six-part British crime drama directed by Zen Nguyen and produced by Zen Nguyen and Sylvia Wang, starring Earl Wan and Catherine Dauphin. The series is available on Galaxy Play in Vietnam and to buy or rent on Apple TV across 24 European territories, including the UK.
Socials: @featurestonepictures #blueseason
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