When I was in China, no other American regional name got the kind of response that I got from saying Jiù Jīn Shān. Probably, for the majority of those I spoke with, their grandparents perceived America's West Coast just as my Swedish ancestors perceived America's East Coast. Promising young men, or perhaps those with little alternatives, quickly acted on the suggestion to "Go East" to find easy fortune and (perhaps) a classless society.
What if SF was deemed a worthy jewel in the crown of a quickly growing Chinese empire? What if the new generation, the little emporers were no longer interested in simply working overseas, but actually acquiring an overseas territory? What if the Chinese history of "never conquer other lands"- while conveniently forgetting Tibet and Vietnam- were to change, and some saw fit to pluck California from the distressed hold of a crumbling United States (as Bush will doubtlessly run us into the ground!) What if?
The ideas for possible locations started percolating in my mind, beyond settings, though, I had distinct opinions and possible plot twists about the residents of occupation, and the occupiers. Would the Chinese-Americans embrace people from their homeland, or scorn them? How would other Americans react? Those that were recent immigrants? What about other nations?
I see this project as a fusion of some of my favorite literary and movie sources. Imagine a futuristic San Francisco similar to Phillip K Dick's The Man In The High Castle with the ambiance of an occupied Paris in Alan Furst's espionage novels, combined with the romance of love in a time of political insecurity, as in Leon Uris' Mila 18 and of course, "Casablanca."
I think the internet is the best medium for multi-media projects. I had a lot of fun doing one eight years ago, which I will post here soon, and hope that this one will also enable people to experience, at their own pace and without charge, the romance, intrigue and dramatic ambiance of such a beautiful location as Jiù Jīn Shān.
Release expected in July.
Contact Anna for more information if you would like to be involved: anna - at - banane.com
Photos: from The Virtual Museum of the City of San Francisco, and below that, a photo I took of the Golden Gate Bridge, Fort Point, and the headlands.
