The true story behind Chloé Zhao’s ‘Nomadland’
Frances McDormand won her third ‘Best Actress’ Oscar after starring in Chloé Zhao’s Nomadland in 2020, proving herself to be one of Hollywood’s mightiest stars. The movie not only earned McDormand yet another accolade from the prestigious Academy Awards, but Zhao became the second woman (and the first non-white woman) to win ‘Best Director’, also nabbing ‘Best Picture’ in the process.
Nomadland is a moving look at genuine people, mainly those of an older generation, who live nomadic lifestyles on the road. Yet, Zhao never allows her movie to become overly sentimental or trite. Instead, she allows real nomads to become part of the cast, weaving a documentary sensibility into her approach to creating a fictional narrative.
McDormand plays Fern, who decides to live in a van after losing her job and her husband, completely reshaping her life – hopefully for the better. The movie shows the fictional character meet other nomads while battling grief and economic hardship. Zhao’s film highlights the way that many people have no choice but to live without a sturdy roof over their heads or a fixed address of their own. Simultaneously, the movie celebrates community and friendship, emphasising its value over capitalistic and consumeristic demands.
In a world dominated by logos, advertisements and product placement, Nomadland is a refreshing reminder of the importance of humanity and looking out for one another. Despite featuring a fictional protagonist, many of the supporting characters are real nomads, employed to bring even more realism and lived experience to the film.
One of Fern’s friends, Swankie, is played by Charlene Swankie, who started living in a van in the late 2000s. “I have more resources and more happiness and joy in my life right now,” she told Variety, emphasising how living a nomadic lifestyle free of capitalist constraints can be incredibly freeing.
Swankie, alongside other characters Linda May and Bob Wells, are all real people who feature in the book Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century by Jessica Bruder, which Zhao’s film is loosely based on. Published in 2017, the journalist spent time living alongside van dwellers, many of whom were forced into the unconventional lifestyle due to the recession, unable to afford retirement. Acting as both astute commentary on the socio-economic state of America while also being deeply personal, empathetic and grounded, the book provided the perfect source material for Zhao to transform into cinematic food for thought.
Talking to Deadline, the director discussed how important it was for her to cast some of the people from the book, helping to illuminate their stories more accurately. “Everything happens simultaneously because once we meet someone like Swankie, we realise she has to be in the film, and that informs the journey that Fern is going to take.”
Nomadland emphasises the importance of finding your own family, with Zhao crafting an expert snapshot of America in ruins – any semblance of the American Dream a mere tumbleweed. According to Nomadland, despite the government doing very little to help those in need, there is always hope and survival in togetherness.
