Staff reporters Ashley Riegle and Yifan Zhu sat down with "Crocodile in the Yangtze" filmmaker, Porter Erisman at USC School of Cinematic Arts for an exclusive interview. Check out the interview with Porter below. To read Neon Tommy's review of "Crocodile in the Yangtze" click here.

Was there a moment at Alibaba when you thought to yourself, something significant is happening here?

Yes, throughout the entire experience I thought to myself, 'maybe I am going to be a witness to one of the most amazing business stories in history'. With the change going on in China, with the David and Goliath match between an English teacher and Ebay, and I knew I wanted to capture it. 

You know, that's a really good question. In 2002, I knew I wanted to write a book, and I wrote one page and I said, we have no idea where we're going, the company might fail. And it occurred to me that I might be about to document the failure of the company, which I didn't want to do. 

And then in 2008 is when I decided to make a film.

Many foreigners who work in Chinese organizations find it challenging due to the cultural divide, how did you adapt and thrive for so long at Alibaba? 

I think many foreigners go to China with a Colonial mentality, they think 'the West is developed, we know how to do business, I am the expert and I'm here to share my skills and experience'. A foreign company comes in and usually a Westerner was the boss and Chinese were working for them- this is maybe more in the 90's, but now there's a shift where the Chinese have developed and learned a lot so that they are actually doing a better job of running the business. 

I think I survived because I started with an interest in China. I studied the language, I enjoyed meeting Chinese people and was willing to make a lot of mistakes and embarrass myself. I just went along with it, and that was the most important thing. Just go along with it, don't judge it, come with the attitude that you're going to learn something.

A lot of other foreigners were laid off, because they had like I said a Colonial attitude. They only wanted to fly business-class, they only wanted 5 star hotels, and they didn't find it fun to blend with people from other cultures. And of course not everyone was like that. I fit in at a layer of management in the company and international staff, we all managed to do well because we first had an interest in China and other languages and cultures, and then we added business skill to it. The other managers has a business skill set, but didn't have this other natural interest.

When you were making the film did you have an intention to reach Chinese audiences? And if so, with what message?

I made it for both audiences. The first reason I made the film was to inspire entrepreneurs or someone with a dream, to let them see a path that if they start something and stick with the right values, build a team, then they can do great things. The second reason was that in some small way I wanted to help bridge the gap between China and the West. So I didn't just make it for Westerners, I also made it for Chinese. Because if Chinese companies or people want to go overseas, they should know what the challenges are that they are going to face. And if they study Jack Ma, who was one of the first people to do that, they can see the challenges. I think Chinese audiences enjoy getting the Western perspective on this story.

The Chinese government is investing heavily in infrastructure to create silicon valleys all across the country intended to incubate tech start ups. China has not traditionally thrived in innovation, especially related to technology. Do you see trends of this changing with more Chinese tech companies challenging their rivals in terms of market share and innovation?

Yeah, I think it's amazing how people underestimate China's ability to innovate. That's one thing Westerners tell themselves to feel better, that China is not creative, not innovative. Actually, for Alibaba.com, I see of maybe 5,000 start-ups, it's the one that really took off. And it's Chinese. There's a huge entrepreneurial culture, innovative, creative, and in some ways China has an advantage because they're not starting with a history where they're locked into a certain way of thinking. It's all new, so many new ideas come from China. It will take a while for it to come over to the US, because it's such a big market in China. But the people I worked with are incredibly creative and innovative.

Did you have anyone within Alibaba involved in this movie?

No, I specifically did not want that. Once Jack Ma said I could make my own independent documentary, I disappeared. Because I knew the temptation of any company trying to get control of things. So I disappeared, made the film, and when it was finished, I submitted it to festivals. Then I contacted Jack and told him I made my film. I specifically avoided interacting with Alibaba until then because I wanted the film to be completely independent. Even one word I didn't want to change. 

Has Jack seen it? Any comments?

Yes, he's seen it. The way I can describe it is this, I couldn't really read him. I think he didn't love it and he didn't hate it. I assume he thought it was fair. It's like for someone who is really great looking, but they're not wearing make-up, they don't want to see a picture of them looking like that, even if most people would say, 'that's a great story'. He seemed to think it was fair, and he told me he wouldn't do anything to try to change it.

Do you think that incorporating your voice into the narration altered the objectivity of the film?

There are different ways to make a documentary. I am very clear and transparent that this is my experience, that's why I call it a "documemoir" instead of a documentary. Because a documemoir implies that it's my personal experience, you can look at the way I present it and decide whether you agree with it or not. Everything I did in the film I looked back at myself to make sure I stood by what I was creating. It's not made by a third party. I had strict rules for myself. At the end of the day, it's all my opinion. People can decide whether they agree with me or not. 

Did you observe Jack and Alibaba's attitudes change over time as it became more successful? In other words, did you see him become a different version of himself?

He got better. When I first joined the company, he would tell the media he was going to leave in 4 years. Because he said, 'I'm not a CEO, I'm just and English teacher'. Even he thought he couldn't be a CEO. And he really grew and developed. After we had some time periods where professional managers lead the company in the wrong direction, he realized he could be the CEO.

In the second to the last scene, you hear his voice say "you shouldn't change just because you get a little bit of money…", that was actually from a speech he gave right before I left, in a big stadium. That was the speech he gave to all the staff, he wanted to make sure that everyone maintain the same core values.

I can't say what will happen going forward for Jack or Alibaba, but that is the lesson I learned there. Even if you are successful, you should still hold on to the same values that made you successful and not change because of it.

Do you have any plans for your next project?

This experience is like this, you throw a ball into the forest and see where it takes you. Instead of knowing where exactly it will take you, you follow it and see what happens.

Check out the trailer for "Crocodile in the Yangtze" below:

 

Reach Staff Reporter Ashley Riegle by email. Follow her on Twitter here. 

Reach Staff Reporter Yifan Zhu by email. Follow her on Twitter here.