At the age of twenty, director Ira Sachs left his birthplace Memphis to go and study. Ten years later, in March 1995, he returned with producer Margot Bridger, found somewhere to live and started casting his first feature by visiting all the bars, pool halls and rave clubs in the city. The Delta is a warm, puzzling début focusing on sexual behaviour, ethnicity and love. The film starts with the story of 17-year-old Lincoln (Shayne Gray), a nice Jewish boy who goes out with his straight friends and has a girlfriend, but who feels irresistibly attracted to the city’s underground gay scene. When he comes into contact with theyoung and shady John/Minh (a role by Thang Chan) a strange and unbalanced affair ensues.Ira Sachs gave his actors the freedom to help shape the film. He takes the time to root his intimate story in the sultry atmosphere of the city and the surrounding countryside. The result is a very direct, unpredictable quest for alienation and desire. Thang Chan playing John/Minh, the child of a black father and a Vietnamese mother, portrays an intriguing personality providing a fine picture of the double alienation of being gay and immigrant. Ira Sachs evokes a hopeful picture of a varied society in his film.
