[2024.03.15] STANLEY KWAN WISHES FOR NEW DIRECTORS TO GO EVEN FURTHER

courtesy of on.cc

Stanley Kwan, Sasha Chuk, Jonathan Li, Soi Cheang
courtesy of mingpao.com

The film FLY ME TO THE MOON (DAN YUEN YUN CHEUNG GAU)'s producer Stanley Kwan Kam Peng and director Sasha Chuk Chi Ngan, and DUST TO DUST (DAI BAK GOR YIM YI YUN)'s producer Soi Cheang Pou Soi and director Jonathan Li Tsz Chung yesterday attended a Hong Kong International Film and Television Market forum to share their experience.

Starting in the business in the 70s, Kwan Kam Peng said that that was the era of film. After graduating from TVB training class he joined the film division as a production assistant and an assistant screenwriter. Then he became the assistant film director and learned from many big directors. He admitted that now the film climate has changed a lot. He even felt that he had to be grateful to be able to experience the 80s and the 80s full bloom for film, when resources were ample; now the financing sources for new directors would very likely be from government assistance. Actually the government has provided a lot of financing. Kwan Kam Peng also pointed out that in recent years many films were able to be promoted overseas, like ALL SHALL BE WELL (CHUNG GUM YI HAU) after winning the Teddy Award at the Berlin Film Festival returning to Hong Kong to be its film festival opening film. However many channels would be required in the middle.

Kwan Kam Peng was asked why he would be willing to be the producer to new directors? He pointed out that earlier he produced Vicki Zhao Wei's film SO YOUNG because the story moved him. He agreed to produce director Sasha Chuk Chi Ngan's FLY ME TO THE MOON (DAN YUEN YUN CHEUNG GAU) because he appreciated her short films. Kwan Km Peng said that the producer should always stand on the director's side and provide suggestions, including character entrances and exits, and interaction between characters so they would easily leave an impression with the audience. However he would only make suggestions to the directors and not demand them to follow his ideas. He hoped that the government would promote new directors' films even further, bring more attention to them so new directors would not become an "one film director".

As a new generation director Li Tsz Chun also agreed that sometimes investors would provide casting suggestions, but if he did not feel any feeling, how could they work together? This time would be for the producer to "block". He also had to ask the producer some questions. When he made DUST TO DUST (DAI BAK GOR YIM YI YUN), producer Soi Cheang Pou Soi helped him a lot. Starting in the film industry at age 19, Cheang Pou Soi after 33 years has already produced new directors' movies 5 times. He humbly said that he could not claim to have any advice, but he would tell himself that the director was the most important. He would try not to start from his own angle, but standing on the director's side to make suggestions.

In addition, the host said that Kwan Kam Peng has been described as the industry soul adjuster. Kwan Kam Peng joked that he did not know how this title came about, perhaps when he made movies he had coordination from Chow Yun Fat, Cherie Chung Chor Hung, Maggie Cheung Man Yuk and others. With Tony Leung Chiu Wai they would not only discuss characters but also personal affair. He felt that artists and workers both had to have sincere and honest communication, and establish trust, but he never thought about wanting to be a soul adjuster. He only felt that all of these were very important to being either the director or the producer.