[2024.12.22] PHILIP YUNG REVEALS SEAN LAU'S FETISH

Philip Yung reveals the Best Actor's script reading fetish
courtesy of singtao.com

Jo Koo finds Sean Lau's emotional explosion scene to be memorable, "This scene is really classic!"

Jo Koo plays Sean Lau's wife in PAPA, from dating, marriage to parenthood.

Philip Yung wants to show a more "street" Sean Lau to the audience
courtesy of mingpao.com

Jo Koo (Kok Cho Lam) played Sean Lau Ching Wan's wife "Kam Yin" in the movie PAPA. Although she did not have many scenes, her natural exchanges with Ching Wan made the audience feel their strong love. She said that whenever she wondered whether she was acting too bland, Ching Wan would say, "It works, it's enough", giving encouragement and affirmation, "No one has ever told me this, I have always acted in a mess, Ching Wan made me believe in my acting skills and no longer doubt myself." She praised Ching Wan's superb acting skills, especially the scene where he was deceived by a prostitute. The various feelings that the character has been enduring in his heart exploded instantly, which was moving.

Kok Cho Lam (Siu Kok) never thought that she would play the role of "Kam Yin", revealing that she is good friends with director Philip Yung Tsz Kwong and often talks about creating together. She has read the script of PAPA as early as 8 years ago, and they did not talk about working together at that time. "The script focuses on depicting Papa, and there is not much about Mama; so I never fantasize that I am Mama in the film, purely reading it as a script. It wasn't until Yung Tsz Kwong started filming PAPA that he needed me, an actor he once described as having a very heavy sense of life. In addition I was similar in age with the character, so he invited me to participate. Ching Wan didn't agree to perform at that time."

Siu Kok does not have many scenes in the film, but each scene is very interesting. They are important moments for Ching Wan, full of sparks. You can see the love between her and Ching Wan. Siu Kok said with a smile that the production budget was limited, and she had neither money nor time to ask Ching Wan to have a meal to cultivate his feelings in advance. She did not even have special communication about the bed scene, so she filmed as soon as he started. She did not resist filming this bed scene because the plot required it. "Scene by scene, Ching Wan and I have always loved each other deeply from dating to getting married, and then becoming parents. However I also asked the director if it was a category III film and he said no. It was a warm film, not a pornographic film. Knowing that it was a category II film, I had even less worries. I didn't discuss the details with the director, so I was relieved to leave it to the director." She praised the director for handling this scene very well, using editing techniques to show a physical and psychological battle, and all kinds of emotions in his heart when he went to a prostitute after losing his wife. Was it hatred? Guilt? Pity? Or did he miss his wife? He wanted to suppress it, but in the end he still couldn't hold it back. He blew up in an instant, going crazy and crying. "This scene of Ching Wan is really a classic!"

Siu Kok praised Ching Wan's superb acting skills. He has created countless classic roles in the past, such as MAD DETECTIVE's Chan Kwai Bun and HIMALAYA SINGH's Uncle Panic, but this time for PAPA he does not shape or act at all; he gets along like a family, so naturally. She also thanked Ching Wan for her encouragement and affirmation. "Whenever I wondered if it was feasible or enough to act so plainly, he kept encouraging me and saying, 'It works, it's enough', and instead asked me if I didn't believe him. He is really experienced, he knows what is enough. No one has ever said this to me, I have always been messing around, Ching Wan makes me believe in my acting skills and I no longer have any doubt".

The film told the story of a son who killed his mother and sister due to schizophrenia. A member of the "Early Psychosis Foundation", Siu Kok was asked with such great pressure how should Hong Kong people relieve it? Siu Kok said, "Stress reduction and mental illness are two different things. Mental illness has to be faced and requires seeing a doctor. The director is an expert in strange cases, and he may be more profitable, comfortable and handy in filming strange cases; but when he did the research and interviewed the prototype characters, he was deeply moved and found that the character of Papa was more worthy of discussion. Thus he brought out the information of this disease through the film, actually there is a lot of support for this disease in the community."

With two daughters aged 12 and 10, has Siu Kok paid attention to her children's emotions? She said, "My two daughters and I are in OK moods, we get along like friends and talk about everything. I instilled in them that no matter what happens, home is their strongest support. I don't have the mentality of wanting my child to become a dragon, what grades I want them to achieve, the most important thing is that they like and are willing, so that they will study hard. A lot of things can't be changed by force!"

PAPA's director Philip Yung Tsz Kwong accepted the interview on Commercial Radio's SHOWBIZ and shared the process of working with Sean Lau Ching Wan for the first time. PAPA has been in preparation for 10 years, and waited for Lau Ching Wan for two years before the filming started. Yung Tsz Kwong said that he liked Lau Ching Wan's performance, because he had a casual feeling. He would not be nervous about his image, and while Lau Ching Wan in the drama IT RUNS IN THE FAMILY could be very "street", he had never seen Ching Wan play a street character in a movie. He did not know where his mission came from. He really wanted to work together, and present a "street" Lau Ching Wan to the audience. As for the script being able to attract Ching Wan, Yung Tsz Kwong said that he went through normal channels to find Lau Ching Wan's manager. His manager May gave him a little tip. He said, "She told me to print the entire script out neatly and so he can read it like a novel."

In the film Lau Ching Wan and Kok Cho Lam (Siu Kok) had revealing bed scenes, Yung Tsz Kwong said that neither the lead actor or the lead actress hesitated. "The original script was not described in such detail. Siu Kok and Ching Wan were the ones who asked for serious filming, saying that they couldn't easily done with a cheat cut. Our movie is so realistic. This scene is very challenging and difficult, but they are willing to take the initiative to take the shoot further."

Yung Tsz Kwong directed PORT OF CALL (DAP HUET CHUM MUI) in 2015 and won 7 awards at the 35th Hong Kong Film Awards, including Best Actor and Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Actress and Best Screenplay, etc., but lost the best film to TEN YEARS. He said that he was not unhappy. "I have seen this movie, it is a good movie, what can I say about losing to a good movie?" PORT OF CALL opened the mainland market for Yung Tsz Kwong, as he was invited to direct the Aaron Kwok Fu Sing and Tony Leung Chiu Wai starred 200 million yuan co-production WHERE THE WIND BLOWS (FUNG JOI HEI SI), but it took two years to be released after filming and the mainland box office was less than 50 million. At the time he received negative comments from fans and friends about his film, "I was very disappointed, but not at the box office. At first the audience thought that I was very Hong Kong, as if I represented some voices; but after the release of this film, their impression of me was swept away. Everyone dog piled on me. Some friends became so strange, which was what I was the unhappiest about."