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Features
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Back to My Hometown
http://www.chinacoproduction.com 2008-06-06 China Film Co-Production Corporation
Written by Vivian Wu, producer/lead actress of Shanghai Red (2006) My first dealings with the CFCC were when I was cast in THE LAST EMPEROR. I was part of the delegation that went to Rome where we were discussing co-production opportunities. At that time, it was exciting and anything seemed possible. CFCC has been the gate or the throat for foreign productions whether it was the LAST EMPEROR, or a movie I recently produced and starred in, SHANGHAI RED. SHANGHAI RED could’ve been shot in New York or Taipei, but Oscar (director, SHANGHAI RED) wanted to dedicate this movie to me. In one way, Shanghai was a geographical representation, but in another way it became a cinematic character. It was a dream come true to shoot in my hometown with old friends and to bring new ones into the fold in a situation and environment I felt comfortable with and confident in. I think the major obstacles in shooting a co-production like SHANGHAI RED are differences in culture and language. These differences cause misunderstandings and conflict in the way we approach the daily things. Ultimately it’s communication. You have communication problems on all productions whether you’re shooting in China or London. It was challenging, but it’s a little more rewarding when you can have someone who is not of your own culture to understand how things are done in your culture – like a cultural exchange. CFCC has always been a supportive force starting even before pre-production all the way through into distribution. And by being the gate, and being the approval, it ensured us a first smooth step into pre-production. They were supportive of our creative vision which was really important in the case of SHANGHAI RED, where it was the directorial debut for Oscar. When we finished the project we sent them the project for the first approval and they were really nice. We just felt that they wanted more potential business and future projects to go to China.
Vivian Wu Still of Shanghai Red |
