Yonfan, photographer, writer and director from Hong Kong, China, is about to meet the audience with his six classics at the Beijing Film Panorama of the 13th Beijing International Film Festival (BJIFF)!

　　

　　Yonfan

Back in the 1970s, Yonfan was unrivaled for his exceptional commercial and portrait photography in Hong Kong, China. As a pioneer in the 1970s and 1980s when the pop culture of Hong Kong, China, went viral, he shot numerous magazine and album covers, which remain classic today. He devoted himself to the publication of two well-rated photo books, namely China Image–Yonfan Photography China and Tibet A Distant Horizon, from 1979 to 1980. He gave up well-paid photography, and directed his debut film A Certain Romance in 1984.

 

He is widely known as the “aesthetic director”. But, he’s also one of the very few contemporary international directors that stick to self-investment in their own film projects, and one-of-their-kind style and aesthetics of cinematography. Despite small number of films, each of them is characterized by prominent style of cinematography and exquisite portrait of emotions and relationships. They are highly authorial.

　　

　　Still of the Immortal Story

Meanwhile, because of his wide social connections and accurate talent scouting, he could gather actors and actresses with gorgeous looks and great acting skills in his films, allowing the audience to immerse themselves in the ultimate viewing experience.

We seldom had the opportunity to enjoy Yonfan’s films in cinema in the past. And our understanding of him is limited to simple modifiers such as “aesthetic”. As a matter of fact, beneath the gentle and romantic visual presentation, there is keen observation of humanity, emotions and society as well as minute portrait. And deeper meaning contained in the films deserves a closer look.

 

　　

　　Still of the Double Fixation

It’s worth noticing that all the six films are digitally restored, and screened in Chinese mainland for the first time. In particular, the 4K restoration version of the Story of Rose will have its world premiere in Beijing. Mr. Yonfan will attend in person the meet-and-greet of the Story of Rose and Breaking the Willow.

 

Everything with form (“fan”) follows each other in cycles.

 

Welcome to the rendezvous with Mr. Yonfan at the Beijing Film Panorama in April in Beijing!

 

A Certain Romance, Story of Rose and Last Romance are closely linked to Yi Shu, a romance novelist in Hong Kong, China. A Certain Romance was inspired by Yi Shu’s Encounter and Jia Ming and the Rose. Newcomer actress Maygi Ng played a middle school girl. She runs into a fit young man during a vacation on the beach. They fall in love the moment they look back at each other by accident. Featuring anxiety and imagination of a girl in love, romantic scenes in Yi Shu’s love stories, young and fit leading actor, Ho-Kwong Tang, also known as “Swimming Prince”, and background music Encounter, winner of the Best Original Film Song at the Hong Kong Film Awards, the film depicts the bitterness of an encounter destined to departure and a young girl’s first love in a refreshing way. It also earned Yonfan acclaim of “aestheticism”.

　　

　　Still of the Last Romance

After A Certain Romance, Yonfan directed the Story of Rose, which was adapted from Yi Shu’s bestselling novel in the same name. It is the first film adaptation of Yi Shu’s novel. Maggie Cheung played the mesmerizing woman Rose Wong and Chow Yun-Fat played two roles, her elder brother that takes care of her in her father’s place, and her lover Ga-Ming. The naive Rose is having fun with many men in love with her, without knowing she’s just like a tempting but thorny rose.

 

The film is also very meaningful to Maggie Cheung. After winning the first runner-up in the Miss Hong Kong Pageant, Maggie Cheung started her film acting career. Despite her impressive look in multiple films, her acting didn’t stand out until she was cast as Rose under the guidance of Yi Shu. Her acting was highly acclaimed in Yonfan’s film. The sibling bond with subtle hint of incest was Yonfan’s intentional touch to the film adaptation. Chow Yun-Fat’s playing two roles, impressive portrait of sibling ties and romantic love by Maggie Cheung and Chow Yun-Fat, and subtle hint of incest make the Story of Rose a splendid, beautiful, poignant and realistic romance. The film also marks the start of Yonfan’s continuous exploration of various types of relationships.

　　

　　Filming site of the Story of Rose

“So gentle thee, give me a dream, wandering in the undulating waves...” as Lo Ta-yu sings in the hit song titled Immortal Story. Few people know that it is the original film song of Yonfan’s third film in the same name. The Immortal Story is like the adult version of A Certain Romance. Sylvia Chang’s role is a singer in a tea house. She meets Japanese Nakamura, who visits Macau, China, with his team. They fall in love at first sight. Not long after the young man leaves, she becomes a fallen woman in a night club run by a madam played by Kelly Yao. She is aware that her life is like a flower drifting on the sea, and the distant love with a foreigner can only be a dream. So she never contacts the Japanese man. When the Japanese returns to Macau, China, and plans to take her away with him, she ends up in a tragedy like a fallen flower because of relationship entanglements. Sylvia Chang delivered superb performance: the innocent young singer, a prisoner in jail, a woman that tries to make a livelihood in the underclass, all of which touch the audience.

　　

　　Still of the Immortal Story

After the unique Immortal Story, Yonfan tried the genre of thriller. He cast Cherie Chung and Jacky Cheung in the fully localized Double Fixation based on the Vertigo by Sir Alfred Hitchcock. Jacky Cheung played a photographer that runs into the mysterious girl played by Cherie Chung when he’s hired to take photos of a treasure. He cannot forget her even though he witnesses her death. Later, he happens to meet a woman in San Francisco who looks very similar to Cherie Chung. They are hunted before the whole conspiracy is revealed. The attractive peach-like Cherie Chung in Yonfan’s Double Fixation sure is as charming as the lofty gorgeous Kim Novak in the Vertigo. The nonsensical humor style of Hong Kong, China, enriches the beauty and sexiness of the role by Cherie Chung (also known as the Marilyn Monroe of Hong Kong, China). While paying homage to Sir Alfred Hitchcock, Yonfan can take pride in claiming the film as true “fixation”.

　　

　　Still of the Last Romance

As Yonfan said, the No.7 Cherry Lane is his lover letter to Hong Kong, China, and films. However, those that have watched the Last Romance, starring Maggie Cheung and Cherie Chung, know the love letter was already completed in 1988. The household film title and original film song by Jenny Tseng represent the good old days of Hong Kong, China. There is a sudden sun shower on the day when Cherie Chung transfers to a girls’ school and meets Maggie Cheung at the entrance of the school. Without an umbrella, Cherie Chung gets under Maggie Cheung’s umbrella. With the single frame, Yonfan was able to express the profound subject matter of the film about friendship, growing up and social changes. Regardless of sunshine, rain or social changes, friendship stands timeless. “Golden days fly. May laughter in the past come again. In the golden light, who meet in the rain, but have to say goodbye out of blue... may yesterday come once more. Silent lust, shadowless starry night, time flies, bitter or sweet.” The Last Romance reserves the stunning beauty of Maggie Cheung and Cherie Chung in the 1980s. Their blooming years on the screen represent the best old days in our memory.

　　Still of the Last Romance

The Breaking the Willow combines the genres of opera and documentary. The film presents the Kunqu Opera performance by famous artists Zhang Jiqing, Wang Fang, and Zhao Wenlin in A Wild Dream and Breaking the Willow, and offers unique viewing experience of Kunqu Opera in cinema through intrusive shots. Yonfan includes Kunqu Opera stage and modern city view of Suzhou in the film, and puts stage performance and how the actor and actresses practice, teach and rehearse the opera, improvise and live their life in parallel. The film is Yonfan’s search of cultural roots after he completed the highly acclaimed Peony Pavilion. The audience can tell his fixation on Kunqu Opera through his fluid camera movements and faces of the actor and actresses without makeup. Yonfan connects Kunqu Opera, film, dream and life in A Wild Dream part starring Zhang Jiqing, also known as “Zhang Sanmeng”, thus conveying far-reaching and thought-provoking pursuits of art.

 

All the six films to be screened are digitally restored by Mr. Yonfan in recent years. Each of them is filled with his love of films. Their screenings in the Beijing Film Panorama offer once-in-a-lifetime opportunities for film fans to enter Yonfan’s fascinating film world, and revisit good old days of Hong Kong films in the 1980s!