Plugging a female crime film at the Shanghai Film Festival
SHANGHAI: Chinese filmmaker Su Yang is doing the near-impossible at the Shanghai International Film Festival: trying to sell a female crime movie, The Reward of Cruel.
For the movie, Su has also broken new ground by working with a South Korean producer.
The movie should appeal to a broad range of lady viewers. That’s how Su envisages it.
Describing the movie, she said: “It’s a crime film with a romance element. It’s actually based on a real case. I got the inspiration for it when watching the news. I’m not actually adapting a specific case, but rather something the perpetrator said on television. The case involved two very good friends and a female victim. The reporter asked the perpetrator why he had committed murder. He replied that he doesn’t know why he did it, but that he would’ve taken a bullet for his friend if they were on a battlefield. His words became my inspiration for this film. I wondered why one man would put his life on the line for another man like the perpetrator did.”
As for the conceptualisation, Su explained: “I can’t make a film about a crime without a motive. So, the story is a fictional telling of the case, and I added the character of a female rookie lawyer who is trying to find out why her client won’t defend himself in court. Her perspective represents the audiences’ perspective; they are on the journey with her to find the truth.”
Previously, Su had made a documentary, and worked on other films and television series. She is still writing the script for The Reward of Cruel..
Turning to her first film market experience, Su said: “It was very memorable. I was incredibly busy, meeting buyers non-stop over two days. I had to be in a very excited mood the entire time while repeating the same words many times. This project is like my baby, and I know it very, very well by now.”
She has learned much at the Shanghai festival. More importantly, she got many people interested in her movie.
But why did she team up with a South Korean producer?
Replied Su: “Ahn Dong-gyu and I have worked together before. I’ve always felt that the crime genre is very mature in South Korea. I need their producers’ experience in production and other aspects for this film. I’m not necessarily looking for an official co-production, but I hope that China and South Korea can at least join forces in some way for this film.”