In Yang Heng's minimalistic film Sun Spots, there aren't more than 31 shots. This variation on a typical gangster melodrama takes place in a fantastic landscape.
Elevator Pitch
'The story is simple. It's about three people: a tattooed boy, a woman and her boyfriend, who she is angry with because he has cheated on her. The boy, who is beaten up by loan sharks he didn't pay off on time, falls in love with the woman.'
Location
'The film was shot in Hunan, a Chinese province that is still somewhat backward. I myself was born and bred there. I want viewers to experience the typical atmosphere of Hunan; Beijing is very far away. It's an area with mountains, rivers and sea. That was also an important reason to film there.'
Long Shots
'I chose a style with long shots and no camera movements as I find that the most natural. If you look at two people, you also stand still and look at the whole, but focus your attention on the two people. What happens comes across more strongly if the picture is still because you concentrate on what the characters do.
This style makes me really different from Hollywood; in those films you see short shots with lots of movement. I deliberately do the opposite. In Chinese society everything gets faster and busier; before everything was more gradual and slower. I wanted to go back to that in this film: the time when things moved slower and no-one let themselves be hurried.'
China
'I still haven't had any problems with the censors. When making this film I didn't let the censors hold me back, but just like most directors I know the rules and I keep these in the back of my mind whilst filming.
For my first film I looked for the money myself. To finance the second I worked together with others, which was a problem because then they interfere with the film. It's become easier to get financing because I'm now a bit more well-known. I don't have to do another job to get by. I don't need so much money to live; just for cigarettes and alcohol.'
Bright Future
'I've already finished the screenplay for my next film. It's going to be another love story, but something different from Sun Spots. But it will still be a film with a small cast and it will be set in the same place. The style will be very different. I hope to come to Rotterdam next year, but first I have to get the financing together,'(SM)
Sun Spots (TG) Yang Heng
Thurs 4th 16.00 PA4, Fri 5th 13.00 PA1, Sat 6th 15.45 PA4