Today we take an interview with John Yiu – a unique and talented filmmaker, actor, producer.
John Yiu in “Unknown Mother
What was the main driving force for you to begin making films since you already had a successful career in another field? When did you first want to make a film? What were your favorite films which inspired you?
Since the age of four, my mother brought me to cinemas to watch different genres of films, both Asian and Western; action and comedies etc. Some gave me great inspirations and still have great impact on me today. That was when my interests in filmmaking developed and now I enjoy the creative part in the making of films. I would like to enter film school as my tertiary education. However, my parents insisted me to pursue my career as a legal professional. As such, I studied laws and pursued my former career as a lawyer for 18 years.
I decided to change field to filmmaking after I migrate to Canada. Although I managed to pass the lawyers conversion examination in Canada, I decided not to pursue the legal career further but to try filmmaking instead. We only live once and I don’t want any regrets in my life. With the support of my partner and co-producer, Kenny, we produced two short films, “My Dear Banquet” and “The Unknown Mother“ in 2016. After the production of the two short films conpleted, we produced a feature film, “Million Loves in Me” which is based on a true story and my experience with the two leading characters in the film. The film is proven to be a success and has been well received at many film festivals and worldwide audience.
I like different genres of films, from comedy to thriller. There are a number of films that gave me great inspirations such as “Thelma & Louise” which touched upon social issues, “The Silence of the Lambs” which gave me great inspirations in acting. Kenny and I are interested in producing films that tackle social issues. We like to use dark comedy or dramatic way to convey the messages in our films to audience.
What were the biggest challenges you experienced as a filmmaker?
Filmmaking is not an easy task. It’s not a one man performance, but a collaboration of all cast and crew members to make a film successful. From my experience, different crew members such as the director, first associate director, and the cinematographer might have different opinions in different aspects during the filming process. As producers, Kenny and I would have to listen and consider all opinions from crew members and made a final decision ourselves. At times, opinions from some crew members might not be considered and implemented. We would have to explain to them that we all worked for the best interests of the film and we were not able to take opinions from all.
Controlling budget is also another big challenge from a producer’s point of view. I think studios and independent filmmakers all need to control budget of the making of films. We have to keep in mind that the projected box office has to be three times that of our budget to be profitable. Very often, unforeseen expenses and circumstances will escalate the budget. In that regard, we will have to see if we can find alternatives that prevent further budget escalation. If not, we will then have to discuss if we can save some items or scenes dispense prior to production. However, this may also have a chain of effects on the entire production. All in all, we do have to consider in the best interests of the production of the film.
Your films depict alienation, loneliness, this is an important topic in our society, is it also personal for you?
I think loneliness happens to many people in the society especially for those who live in big metropolitan cities. There is so much stress from work and the surroundings. For those that have families also feel lonely sometimes. I remember a psychiatrist told me we came to this world by ourselves and we will also leave this world on our own. I think that is a reality and I honestly do feel lonely sometimes.
Alienation seems to be a more serious topic depicted in my film. Alienation is more rampant in the society nowadays. Take my origin Hong Kong as an example, people are simply polarized. Some minority groups such as people who live in the margin are being alienated. We hope by using films we can celebrate diversity and make the audience aware the groups being alienated.
With your first film Million Loves in Me, you had the difficult task of producing, writing, and playing the lead role of Katy. It was a difficult challenge to play a woman, were you afraid of the task? How did you prepare for the role? Did you take acting courses? Which film actors are your favourite?
Frankly, I was not afraid of the task of playing the role of a woman. Katy is a real person and Million Loves is a real life story. I know the real Katy personally and represented her in a court case in the past. I have such great empathy towards her experience during her trial and the well being of the pets involved. I played her role in the film with my true heart and tried my very best to show her different sides and layers to the audience.
I didn’t take any acting courses before filmmaking. The shooting of our first short film, “My Dear Banquet” was my first experience before a camera and the lead actress, Ms. Helena Law, was a lead actress winner of the Hong Kong Film Awards. I was not afraid acting with her. Instead, I kept telling myself that I could do it. As for Million Loves in Me, the director got me a coach, who was also the co-screenplay writer. Prior to the actual shooting, we got together for a few days to discuss the character of Katy and requirements for the role. Her role was to find the Katy inside me, rather than mentor me as to how to act in every scene.
There are many great actors in the industry, both East and West. I, in particular like Daniel Day Lewis for his great performance in a number of films and also Anthony Hopkins’ performance as Dr. Lectar in The Silence of the Lambs. For actresses, I like the performances of Glenn Close in Dangerous Liaisons and Marion Colltiard in La Vie En Rose.
Both films have a running theme of a mother and child. Why is this subject matter so important for you?
I think motherly love and love towards our mother are crucial elements that should exist in every family. It also affects the growth and development of a child significantly. My mother passed away a few years ago from some serious illnesses. I produced the first three films in remembrance of her ( although she never behave like the Mami in Million Loves in Me ). In our future productions, we will be surely be more diversified.
Why did you decide to make a short film after your feature film?
Actually I made the two short films, “My Dear Banquet” and “The Unknown Mother“ before the making of the feature film.
Your film The Unknown Mother stars great actress Susan Shaw, how did you decide to cast her, and did she immediately want to play in the film?
Susan Shaw is a great actress with more than 50 years of acting experience in Asia. She is able to play different types of roles in different genres of films. Both my Kenny and I took the view that Susan is the most appropriate person to play the role of the mother in the story. We therefore engaged our production company to discuss wth Susan about the role. She likes the role and the script a lot and she accepted our invitation with no doubt.
What are your future plans?
Kenny and I have two scripts ready on our table. One of the script is an Asian feature and shooting will be in Hong Kong some time this year. We are now working with the director and the screenplay writer day and night to perfect the script and discuss the scenes.
The other script is going to be shot into an English feature. It’s a comedy-drama and will be multicultural and have a number of acting roles in the film. We are prepared to recruit a number of actors and actresses from different ethnic origins. Again, we face a difficult task to ensure that the actors and actresses will have the chemistry on screen. We are working closely with our executive producers to finalize a schedule right now.
