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William Chang interview

 
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Eri



Joined: 28 May 2004
Posts: 876
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Sun Feb 24, 2013 4:34 pm    Post subject: William Chang interview Reply with quote

I think he was a very important person to make "The Grandmaster", so I found this interview very interesting.

(I translated this interview with my interpretation, so some details might be slightly different.)

I think this explained William Chang (also about corroboration with Wong Ka Wai) quite well.

Interviewed in Berlin

Apple daily report

William Chang talked about going his own way

William Chang has been an art director and an editor for a lot of Wong Ka Wai Movies, and The Grandmaster is not an exception. As Tony said in the movie, "Kung Fu, two letters~~", art is the same in the way, however in case of art, it is unable to distinguish an entire mistake from doing things right. It is important to improve as much as you possibly can.
The most important thing is to carry out in accordance with your heart. Your judgment shouldn't be affected by any means by others' eyes."

He and Ka Wai has known each other for a very long time and been good friends, so they can understand each other without saying a word.

He has been engaged in this field for years, and received Hong Kong Academy Award for art direction, Golden Hourse award in Taiwan in the past, and also "ITMFL" was awarded Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival.
However, he was very modest and he answered with delight in this interview.

He doesn't talk a lot, fulfilled the artist's character, though he is very humorous, and eloquent.
If he sees, he will understand exactly what should be done. It is not heard with ears but is based on his experience.

Although the achievements of his arts are high, his fashion are casual. He laughed "when we shoot a movie all day long, shirts get dirty, so all we need are just comfortable shirt"
He is very relaxed in Berlin this time, so if there is time, he would like to loiter various places to get some inspiration.

When did he have a contact with movie for the first time?

After watching famous U.S. movie,"The Graduate" in which Dustin Hoffman was the main actor, I felt strange on the way back home, and found out that this movie caught my heart, since the technique of this movie was very different, watching this movie repeatedly next week, and then I started watching movies from different countries all day long.
I also determinded that I was going to take movie as my occupation then.

Confidence in making the world surprized

He had taken charge of an assistant director of some movies before he went abroad to study the theory of movie.

"In fact, since I was already involved with some movie making and knew the process, I did not feel the necessity of studying anything, however I liked the environment where movie was studied.
Although my father didn't agreed at first, he finally agreed to study movie in Canada for three years"

He has his own idea, he thinks "what I studied are seldom used, and all the theories are there to break them.The most important thing is making a movie which is worth watching"

He finished studying abroad for three years and returned, it was not so easy for him at first, he couldn't get any job connected with movies for about 2 years, then he got the opportunity to do work of art design on Director PatricTam's movie "Love Massacre" staring Brigitte Lin.
Referred to his confidence then "although I didn't understand why, I knew all very well, and nothing surprised me. I exaggerated contrast of color deliberately." After this one, his art direction won popularity, and then began the movie "Mongkok Carmen" with Wong Kar Wai.
Once we started, we got on very well, then became indispensable partners to each other.

"Even before Wong Kar Wai and me working together, we were already good friends over seven years, we were talking about movies with drinks every month. When he said he would like to work together with me one day, I accepted it straight away. It was wonderful when we were shooting this movie." Asking him about working with Wong Kar Wai for a long time ?
He said "Wong Ka Wai is very wise and solid. A tacit comprehension is already between me and him, so he doesn't have to say anything, I can understand what he is thinking.
That's why he sometimes ask me to help editing when he is busy".

According to his heart, not to be idle

Since the talk reached about editing, asked him who is an editor of the Grandmaster, about the opinion which many Chan Cheng's scenes were cut.
"I don't think you can say that. The performance scenes of Chan Cheng has not been reduced so much, however the scene of fighting with Tony Leung was not used".

As he already won a lot of prizes for art direction, he doesn't feel they are so important any more ? He said "nevertheless all the awards are encouragement".

Even though there are seldom opportunities for the newcomers of art direction recent years, is he considering a new generation's training ? "I also have got several newcomers to help me, however it is not something to teach. By looking at them, I can also learn something.
The most important principle of doing good work is not consider what others think, and love the work from bottom of your heart. I am consistently being so. Nothing is more important"

I asked about the rumor that he was really angry at a shooting location once, he admitted it. "Yes, I want to work with a wise person who can understand what should be done by just one word. Isn't it very normal ?
But now I am more careful about this side as well in past several years, and try not to be angry".


And I found this interview back in 2010 in English.

http://hk.asia-city.com/movies/article/first-person-william-chang-suk-ping


Last edited by Eri on Thu Feb 28, 2013 4:09 pm; edited 2 times in total
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Eri



Joined: 28 May 2004
Posts: 876
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Wed Feb 27, 2013 7:06 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

William said ""The Graduate" changed my life -- it taught me how a film is not merely a tool for storytelling, but an art as well. After seeing it, I was determined to join the film business."

If he didn't watch this film, HK films' history would be different. I think "ITMFL" , "The Grandmaster" or any other films he was involved, were not up to the same level as they were.

I also like "The Graduate" even though I only watched it on TV when I was very little (so I couldn't understand everything) and later at a small cinema on revival showings.
The songs in this movie left me such a strong feeling, specially "Sound of Silence", I often played this song whenever I found a Jukebox (being nostalgic) without knowing what the lyrics mean.
Actually, I thought the title was "Sound of Sirens" (because they are exactly the same if written in Japanese) when I was about 8 or 9 years old. Embarassed Laughing
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yitian



Joined: 06 Jul 2011
Posts: 2172
Location: United States

PostPosted: Wed Feb 27, 2013 8:52 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for sharing this interesting article and all your effort to translate it Very Happy, - William Chang is definitely one of the most important persons for shaping up the way WKW movies are thumbright .

About the "Sound of Sirens", haha, I remember it from one of the very first Simon and Garfunkel CDs I bought shortly came to US. It was so long ago Embarassed and now I am reminded all over again.

From your translated article, I managed to trace the original. For me, it's my way to learn Cantonese from English Wink

《蘋果》柏林獨家專訪
有話兒:張叔平唯我獨尊

電影《一代宗師》裏面梁朝偉講過:「功夫兩個字,一橫一直,企得番起身先係啱晒。」為多部王家衛電影擔任美指,同為《一》片剪接的張叔平就指,美術雖然都係一直一橫兩個字,不過就絕無對錯之分,要做得好,最重要的是隨心而行,絕不能因為外間眼光而影響自己的判斷。談到與王家衛被外間稱為最佳拍檔時,他坦言與對方的確默契十足,往往王家衛未開口,他已知對方想法,這亦是二人能成為多年好友的原因。
撰文:文國駿

人稱「阿叔」的張叔平日前隨王家衛執導電影《一代宗師》到柏林影展宣傳,並於當地一酒店接受本報記者專訪,大談他的電影夢。阿叔入行多年,曾多次奪得香港金像獎及台灣金馬獎的美術指導獎,更憑《花樣年華》奪得法國康城影展的藝術成就大獎,但他為人低調且鮮有接受訪問,外間更指他說話不多,充滿藝術家脾氣,然而他受訪當天,卻是非常風趣健談,可見要知道一個人如何,不是用耳去聽,而是要親身感受。

阿叔美術成就雖高,但他的打扮卻很隨意,他笑言:「成日拍戲搵衫都見到膩,叫我shopping咪搞,自己着衫舒服就得喇。」阿叔透露今次到柏林心情輕鬆,有空會到處逛逛找尋靈感。問到阿叔何時首次接觸電影?他抽一口煙,認真想了一會後表示:「我諗係我14歲嘅時候左右,我睇完一套電影叫《畢業生》(經典美國電影,由德斯汀荷夫曼演出)之後,返到屋企個心竟然好唔舒服,我下一個星期去戲院睇多次,結果我知道點解個心會唔舒服,原來係掛住部電影,因為《畢業生》個講故事手法好唔同,好吸引我,嗰次開始我真真正正喜歡上電影,會成日去睇唔同國家嘅戲,亦決定要以電影為我職業。」

自信一鳴驚人
阿叔透露其後為數部電影擔任過副導,又有出國讀電影的想法:「其實我覺得冇乜呢個需要㗎,因為你做過一部電影後就會明白個過程,但我只係好鍾意讀電影個環境,起初我爸爸唔係好肯,但最後都畀我去加拿大讀咗三年。」對於讀電影學,阿叔有一套想法,他認為讀書所得的理論沒有太大用處,因每個理論都可以被打破:「我覺得其實冇乜嘢所謂理論,一部電影你可以由任何一部份講起,最重要係出嚟好睇咪得囉。」
三年後的阿叔學成歸來也不是一帆風順,頭兩年找不到與電影有關的工作,第三年他的機會終於來到,導演譚家明找他為林青霞主演的電影《愛殺》做美術設計,阿叔坦言當時信心爆棚:「唔知點解我嗰次好有把握,一啲驚嘅感覺都冇,顏色對比仲做得特別誇張。」此後阿叔的美術風格獲得好評,王家衛更由電影《旺角卡門》開始,便找阿叔成為不二的合作夥伴,最佳拍檔漸漸成型,阿叔說:「我同王家衛喺合作拍《旺角卡門》之前,係已經識咗七年嘅好朋友,基本上我哋每個月都會聚首幾次講吓電影飲吓酒,到有一日佢同我講想拍電影搵我合作,我咪話OK囉,一拍就拍到𠵱家。」問到與王家衛多年來合作的感覺?他坦言對方是一個很聰明而且穩陣的人,阿叔謂:「我同王家衛已經有種無形嘅默契,有時佢未出聲我已經知佢想點,所以佢有時剪唔切或者唔得閒剪片都會叫我幫手。」

隨心懶理批評
談到剪接,外間一直指張震於電影《一代宗師》的戲份被剪了很多,成為片長的犧牲品,身為該片剪接師的張叔平也特意解釋:「都唔可以咁講,張震啲戲份都係差唔多咁上下,唔係差得好遠,係少咗場同梁朝偉打戲囉。」
阿叔這些年來拿過的電影美術獎項多不勝數,問他有否麻木的感覺?他坦言:「唔會麻木,點講都好,獎都係一個好好嘅鼓勵。」近年美術指導方面,拿獎或冒出頭來的新人不多,問他可有着手培育新一代美指?阿叔說:「自己都會用一啲新人班底去做助理,但唔係話教佢哋,係睇吓佢哋自己學到幾多就幾多。要做得好最緊要係真心喜歡你嘅工作,同埋唔好理人點睇,只係做自己鍾意嘅嘢,我一向都係咁,冇理過其他嘢。」一向有傳聞指阿叔在片場甚火爆,他直認不諱:「係㗎!係人都想同啲講一句就明嘅聰明人做嘢㗎啦,好正常,不過呢幾年都有注意到呢方面,收咗火㗎喇!」


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Eri



Joined: 28 May 2004
Posts: 876
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Thu Feb 28, 2013 12:32 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thank you, yitian for the original article and nice photos. Very Happy

I put the original one first (copy & paste), but by some reason, all of them disfigured perhaps because of the font I used and couldn't read at all, so I deleted it. Rolling Eyes Anyway, it is nicer to read Chinese if it is possible. Wink
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Safran



Joined: 22 Mar 2006
Posts: 2612
Location: Austria

PostPosted: Thu Feb 28, 2013 9:02 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thank you Eri, for sharing and translating this interesting W.Chang interview
.......and Yitian, for the orig. article with pics , as well thumbleft
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Natasha



Joined: 13 Aug 2013
Posts: 8
Location: Russia

PostPosted: Fri Aug 30, 2013 11:40 pm    Post subject: Plans for the future Reply with quote

Why does Tony want to work with Martin Scorsese?
Isn't his movies cruel?
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