"It has been twenty years since I filmed " If You Love " in Shanghai in 2004 until I finished filming "Jiangyuan Lane" this year. Returning to Shanghai to film again, I found unlimited creative inspiration and ideas. For Shanghai, whether it is The feelings of the previous generation are still the same as those of this generation, from aesthetics to humanities, I feel very, very emotional.”
Shanghai Love Beyond “Jiangyuan Lane”
At the beginning of this year, the movie “Jiangyuan Lane” directed by Chen Kexin opened on Zhapu Road (Wujin Road-Haining) in Hongkou District. road section), the distressed walls, old-fashioned signboards, and retro posters make people feel like they have traveled back to old Shanghai. There is an endless stream of citizens and tourists who come to take photos and check in, which also arouses people's discussion on urban renewal.
Chen Kexin said that the filming of "Jiangyuan Lane" received all-round support from Shanghai, especially the support from the Hongkou District Government. “I must sincerely thank Hongkou District for realizing the dream that all filmmakers dare not dream of. We were able to restore the appearance of old Shanghai in 1945 at the T-junction and two streets in the city center. This kind of thing is unheard of. Whether in Shanghai, in China, or in any city in the world, it is difficult to film a movie in the city center and restore its appearance. "
The movie "Jiang Yuan Lane" was completed three weeks ago. And tracing back to the relationship between Peter Chan and Shanghai, he returned to the mainland to shoot his first movie "If Love", which was also shot in Shanghai. Now a full 20 years have passed.
During the filming of "Jiangyuan Lane", Chen Kexin wore his father's watch every day, and his father passed away last year. "Why do I wear his watch? Because when I wear his watch, I feel like he is accompanying me while filming. In the past, every time I made a movie, he would be by my side watching me filming. He is also a director, a director. Screenwriter." Chen Kexin said that the most important movie for his father to sit next to him and watch is "Jiangyuan Lane", because old Shanghai is his father's favorite place and his dream place.
"When I was a child, I often heard him say that his dream as a boy was to live in Shikumen, pavilions, alleys, write, and become a poor writer. This was his biggest dream. His idols were Lu Xun, Shen Congwen, and Xu Zhimo. But He never had the opportunity to live in this city or experience Shanghai at that time," he said.
Chen Kexin’s parents were patriotic overseas Chinese who returned from Thailand in the 1950s and met in Beijing. As a second-generation overseas Chinese, Chen Kexin has often traveled around Bangkok, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Beijing in recent years. "I have been wandering all my life, so whether the movies I make are about ordinary people's love or separation, there is a little more confusion about here and there behind them."
Good movies need to make more people empathize
In Hong Kong, In Beijing, Guangzhou, and Shanghai, Chen Kexin has photographed many beautiful scenes and many beautiful old buildings, but he bluntly said, “Many places have to be demolished due to urban development. In my thirty or forty-year film career (the demolition )".
Chen Kexin said that from the perspective of economic and urban development, he can understand, "Some things are not just beautiful or good-looking. In fact, it is inevitable that they will be demolished. But I think it doesn't matter, because my movie is filmed Other people's movies have been filmed, and these places have been left behind. "Sometimes, he would look through his old movies at home in the middle of the night and see many places that he missed but were no longer there.
"Many times, a movie not only preserves a building or a place, but also records the face of the times, from society, humanities to living habits." Chen Kexin said.
He believes that a good movie should have something in common with human beings, and it is not just the people at the filming location who can empathize with it. For example, when filming in Shanghai, you should be able to sympathize with the whole of China and even the world, because the problems that human beings encounter in life are very similar, regardless of region.
From "If Love" in 2004 to "Jiangyuan Lane" in 2024, spanning 20 years, Shanghai still brings Chen Kexin a wealth of creative inspiration and ideas. He wanted to use Shanghai to find an entry point to tell Chinese stories well, and these stories have some common points around the world from aesthetics to humanities.
"As a filmmaker, I should concentrate on working in the place I love, on the subject I love, do my part well, and express the true, good and beautiful emotions. Maybe this is my job." Chen Kexin said, entering the film industry at the age of 20, just now After 60 years old, he still wants to make movies for 20 years. "Here I would like to borrow the theme of Observer.com, 'China Care, Global Vision'. I hope to do this well in the next 20 years."
