THIS IS A TRANSLATION I DID OF APRIL’S LAST WORD WITH DIRECTOR WANG QUAN’AN. AFTER MAY’S ISSUE IS OUT FOR A FEW WEEKS, I WILL PUT UP MY LAST WORD INTERVIEW WITH AUTHOR WANG SHUO. FORTUNATELY, WANG QUAN’AN IS A TAD MORE CONSTRUCTIVE THAN WANG SHUO, THOUGH BOTH MEN FASCINATE ME.
好电影è¦æœ‰åŠ›é‡
Good Movies Need Strength
今年大年åˆä¸€ï¼Œä¸å›½å¯¼æ¼”王全安的《图雅的婚事》获得了æŸæž—国际电影节金熊奖。王全安的作å“都是åæ˜ å½“å‰çš„ä¸å›½ç¤¾ä¼šçŽ°å®žï¼Œé‡è§†çœŸå®žæ„Ÿå’Œçºªå®žæ€§ã€‚这次得奖，实现了他部份追求观众认åŒçš„ç†æƒ³ã€‚在他工作地点附近一家他喜爱æµè¿žçš„咖啡厅，王全安与《新闻周刊　ä¸æ–‡æœˆåˆŠã€‹çš„周æ•è§äº†é¢ï¼Œè°ˆåˆ°ä»–对电影的å–æã€äººç‰©å¡‘é€ å’Œæœªæ¥ç›®æ ‡ã€‚
On Chinese New Year’s Day, Chinese director Wang Quan’an’s “Tuya’s Wedding” won the Berlin Film Festival’s Golden Bear. Wang’s films focus on contemporary Chinese society and use a reportage style to survey current sentiment. Winning the award fulfills a portion of his quest to achieve audience recognition. At a coffeehouse close to his workplace, Wang joins Newsweek Select’s Zhou Min to speak about story concepts, character creation and his next goal. Excerpts:
周æ•ï¼šä½ 如何决定æ‹å“ªä¸€ä¸ªæ•…事？
Zhou Min: How do you determine the stories you want to film?
王全安：我关注人物的故事，当下生活环境的æ述，现在这ç§ç”µå½±å®žåœ¨å¤ªå°‘了。如果一个场景，一个细节ä¸æœ‰å¾ˆå¤æ‚的情绪，我就想在æ¤åŸºç¡€ä¸ŠæŠŠå®ƒå˜æˆç”µå½±ã€‚电影ä¸å¯èƒ½çœŸå®žï¼Œå› 为在å–èˆçš„时候已ç»æœ‰ç›é€‰äº†ï¼Œç”µå½±ä¸çš„”真棔是情感的”真实”。æ‹ç”µå½±ä¸€å®šè¦å°Šé‡å½±åƒçš„è®²è¿°ä¹ æƒ¯å’Œç‰¹ç‚¹ï¼Œä¸èƒ½æ¼ 视它，å¦åˆ™æ²¡æ³•çœ‹ã€‚
Wang Quan’an: I follow stories about people who depict a way of life. In China, there are too few of this type of film. If within a scene, within a detail, there is a complex sentiment, I want to build on that to create a film. Films can’t be real because as soon as you take up the story it’s already been filtered. A film’s “trueness” is the reality of its feeling. To shoot films, you must respect the image’s narrative custom and characteristics. You can’t overlook it or you won’t have any chance of really viewing it.
ä½ æ‹ç”µå½±æ—¶ï¼Œæœ€å…³æ³¨ä»€ä¹ˆé—®é¢˜ï¼Ÿ
What aspects do you focus on when filming?
ç”µå½±çš„æ ¸å¿ƒæ˜¯äººç‰©å½¢è±¡ï¼Œæˆ‘ä»¬è®°ä½ä¸€ä¸ªå¥½çš„ç”µå½±æ˜¯å› ä¸ºæˆ‘ä»¬è®°ä½å…¶ä¸çš„人物。我很喜欢《教父》ä¸è¿ˆå…‹ä»Žé©¬æ¡¶çš„水箱里é¢æ‹¿åˆ°æ‰‹æžªä»¥åŽï¼Œä»Žæ´—手间里走出æ¥ç›´åˆ°æ€äººé‚£ä¸ªåœºæ™¯ï¼Œè¿™å¤ªç»å…¸äº†ã€‚人物刻画得如æ¤åˆ°ä½ç²¾å½©ï¼Œä¸€ä¸ªç”·äººçš„æˆé•¿çž¬æ—¶è¢«æ·‹æ¼“尽致的表现出æ¥ã€‚我在æ‹æ‘„的时候总是以人物为第一ä½çš„，演员的视觉内ä¸å…许有其他ä¸ç›¸å¹²çš„人干扰他/她的表演。我之å‰å¦è¡¨æ¼”，很多人以为我会指导演员如何åšï¼Œå…¶å®žè´¨æ„Ÿçš„表象å–决于审美。
The core of a film is the character’s image. We remember a good movie because we remember its characters. I really like the scene in the Godfather when Michael grabs the pistol from the toilet tank and goes out of the washroom to murder everyone. This is really a classic scene ““ the character so splendidly enters the scene and his growth is instant via that incisive performance. When I’m filming, my characters always come first. I don’t want anything distracting to get in the line of my actor’s vision. I used to study acting, and many people think that due to this fact I can lead the characters in their acting, but it’s actually also due to an aesthetic appreciation.
ä½ çš„ç”µå½±éƒ½æ˜¯ä»¥å¥³æ€§ä¸ºä¸»è§’ï¼Œæœ‰ä»€ä¹ˆç‰¹æ®Šæ„义？
Your movies are all told from a female point of view. Is there any particular significance behind this?
我认为女性比较容易切ä¸å®žè´¨ï¼Œå¥¹ä»¬çš„角色和社会定ä½ç›¸å¯¹ç”·æ€§æ¯”较å•ä¸€ï¼Œè€Œç”·æ€§æœ‰ç€æ¯”较å¤æ‚的社会角色，所以他们的è¯è¯å’Œä¸¾åŠ¨æœ‰æ—¶å€™ä¸èƒ½ç›´æŽ¥åæ˜ ä»–ä»¬çš„æ€ç»´ã€‚选择女性作为å™è¿°çš„主体，使得电影能够节约空间和时间，更直接切入主题。我下一部电影《纺织女工》也是女性题æ的。其实我写了一些男性为主题的剧本，比如说一个æˆåŠŸä¸å¹´ç”·æ€§å¦‚何寻找他想åƒä¸çš„爱情的故事，希望有机会å¯ä»¥æ‹æˆç”µå½±ã€‚
I consider it relatively easy to nail down the female essence. Their societal role and position is more unified than those of men, and men have comparatively more complex social roles. Men’s words and actions often don’t directly reflect their thinking. To use a woman protagonist saves enough time and space to penetrate the main idea. My next film “Textile Worker Woman (no official English title yet)” also takes on a woman’s subject matter. Actually, I’ve written some men’s stories as well, including a story about how a middle-aged man can find the love of his dreams. I hope I have the opportunity to film it.
æ‹¿å¥–æ˜¯ä½ ä¸€ç›´ä»¥æ¥çš„ç›®æ ‡å—，有想过拿奥斯å¡å—？
Was winning an award always your objective? Have you ever thought about winning an Oscar?
欧洲追求艺术公平的电影奖对ä¸å›½ç”µå½±å¸®åŠ©å·¨å¤§ï¼Œå…¶å®žä»Žä¸å›½ç¬¬äº”代导演（指崛起自1980年代的导演群）开始，我们就一直在éµå¾ªè¿™ç§æ¨¡å¼ã€‚拿奥斯å¡æ˜¯ä¸å›½æœ‰å¿—å‘导演的梦想。ä¸è¿‡ï¼Œå½“我在国际上走动了两年，当我看到电影节è¿ä½œçš„痕迹越æ¥è¶Šé‡æ—¶å€™ï¼Œæˆ‘自己对这件事情太ç¢ç£¨çš„时候，我就有点厌倦，清晰之åŽå°±æœ‰ç‚¹çƒ¦äº†ã€‚事实上，我现在有点挣脱，但是æ„味ç€å¤±åŽ»è¿™ä¸ªå¸‚场。这里é¢å……满争夺ã€è¯±æƒ‘ã€é™åˆ¶ï¼Œæ‰€ä»¥æˆ‘æ‹çš„å¾ˆæ…¢ï¼Œæˆ‘åœ¨äº†è§£ä¸ºä»€ä¹ˆä¼šè¿™æ ·ã€‚
To Chinese film, European Awards that allow the pursuit of artistic equality have been a tremendous help. We have followed this pattern since the fifth generation of Chinese directors (the group of directors who rose in the 80s). It’s Chinese directors’ collective dream to win an Oscar. However, during my two years of moving around in the world of international cinema, when I see the vestiges of these film festival operations becoming increasingly obvious, I feel dreary when I mull on it and aggravated when I see it clearly. In reality, I’ve already sort of put off the idea, but this means I would lose out on that market. That industry is so full of competition, enticement and limitation. Because I get so caught up pondering all of it and trying to understand the why of it, I end up shooting all of my films really slowly.
ä½ æ˜¯å¦ä¼šåŽ»æ‹å•†ä¸šç”µå½±ï¼Ÿ
Would you shoot a commercial film?
我æ‹çš„是文化表述的艺术电影。商业电影讲述故事的技巧是ä¸ä¸€æ ·çš„，需è¦ä¸åŒçš„专业的è®ç»ƒå’ŒçŸ¥è¯†ã€‚事实上，商业片的è¦æ±‚æ‰åŽä¸€ç‚¹ä¸æ¯”艺术片少。娱ä¹æ˜¯ç”µå½±çš„本质，文化和艺术是娱ä¹çš„最高表现形å¼ã€‚事实上，当时ä¸å›½å•†ä¸šç‰‡å…´èµ·çš„时候，ä¸å›½æ²¡æœ‰ä¸“é—¨å¦ä¹ æ‹å•†ä¸šç‰‡çš„导演。一方é¢å¸‚场形æˆäº†ï¼Œè€Œå¦ä¸€æ–¹é¢äººæ‰å’Œå¿ƒæ™ºçš„培æ¤è¿˜éœ€è¦æ—¶é—´ã€‚我们很难背离自己的教育和环境，我的价值å–å‘ä¸æ˜¯å•†ä¸šï¼Œæ²¡æœ‰å—过商业片的教育，我也æ‹ä¸å¥½ã€‚
I make art films that represent culture. The narrative ability of commercial films is not the same. The two require dissimilar knowledge and practices to create. To make a commercial film requires no less literary and artistic talent than it does to make an art film. The essence of film is entertainment. Art and culture are the highest form of entertainment’s expression. Actually, when China first started raising interest in commercial film, there were no expert directors who had studied it. The market was forming, and talent and the cultivation of talent required time. It’s difficult for people to depart from their background and education. My worth is not in shooting commercial film. I wouldn’t be able to do it well.
为了艺术电影的å‘å±•ï¼Œä½ èƒ½åšç‚¹ä»€ä¹ˆï¼Ÿ
What can you do to further develop Chinese art films?
ä¸å›½ç›®å‰çš„电影环境确实很èºåŠ¨ï¼Œä¹Ÿå¾ˆæœ‰æ´»åŠ¨ï¼Œæ»‹ç”Ÿç”Ÿæœºçš„时候到了，我们ä¸èƒ½èººåœ¨é‚£é‡Œæ˜æ˜æ¬²ç¡ã€‚我想最终è¦çš„任务就是把电影æ‹å¾—真的很å¸å¼•äººï¼Œæ‹æœ‰ç”Ÿå‘½åŠ›çš„电影。我欣èµé»‘泽明和克åšæ‹‰ã€‚他们是对电影真æ£çš„çƒçˆ±ã€‚电影是很”现世”的，有的导演觉得影片悲悯了边缘的人ã€åº•å±‚的人，但这些人ä¸å–œæ¬¢çœ‹çš„时候，他åˆæ˜¾ç¤ºå‡ºéžå¸¸å‚²æ…¢ï¼Œè¿™ä¸€ä¸‹å°±èƒ½æ£€éªŒå‡ºä»–当åˆæ‹ç”µå½±çš„动机，是想为自己获得些什么。其实一回到电影本身，事情就简å•äº†ï¼Œå°±æ˜¯åšå¥½ç”µå½±ï¼Œä½†è¿™æ˜¯æœ€éš¾å¾—的。艺术性，æ€æƒ³æ€§é™„ç€ç€çš„电影æ‰çœŸæ£æœ‰ä»·å€¼ã€‚我们的价值观是实用的价值观，问题是在艺术上我们ä¸èƒ½è¿™æ ·ï¼Œè‰ºæœ¯æ˜¯ä»˜å‡ºå¤šå°‘，得到多少。必须在电影ä¸å»ºç«‹åŠ›é‡ã€‚
Currently, the Chinese film environment is quite impetuous, but it’s also full of life and vitality, so we shouldn’t nap through it. I think the most important task is to film in a way that attracts people, to film with vigor. I appreciate Akira Kurosawa and Francis Ford Coppola. They passionately love film. Their movies are deeply oriented in the present world. Some directors don’t feel that anyone will have any interest in topics that explore people on the edge of grief or people from the lower classes, but it demonstrates the arrogance of these directors. Examining the director’s feelings towards these topics, we can understand the director’s motive”“what did he or she wish to accomplish for him or herself? Actually, if we just return to the idea of film, the situation can be simplified: make a good film. But this is most difficult””only movies that adhere to art and philosophy are valuable. Our perspective on value is a practical one, but the problem is that, in regards to art, we shouldn’t think this way. With art, what you put into it is what you take away. You must expend real strength to create a film.
ä½ å¸Œæœ›ä½ çš„ç”µå½±èƒ½è¢«å“ªç§è§‚众欣èµï¼Ÿ
What audiences do you hope will appreciate your film?
我æ‹å®Œç¬¬ä¸€éƒ¨ç”µå½±æ—¶ï¼Œæˆ‘妈妈明确表示ä¸å–œæ¬¢ï¼Œæˆ‘当时特别高兴，觉得她ä¸å–œæ¬¢å°±å¯¹äº†ï¼Œè‰ºæœ¯ç‰‡ä¸æ˜¯ç»™æ™®é€šè§‚众看的。æ‹æ‘„的时候已ç»æŠŠæ™®é€šè§‚众排出在外了，甚至以普通观众看ä¸æ‡‚为è£ã€‚éšç€å¹´é¾„和阅历的增长，我é€æ¥ç†è§£ç”µå½±æœ€ç»ˆè¿˜æ˜¯è¦å›žåˆ°ç”µå½±é™¢æŽ¥å—考验，当导演完全å¦å®šè§‚众的时候，我们就犯了常识性的错误。我希望更多人能通过我的电影，获得一次看电影的ä¹è¶£ã€‚《图雅的婚事》最高目的是在电影院被接å—。好的导演就åƒæ‹çˆ±é«˜æ‰‹ï¼Œè®©è§‚ä¼—ä¸»åŠ¨å–œæ¬¢ä¸Šä½ çš„ç”µå½±ã€‚å¦‚æžœè§‚ä¼—ä¸å–œæ¬¢ï¼Œé‚£å°±æ˜¯å¯¼æ¼”的问题了，他没有æ‹å‡ºå¥½ç‰‡å，ä¸èƒ½åŸ‹æ€¨è§‚众。如果观众觉得ä¸å¥½çœ‹ï¼Œåªæœ‰ä¸€ä¸ªåŠžæ³•ï¼Œå°±æ˜¯æˆ‘åªèƒ½æ‹å¾—更好，让电影更有力é‡ã€‚
After I finished my first movie, my mother unequivocally expressed she didn’t like it. At that time, I was quite happy. I thought if she didn’t like it, I had done it right. Art films weren’t for common people. While I filmed my picture, I dismissed the common person. To render such people unable to understand my film, then, was an honor. But as my age and understanding matured, I slowly came to understand that in the end the movie still goes to the theater for inspection. To be a director and completely deny the audience is to commit a commonsensical error. I hope as many people as possible can see my movies and derive pleasure from them. My biggest goal for Tuya’s Wedding is for it to be accepted and played at the theaters. The greatest directors are like great lovers. They let the audiences take the initiative to like what the director is offering — these movies. If the audiences don’t like it, it’s because the director didn’t make a good movie. A director can’t bitch at the audience for it. If the audience didn’t like it, there’s only one solution — shoot a better movie next time. Make the film with as much power as possible.
除了æ‹ç”µå½±ï¼Œä½ 有什么其他爱好?
In addition to making movies, what else do you enjoy?
如果有空，我喜欢到陌生的地方走走，待个二三天。北京路上的马车æ醒我其实还有å¦å¤–的时空，它并ä¸é¥è¿œï¼Œåªæœ‰20%的人过ç€å¤„处都是咖啡店ã€å•†åº—的生活。在陌生的地方，我就åƒä¸€ä¸ªéšå½¢äººä¸€æ ·å…³æ³¨ç€80%的人最真实的生活。我的电影故事å‘生的场景从城市到从农æ‘，å†åˆ°å°‘æ•°æ°‘æ—，我喜欢到远的地方观察æ述真实的生活。
If I have free time, I like to travel to a place new and unknown to me and stay for two to three days and go for long walks. In Beijing, the horse-drawn carriages remind me of another space and time, but it’s not really distant. Only 20 percent of Chinese people live their lives like this surrounded by coffee shops and shopping malls. In remote places where I am a stranger, I am just another invisible member of that other 80 percent of the countryside population. My movies happen from the city to the countryside, from the countryside to minority populations. I like going to faraway remote places to observe those realities.
