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HAF PROFILES
Campus Confidential Taiwan Dir: Lai Chun-yu
directorial debut in 2009 with Ayu, a modern retelling of Alice In Wonderland set in Taipei. The film impressed his producer Su Chao-pin, who is reteaming with the director on Campus Confidential, a romantic comedy with a surreal twist. “Working with Lai, I find that he has solid training in
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storyboarding and he is well-versed in cinematic languages,” says Su, director of Reign Of Assassins and founder of Unit 9 Pictures, which is producing Campus Confidential. The film tells the story of aspiring law student Kitty,
who has a vision of the lake at her school drying up, before an ugly man emerges and expresses his love for her. Kitty is told by everyone around her that she is cursed to end up with this person, but her efforts to avoid this seemingly fated relationship only bring the man further into her life. “In Taiwan, campus love stories have been a popular
genre. I’ve been thinking about how I can make a different kind of campus love story,” explains Lai. “In a way, this is intended to be a love story exploring the battle between reason and superstition and I will present this concept with black humour.” Lai is looking to cast Kwai Lun-mei (Secret, All About
Women) as Kitty and popular Taiwanese singer Crowd Lu as the ugly man, though neither are confirmed. The script for the project is complete and the project has
received $140,000 from the Taiwanese government’s Subsidy for Film Production. Unit 9 Pictures is looking for finance and co-production partners at HAF and aims to start shooting in August.
Sen-lun Yu CAMPUS CONFIDENTIAL
Budget $650,000 Finance raised to date $140,000 Contact Jimmy Huang, Unit 9 Pictures,
jimmy336@gmail.com
reviously a visual-effects director whose work on Jay Chou’s Secret won him a Golden Horse award for visual effects in 2007, Lai Chun-yu made his
Vasco Da Gama India Dir: Santosh Sivan
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ndian film-maker Santosh Sivan is introducing an international version of his upcoming historical epic Urumi to potential investors and sales agents at HAF. One of the biggest films ever made in Malayalam, the
language of the south Indian state of Kerala where Sivan was born, Urumi is a fictional account of an attempt by a young warrior and a Muslim princess in the 16th century to kill Portuguese explorer Vasco Da Gama. “Of course Western people think he discovered India, but
for us he was an invader,” Sivan explains. “When he arrived in India, he committed atrocities against the Muslim traders who were already very active in the region.” The local version of the film features big local stars,
songs and battle sequences, and showcases Kalaripayattu, an Indian martial art fought with spears, shields and a long flexible sword — known as the urumi. For the international version, Sivan is removing the
songs and introducing a Western character who comes to present-day Kerala to research Kalari and stumbles across the story of the assassination attempt on Da Gama. US actor Alexx O’Nell plays the Western character and the young Da Gama, while the UK’s Robin Pratt plays the older Da Gama. Indian stars Prithviraj and Genelia D’Souza head the cast. Both versions of the film are being produced by August
Cinema, the company Sivan has formed with Prithviraj, producer Mubina Rattonsey and businessman Shaji Nadesan. While the Indian version was financed locally, the producers are looking for completion funds and distributors for the international version, of which around 60% has already been shot. Sivan’s previous films, including The Terrorist, Before The Rains and Tahaan, have all been distributed widely outside India. Before The Rains was co-produced by US-based Echo Lake Entertainment, which may also be involved in the international version of Urumi. Liz Shackleton
VASCO DA GAMA
Budget $3m Finance raised to date $2m Contact Santosh Sivan, August Cinema,
santosh.sivan@
gmail.com
Double LifeOf
differences between Chinese and Chinese-Thai identity. The heroine of the film is an ethnic Chinese woman
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raised in Thailand who goes to Shanghai for a year to work and remove herself from the pressures of her affluent and traditional family, who expect her to marry the man they choose. According to Tharatorn, the film is “a complex story
of love and tragedy [about] a Thai-Chinese woman in love with both a Chinese guy in Shanghai and a Thai guy who resides in Bangkok’s Yaowarat Chinatown. Regardless of whether it’s Thai or Chinese culture, this is a story of taboo love.” Tharatorn co-directed the coming-of-age drama My
Girl, which became an award-winning hit in 2003, the romantic comedy Seasons Change (2006) and teen drama Dear Galileo (2009). His previous films were all produced by Thailand’s GMM Tai Hub, whose credits include 4BIA and BTS: Bangkok Traffic (Love) Story. Double Life Of Chinatown’s producer is Yongyoot
Thongkongthoon, head of GMM Tai Hub’s international department and a director and producer whose credits include My Girl, Iron Ladies and 4BIA. Tharatorn is currently developing the script, with plans
to shoot in Shanghai and Bangkok. “I worked overseas when I was shooting Dear Galileo but still mainly with a Thai crew. I hope Double Life Of Chinatown will be an opportunity to work with a local crew and cast in China,” says the director. The production will be looking for funds and co-producers at HAF.
Jean Noh DOUBLE LIFEOF CHINATOWN
Budget $2m Finance raised to date $1m Contact Ruedee Pholthaweechai, GMM Tai Hub,
ruedee@gth.co.th
March 22, 2011 Screen International at Filmart/HAF/HKIFF 13 n
Chinatown Thailand Dir: Nithiwat Tharatorn
hai director Nithiwat Tharatorn’s Double Life Of Chinatown was inspired by the sprawling Chinatown in Bangkok, where he began thinking about the
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