Director/producer/independent reporter Kempton Lam has made three full-length documentaries from 2004 – 2015. Kempton’s debut documentary Long Hair Revolution 「長毛革命」 has been collected by the Canadian National Archive since 2009. The three documentaries are collectively known as “Revolution Trilogy” 「革命三部曲」 and are in Cantonese with English subtitles (廣東話、英文字幕). You can watch the three films at this YouTube Playlist (beautifully projected on your big screen HDTV or on your computer). Enjoy!
I’m adding a new quote to my long list of Quotes I Love. This one came from Naomi Osaka‘s post US Open victory press conference in Japan. Here is the quote with video linked below.
“I mean, I don’t really think too much about my identity or whatever. For me, I’m just me.
And I know the way that I was brought up, I don’t know, people tell me I act kind of Japanese so I guess there is that. But other than that, if you were talking about my tennis, I think my tennis is very … not very Japanese.”
This news made me absolutely sick! I urge all my friends in Ontario or those who have friends in Ontario to call their MLAs to stop this mad action by Premier Doug Ford! Don’t let your Charter Rights eroded like this!
I was so angry that I called my MLA (the late Hon Ron Stevens) who was a QC (and later the Justice Minister and Deputy Premier) and gave him my 2 cents of why it would be so wrong morally to use the notwithstanding clause (incidentally, an Alberta idea (see the Late Alberta Premier Hon Peter Lougheed explained in “Why a Notwithstanding Clause?“). My point is we citizens can and have to speak up!
NOTE: I found the above analysis, sports reporter Lindsay Gibbs of ThinkProgress and Sandra Harwitt, who covered the match for USA Today. And I love Harwitt’s answer @2:40 in the news program, (here is an excerpt with emphasis added)
“SANDRA HERWITT:
I absolutely disagree. I know of Ramos and I believe Carlos Remus to be one of the best umpires in the business. I don’t think it was sexist at all. I don’t believe him to be a sexist. I know that he called Novak Djokovic out for coaching and for a record violation at Wimbledon this year.A coaching rule is actually the player takes the fine. But the rule is actually against the coach. He admitted he did that. It doesn’t matter whether she saw it or not. And to me it also doesn’t really matter if it happens all the time. As somebody who was 23 grand slam titles and 36 years of experience, almost 37, she should’ve let it go. Carlos is one of the few umpires that really has the guts to go out there and abide by the rules.”
“For the first time in my life, I wasn’t making anything either. I didn’t have a video camera and I wasn’t editing on my own. For those five years, this idea, this carrot of you’re going to make a movie, you’re going to make a movie eluded me. And I didn’t fulfill that part of my body. The longest time in my life that I wasn’t making stuff physically.
Then this script comes across my desk. This is literally five years later. And I’m in the condo that the pair play price (???) bought for me. I’m out of money basically. And I get a script for Step Up 2. I’m like what’s Step Up 2? Oh, it’s a direct-to-dvd sequel to this dance movie. I was like, oh yeah, I think I saw that. And I was like I don’t do direct-to-dvd. And I was like, you know, Steven Spielberg saw my short, he loved it. I’m gonna make features. I’ve been working on it for over five years. It’s only six months away. And I talked to my mom. And she was like, when did you become a snob?! What are you talking about? She’s like “you trained to be s storyteller and a storyteller can use anything even if it’s campfire. So what makes you think you’re so good and you’re like on the bench of a great team but you’ve never played. Like get your two minutes prove what you can do.” And I was like, yeah, you’re right. I’m gonna make the best damn direct-to-dvd dance movie sequel ever.”” – Jon M. Chu
1) Author Kevin Kwan Optioned His Book for Only $1
The Hollywood Reporter (THR) has a great cover story on CRA, here is an excerpt about why Kwan ended up optioning the book for just $1.
““I met with, I think, six producers in one day,” says Kwan. “It was like a beauty contest.” Many had renminbi signs in their eyes. “They were interested in getting into the Chinese market, and I was like, ‘This is a movie with worldwide and domestic potential — that just happens to star Asians.'”
Color Force’s Jacobson and Simpson, known for the Hunger Games franchise, saw it the same way. “It feels so mainstream and accessible — anybody can relate to being rejected by in-laws,” says Jacobson. She and Simpson vowed to secure financing from a company with Asian ties, and UTA steered them to Ivanhoe Pictures, Penotti’s then-brand-new company with offices in Singapore and Hong Kong. While Kwan had lucrative offers, he optioned his book to Color Force and Ivanhoe for just $1 (with triggers in place for him to earn more as the project got made) in exchange for the right to remain involved with development decisions — a rare opportunity for a first-timer. “To say, ‘I’m going to do this for a dollar,'” says Simpson, “the only other person I know who does that is Stephen King.””
3) (with video) Getting permission to use Gardens by the Bay went right up to the PMO
The producers were having a hard time getting permission to film at the epic beautiful Gardens by the Bay location until CRA author Kevin Kwan visited the set in KL one day and heard of the challenge and mentioned that actress Janice Koh’s (she played auntie Felicity Young in the movie) husband was the CEO of Singapore Tourism Board. Ultimately, it went right up to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) of Singapore to get the OK. Watch the producers talk about it in this segment of Oscars video (timecode 9:30).
4) (with video) Location for Young’s family home was a shithole (literally :)
Finding a location for the Young’s family home was very hard as a home like that doesn’t exist in Singapore. A location was found in KL (where 65% of the film was shot). After watching the beautiful house in the film, you wouldn’t know it was run down, “collapsing on itself” and had monkey pooh on the floor! Watch the producers discussed it in this segment of Oscars video (10:10).
5) (with video) Dumpling & mahjong scenes are new and not in the book
(*** NOTE: Unfortunately, this video is no longer on YouTube.) The dumpling scene and the mahjong scene aren’t in the book and I quite like them both. Here co-screenwriter Adele Lim talks about these two scenes in this Q&A. WARNING: Some spoilers!!!! Peter Chiarelli and Adele Lim on writing CRAZY RICH ASIANS (6:53)
I LOVE Crazy Rich Asians the movie so I’m finding a ton of technical filmmaking videos to watch and articles to read. Here are a few. In this last post, you can watch a bunch more videos and read articles. (Note: I may update this post to add more later.)
Academy Conversations: Crazy Rich Asians (wearing my producer hat, I LOVE this Q&A starting at the 9:30 mark with a magical wow kind of help from author Kevin Kwan in help securing an epic hard to get location!!! (In reference to that location, here is a side article about actress Janice Koh and her husband Lionel Yeo.))
I LOVE the book (part 2 China Rich Girlfriend, part 3 Rich People Problems) so I’m thrilled & excited to watch Crazy Rich Asians on its opening day this Wednesday (Aug 15th, 2018). (Aug 15th night update: Just watched the movie and LOVED it!) (Note: May add more to this post later.)
Posted by kempton 
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