5-5-09 : Shanghai Express

Visiting China's second city (part one)

Given that our company made a film called 'Shanghai', you'd think I'd have spent more time in that city than I have. In fact, our 'Shanghai' was shot in London and Bangkok, and I've only been there for the film festival and to visit other people's sets. I caught a midday flight out of Hong Kong, and arrived at the Ritz-Carlon mid-afternoon. To my shame, I don't speak Mandarin, so I called on the services of fellow A-n-Der Shell Zhu to help me as translator and guide to the Bund.

We get dinner in a restaurant that features a converted railway carriage once occupied by one of the Soong sisters. Its located next to a fast food place called 'Kung Fu Burger'. Now there's a brand to conjure with!

The following day, I meet my friend Robert Vincencio. Robert is a musical theatre star who was in the London cast of Miss Saigon, and still tours as a singer. He's a genuine multi-talent, having acted (most memorably in the giant alien spider movie Arachnid) and directed (the forthcoming Distance Runners). He has a concept for a musical theatre project that we may be interested to develop. Robert is a good mate of my friend Michael Wong, and they just flew off to Germany on some marketing mission. Oh, to be in the jet set...!

As we ride through the city, I'm impressed, as always, by how much of the beautiful European architecture has been retained. Its a shame Hong Kong hasn't been as mindful of its own heritage. Conservation has only recently become an issue, and so much has already been lost.

Shanghai has two major film studios, the eponymous one where they shot Kung Fu Hustle, White Countess, Mummy 3 etc and Image Maker, where they shot Warlords and Ip Man, which I'm visiting tomorrow.

Years ago, Golden Harvest made a film called 'Shanghai, Shanghai', starring Yuen Biao and Sammo Hung. This was before China opened up sufficiently to allow Hong Kong producers to shoot there, and so the whole film was shot on locations in the (then) Crown Colony, and at the Harvest studios. (I actually went back to look at the film when we were considering shooting 'Shanghai' in Hong Kong and, of course, many of the colonial buildings they used were long gone...

I visited the Bright Shadow studios, which is a state of the art post-production facility owned and operated by westerners (all French!) resident in Shanghai. I was very impressed with their technical resources, and by the sheer size of the studio. Space is so limited in Hong Kong! They really have room to breath.

Bright Shadow are distributing the French wartime thriller Female Agents, starring Sophie Marceau, in China. They actually have it on my screens here than it played in France! Shell and I are invited to the premiere, which will be attended by Marceau herself. They've spared no expense, flying in the director and star, building an elaborate set outside the theatre and hiring a line-up of locally based European models to play 'female agents' for the evening.

Afterwards, there's a party at the Shanghai M1NT, which is (as ever) larger than its Hong Kong counterpart, and features an identical tank of mini-sharks. What happens to them when they get too big? I guess the poor buggers get turned into soup...