DOC NYC 2018 - China Love
A must for any newly engaged Chinese couple is the pre-wedding photo shoot. A marked break from the austere, purely functional weddings of the generation who grew up in the shadow of the Cultural Revolution, this multibillion dollar industry is the ultimate display of romance, status and wealth. Take a trip through modern-day Shanghai following couples on their crazed quest for the perfect photos. It’s a fantasy ride of glitz, excess, glamour and love.
Interview with Director/Producer Olivia Martin-McGuire
Watch China Love on Netflix
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
I wanted to show another side of China through a different porthole. What began as a photo-series of quirky theatrical street life in Shanghai quickly became something deeper once I started talking to people and recording their answers. The power of these pre-wedding photos offer us a chance to glimpse some of the complexity of China. Where they have come from, how fast change has occurred and the tensions that exist in the everyday pursuit of love and marriage.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
CHINA LOVE offers a different side of China from the stories you see in the newspaper. It is a humanitarian story that allows a cross section of people to offer up their stories. It allows us to empathise with the complexity that exists in such a rapidly changing landscape while also having some fun along the way. For those that love photography, we get to witness how powerful it is in this industry in creating dreams for a culture that is coming out of a period of trauma.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
Pretty closely intertwined. The film moves between the macro/public to the micro/private constantly which is part of the feeling in China.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
The characters' stories led us down the roads that we tied together with a view to represent a cross-section of society – a slice – whilst also offering empathy for each story.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
A lot of Chinese people have really enjoyed it and told me how much it mirrored their experience when it came to love and marriage, especially the idea of being caught between two worlds of meaningful traditions and the freedom of new world ideas. On the other hand, people who have never visited China tell me it has given them a very different view from one they had previously imagined.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
Love to get the film out into the world. We are at DOCNYC at the moment. Would love more Festival connections or just more opportunity for it to be seen. We are developing a series on the subject as well.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Festival directors, broadcaster and journalists.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
I would love it to make people stop and think about China from another angle, what they have been through during The Cultural Revolution, the break neck speed then into a new world power and how this impacts the people. See things from another angle and create empathy are the main aims.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Why are these photos so important in China? What do they represent?
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
We are developing a series based on this film. Plus we have some other lovely new projects in early stages at the moment.
Interview: November 2018
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
ChinaLove
A must for any newly engaged Chinese couple is the pre-wedding photo shoot. A marked break from the austere, purely functional weddings of the generation who grew up in the shadow of the Cultural Revolution, this multibillion dollar industry is the ultimate display of romance, status and wealth. Take a trip through modern-day Shanghai following couples on their crazed quest for the perfect photos. It’s a fantasy ride of glitz, excess, glamour and love.
Length: 90mins
Director: Olivia Martin-McGuire
Producer: Rebecca Barry, Madeleine Hetherton, Olivia Martin-McGuireKey
cast: Allen Shi, owner of the Jiahao Group
About the cast:
The Jiahao Group was founded in 2008 by Allen Shi and is invested in over 30 luxury brands and has over 200 stores around the globe.
Looking for: film festival directors, journalists
Facebook: China Love film
Instagram: @livmartinmcguire
Funders: Screen Australia, Create NSW, ABCArts