Lead
"Kung Fu movie star" Li Bingyuan, as the backbone of martial arts actors, has successively filmed many film and television works such as "The Legend of Shaolin Temple", "The Legend of Bruce Lee", "Dragon Gate Flying Armor", "Wise Tiger Mountain", "Qimen Dunjia" and so on, and has created a series of classic roles with real kung fu. In the course of many years of working as an action actor, he has continuously improved himself and formed his own action film concept.
Today, Li Bingyuan has transformed from a "popular star" to a "film director", and worked with "David Bell" to create a bloody action film "Playing for Life". In Li Bingyuan's view, being a director requires "fighting for your life", and only by playing the "first trick" of an action film director can you witness a new starting point for Chinese action movies!
Stills from the movie "Playing for Your Life"
Boltana
First of all, congratulations on the release of the hot-blooded action film "Playing for Life", why do you want to shoot such a movie, where did your creative inspiration come from?
Lee Byung-won
I learned martial arts since I was a child, and I have a unique plot for action movies, and the inspiration for my creation comes from my most authentic feelings since the film. The reason why I want to make such a movie is because action movies are like a jianghu to me, every action actor wants to be a hero in the jianghu, only heroes will lead the times, just like Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, and now Wu Jing, different eras will have different heroes born.
Chinese action movies are currently facing a revolution, the so-called situation to create heroes, I think the hero to create the era is more accurate, the audience is also eager to have such a hero born. So I am very fortunate to have brought the film "Playing for My Life" to this historical junction at my best time, to witness and create a new starting point for Chinese action movies!
From a veteran action actor to a director, what is the driving force behind your cross-border transformation? Can you briefly introduce this experience?
This problem is mainly divided into two points: First, I have not had much room to play under the "roof" of others, and there are too many good ideas in the creation that have been stifled in the specific form of the actor's identity, which is my most real experience.
Second, after five years, I don't want to see the same self, I always warn myself that youth is limited, and there is not much time that really belongs to the struggle, so I want to keep this most precious time to myself!
Filmmaking is always challenging, what difficulties were encountered in the early stages of shooting and the planning of the script?
The creative path of the whole film can be said to be "through five levels and six generals", which is full of difficulties. The first is that there is no money, which is a common problem faced by small-budget films. I believe that most of my peers will choose the problem of small cost to solve it with a small cost attitude. But I didn't, and I never made cost the core of my film. Because I have always believed that the positioning of a film is not measured by investment but by quality.
Therefore, as long as this film is a creative problem that cannot be solved by the cost of funds, it is all up to me to do it. Because the cost of funds can't solve the production problem, it's all my brother and Yu Dao to do. In the end, I held five hats, writer, director, action director, actor, editor, my brother and Yu Dao also held several jobs in production, and even finally did the work on the field. That's how we did that throughout the film, and from the current point of view I think we're lucky because we've been trained and grown by leaps and bounds in specific tribulations. People who haven't really been on the battlefield won't understand this feeling, so I believe that in future movies, there will be no more difficulties that can stop us.
We saw a scene in the film where you were crying in the car, is it convenient to talk about the situation at that time?
That was my injury during the shooting, on the way back from the hospital bandage, before the injury, the state has always been anxious and excited, every day is to pat, can not stop for a moment, there is no time to think. It was like a balloon that kept blowing, and all of a sudden it exploded, and I was injured. At that moment, it felt like the whole world was quiet, and when I calmed down, I realized that this movie was so difficult to shoot.
When I was extremely sad, my brother called, and the moment he connected it, the tears came out, and he couldn't control it at all. My brother was crying on the other end of the phone, I was crying on the other end of the phone, there was no language, just non-stop crying, that was the first time I felt what it was to cry and drool.
When I returned to the scene for fear of being seen by others, I dried my tears in the car, adjusted my state, and was carried out of the car in a wheelchair to continue shooting. In fact, the injury situation at that time could not start, but the capital cycle was really limited, and there was no second choice, that is, to knock out the teeth and swallow in the stomach.
The filming process of the film "Playing for Life" was so difficult, what supported you to make this movie?
On the one hand, I want to prove myself, I want to give myself an answer sheet for so many years of acting career. On the other hand, the sense of mission of inheritance, Chinese action movies have always been famous in the world, since I was born in this era and gave myself a skill, I should be more powerful and create a new height of Chinese action movies with colleagues from all walks of life.
This is your first work as a director, how do you define the work of "Playing for Life"?
This is the first trick I have played in ten years of sharpening a sword and entering the jianghu, and this movie will also start a revolution of my own.
Poster for the movie "Playing for Your Life"
The film focuses on "zero stand-ins, zero action special effects", in today's special effects are so developed, why should we adhere to this relatively dangerous shooting method?
I think in action movies, cool special effects will achieve visual enjoyment, but only the most realistic fights will touch the heart.
If you were to describe the movie "Playing with Your Life" in a few words or a paragraph, what would you think would be?
"Health is important to everyone, but I had to ignore it in creating this film." That's what I said to myself before I started.
Lee Byung-won was injured during the filming of "Playing for Life"
There are a lot of good action movies and film directors, so which of them have inspired and important influences on your creations?
For me, Stallone's Rocky series was a shock. Because there are very few fighting movies that are so heartfelt, and Stallone himself is also a writer and director, this legend created in adversity has indeed played a role model for me.
"Playing for Life" can be said to be the first transformation work you wrote, directed and performed yourself, what do you think is the biggest gain and feeling in the creative process?
My biggest feeling is that human potential is really huge, as long as you are willing to push yourself again, you will find that you can do more and do better.
"Playing with Life" director Lee Byung-won
Do you have any plans for the next play? Will the genre and theme of "Playing with Life" continue?
"Playing For Life" I want to continue to make as a series, the next movie will be a new theme of the "Playing For" series, will open my commercial action blockbuster mode, is still in the stage of confidentiality.
From an action actor to a director, "Playing for Life" is the first directorial work. At the time of the film's release, what do you want to say to fans?
I hope that everyone will support our local action film "Playing for Life", "Playing for Life" is just a beginning for us, and the future of Chinese action movies will definitely make the audience refreshed!
epilogue
Director Li Bingyuan believes that Chinese action movies are currently facing a revolution. The so-called times create heroes, Li Bingyuan believes that the hero creation era is more accurate, and the audience is also eager for the birth of such a heroic figure. Li Bingyuan came to this historical junction with the movie "Playing for Life" at his best time, and jointly witnessed and created a new starting point for Chinese action movies!