Wanma Tseden's film works have always been very personal, he is rooted in Tibet, thinking about the real situation of national culture, and he is a legendary representative of the "New Wave of Tibetan Cinema". He once explained that there were no Tibetans making their own films before, and that there were many inaccuracies in other people's Tibetan films, and that he wanted to change that.
The film "Snow Leopard" is the eighth Tibetan-language film directed by Wanma Tseden, and the film was filmed on the shores of Donggecuona Lake in Guoluo Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Qinghai Province, and took three years from the finalization of the script to the completion of filming. The film revolves around the story of a snow leopard that broke into the sheepfold and killed 9 lambs, with the application of a large number of long shots, the addition of CG production, and the mixing of black and white shots of surreal clips, the style is still strong. Cinema is the art of the director, and the film must convey something that he himself is thinking, "When the power of love between heaven, earth and man is intertwined with the dilemma of reality, I think this is a guide that my father wants to convey to us." Kumi Seriku, the son of Wanma Tseden and the executive director of the film "Snow Leopard", understands the film in this way, and he admits that he is also trying to understand more about his father and his film.
Wanma Tseden on the set. Photo courtesy of the interviewee
In May 2023, Wanma Tseden passed away due to a sudden illness, and his film path stopped, but his works did not stop. On April 3 this year, the movie "Snow Leopard" directed by him was officially released. In fact, last year, this film made its mark at many film festivals, "Snow Leopard" was the best film in the main competition unit of the 36th Tokyo International Film Festival, and also won the best screenplay and best cinematography at the 17th Asian Film Awards, and won the best director at the 5th Hainan Island International Film Festival with this film.
"This is a story of compassion, care, and love like no other. Wanma Tseden once commented on the film "Snow Leopard" in the director's explanation. On the eve of the release of the movie "Snow Leopard", the New Yellow River reporter interviewed Jiumi Chenglie in Beijing, as well as the leading actors Jinba (as the eldest brother Jinba) and Xiong Ziqi (as Wang Xu), and they may be able to see more aspects of Wanma Tseden and his movies in their memories and understanding.
Father and his films
On the day when the movie "Snow Leopard" was completed, director Wanma Tseden presented Hada to each of the main creators of the crew.
In the memories of Kumi Chenglie, the whole crew was very calm when it was finished, "It seems that there are not many scenes filmed on the day of the finale, just go back to the set to shoot a few shots, and after the shooting, everyone will take a group photo together, which is a more relaxed and happy state." ”
There are some things that Kumi Chenglie can't remember clearly, he only remembers that everyone was very excited on the night of the finale banquet, "Everyone was drinking, and they drank late." "Kumi Chenglie also sang on stage, one in Tibetan and one in Chinese," but what I remember more clearly is that my father was watching from the audience, he was very happy, and I was very excited, so I called him up and asked him to sing a song too, but my father had never sung in front of many people before, and he sang that day, and everyone had never seen him sing. ”
Kumi was surprised by her father's actions, "He sang "Forget the Water" (laughs), which he sang when he was in college, and it has nothing to do with movies. When he was in college, many people said that his singing voice was like Andy Lau. ”
The son of director Wanma Tsedan, the executive director of the movie "Snow Leopard" Jiumi Chenglie.
In the impression of Jinba, Xiong Ziqi, and Jiumei Chenglie, Wanma Tseden has always been a person who does not talk much and is calm, and it is rare to have such an outgoing moment. Kumi Chenglie recalled to the New Yellow River reporter, "We don't say something too meaty between us, and sometimes we discuss some in-depth topics, but we don't say too much." Kumi Seiriya said that many things are actually enough in one sentence or two, and they understand each other.
In the crew of "Snow Leopard", Kumi Seori served as the executive director, "When I was on the set, my father gave me instructions, and I went to help him complete it. "Every night, the main creative staff, including the director, will sit together for a meeting to discuss tomorrow's shooting, and after the decision is settled, Kumi Seariya will communicate with various departments to determine the preparation for tomorrow.
In fact, before "Snow Leopard", Kumi Seori had already completed his first feature film "One and Four", which was released in October last year. In this film, Wanma Tseden served as the executive producer, and in a previous interview, in the face of the question of his father's influence, Kumi Serie answered very calmly, he asked rhetorically, "Whose father has no influence on him?" He considered himself lucky.
"What has the deepest impact on me is to follow my heart's pursuit of truth, I never saw him shoot something he didn't believe in in my father's movies, and he never over-glorified or told a thing against his heart when he depicted reality. Truth is the word Kumi Seiriya uses the most when talking about his father, and the more concrete impact on his work is the control of details, and both father and son are "detail control".
A still from the movie "One and Four".
Actor Jinba and Wanma Tseden have collaborated on many films, and is also one of the leading actors in the movie "One and Four", he told the New Yellow River reporter that the father and son have similarities and differences, Jiumi Chenglie is a particularly young director, particularly bold, will try all kinds of things, and is also very hard-working; Wanma Tseden is more calm and is a very mature director.
The movie "Snow Leopard" brought us
The idea of the movie "Snow Leopard" originated in 2020, and it took 3 years from the finalization of the script to the completion of filming and production. The story begins with a snow leopard breaking into the herdsman's sheepfold and biting 9 sheep to death, the angry eldest brother Jinba does not want to let go of the snow leopard easily, hoping to get compensation as soon as possible, the reporter hopes to get more on-site materials, father, youngest son "Snow Leopard Lama", wife, mediator, each is in a different position, this is a large group of stories.
The youngest son "Snow Leopard Lama" in the movie "Snow Leopard". Photo courtesy of the interviewee
There are many special settings in the film, and one scene is that the youngest son "Snow Leopard Lama" suddenly jumped into the sheepfold without warning and looked at the snow leopard. Kumi Seori thinks that such a sudden setting is exactly what his father wants to express the most, "Maybe I want this kind of suddenness, some kind of memory awakening or some kind of spiritual awakening, maybe it is in a moment, and no one can stop it from coming at that moment, so maybe my father's dispatch on the scene also wants to present such a state and feeling." ”
There are also a lot of black and white shots interspersed in the film, "I think it must not be a dream or a random imaginary passage, I believe the connection between the snow leopard and the 'snow leopard lama'." "I think it's more like a memory of a past life, something that really happened." Before explaining his understanding, Kumi stressed that it was his own feelings.
Interspersed with black and white shots in the film. Photo courtesy of the interviewee
In Kumi's understanding, the performance of the black and white parts is indeed different from reality. He revealed that in his father's director's explanation, he said that he wanted to make some different changes in the image style in the realistic and surreal passages, including the processing of shots, music, and performances, which is a kind of design that gradually transitions from reality to surreality.
As for what kind of movie "Snow Leopard" is, Wanma Tseden has his own answer, and he commented on the film "Snow Leopard" in the director's explanation: This is a story about unparalleled compassion, care and love. But "Snow Leopard" may bring you more than that.
Jinba and Wanma Tseden have known each other for many years and are trusted and tacit friends. He said that both of them were people of few words, but "between us, needless to say, we could tell what direction it was by looking at his eyes." The film "Snow Leopard" is the most discussed script between Kimba and the director, and the discussion is not heated or persuasive, including the expression of anger in the film, and the addition of Tibetan proverbs to reflect life, Kimba just put forward his own opinion. Jinba also mentioned that the anger and stubbornness of the eldest brother in the film, he can understand, and this character is a particularly simple herdsman.
In the movie "Snow Leopard", Xiong Ziqi plays the role of reporter Wang Xu (first from left). Photo courtesy of the interviewee
"Snow Leopard" is a theme that Xiong Ziqi has always wanted to try, and he revealed that because he likes Wanma Tsedan's movies very much, he took the initiative to find the director and ask if there was a chance. He admitted that he was not confident or even timid, and he didn't know if he could do it. The director responded to him, there will be a chance, there will be fate. Later, I finally waited for the work "Snow Leopard", a series of special conditions such as high altitude, low temperature, and lack of oxygen also gave Xiong Ziqi a rare filming experience. But he was also very happy, learned Tibetan, saw wolves, vultures, Tibetan foxes and many other wild animals, and could imagine his own insignificance among the mountains and lakes. Xiong Ziqi said that the scene where he thanked everyone for his birthday in the film was his heartfelt thanks, and he cried a lot when he finished the film, and he was reluctant to accept the care given to him by the director and crew.
The leading actor Tseden Tashi (as the youngest son "Snow Leopard Lama") said that Teacher Wanma Tseden is a very kind person, and every time he thinks of his teacher, he will remember what he said, that is, "Take your time", "Because I met the teacher, I want to be an actor." ”
The story is only half told
In the director's special, Wanma Tseden said that with movies and novels, he has his own inner world. Someone asked if it didn't, "If not," Wanma said, after a pause, "life might not be so rich."
Wanma Tseden seems to be accustomed to calmly answering many questions, and he once explained that he had no films made by Tibetans themselves before, and that there were many inaccuracies in the cultural customs and ways of thinking in the films made by others, "in order to change this situation, I started making films based on such ideas."
A still from the movie "Snow Leopard".
Regarding this, Kumi Seirori also mentioned, "My father has always said that he started making films because no Tibetans had made his own films before. "But after my father made a few films, he wanted to make more than just a film that belonged to the Tibetans themselves, he wanted to make a film that belonged to the world.
Kumi Seiriya said that his father was looking at the human dimension to photograph the world he was familiar with. "In fact, for us, Tibetan culture and the Tibetan language itself, just like Chinese is to Han Chinese and English is to people in English-speaking countries, have a natural penetration and expression in life. Although the language we use and the way we think are different from those of other peoples, I believe that at the deepest depths of the logic of every culture, people must be able to understand each other. ”
Kumi Seiree is also trying to understand his father and his films. From the beginning of the first film to the present, Kumi Seiree feels that his father has been touching on the dilemmas of this era, "such as the collision between modern civilization and traditional culture, the dilemma of reality and faith, the change of Tibetan way of thinking or lifestyle, and so on." This has always been there, and these observations and expressions are also true to the Tibetans who live in that land. Kumi said.
Kumi Seori believes that this pursuit of truth has reached an aesthetic and spiritual realm, and that it takes great courage and perseverance for her father to persist in filming like this for more than 20 years, and become a pioneer and leader of the "New Wave of Tibetan Cinema".
When it comes to Tibetan movies, Kumi Chenglie said that he doesn't dare to have any delusions, let's do it step by step, don't be affected by any labels, or some expectations given by others, to affect the true pursuit of your heart. "So for me, no matter what kind of subject matter or content I shoot, the most important thing is to continue to pursue the truth and the inner thing. ”
Unlike his father's upbringing, Kumi Nariyu, who grew up in the city, said: "I feel that an individual needs a moment of awakening, and when that moment comes, even if he has been away from his hometown and his own culture for a long time, there is a chance to quickly find it back because of a strong desire, and this is the case for me." Previously, Kumi Seiriya also said that he still wanted to continue to make genre films and wanted to make various genre films. He mentioned that he is also trying to write some stories about the mainland and the new world that has been built.
Wanma Tseden (middle) and Jinba (first from right) on the set of the movie "Snow Leopard". Photo courtesy of the interviewee
It can be seen that more works of Tibetan directors are emerging today. Speaking of the "New Wave of Tibetan Cinema", Wanma Tseden once said that with this "New Wave", he felt that "a certain loneliness of the past has been restored". Stories about "Snow Leopard", director Wanma Tseden, and Tibetan cinema are still growing.
Reporter: Li Yunheng Editor: Sun Feifei Proofreader: Tang Qi