Interview with Xu Youshi, the director of "My Beloved"

 

Profile of the director:

Director Xu Youshi (徐有时）is a photographer who’s work has always taken him to the edge of modern cinema, a media which he loves.

He’s been writing scripts since 2018 and in 2020 he shot his first short film “My Beloved”. The following year he wrote and completed his first feature “Chenxiang”: he’s currently working on another short film.

1. My Beloved is about “Left Behind Children”; the kids who are left in rural areas by parents who travel to China’s cities to find work. How serious a problem is this and what should be done to tackle this problem?

A: There are many in China. At least there are a lot around me. The whole society is trying to care about these children. But they lack the love from their parents. Only their parents can solve this problem.

 

2. There is an old saying that one should never work with either children or animals. Yet for Xu Youshi’s first short film you decided to work with both. What attracted you to want to make a film on this subject?

 

A: I wrote three scripts then. One is a short film. The other two are feature films. The three scripts are all related to me. The short film My Beloved is corresponding to my child. One feature film is about my family. The other is about myself. After finishing them, I found that I was not aware of that. I had been expecting to make a film. But the feature film needs a hug sum of money. It is impossible at the moment. In comparison, this story and this theme is the cheapest one and the easiest one to make. Children and animals together is for creating the sense of loneliness. Mie-mie, the bleating of lambs sounds like “Mama” in Chinese. It implies something at the beginning of the film.

 

3. My Beloved uses a very striking visual style. What made you use this particular style and what were you conveying through these visuals?

A: Most part of the short film is quite realistic. Its story is very simple. I think it demands something with power to let it fly. The film has both reality and fancy. A murmuring stream, fragrant flowers and grass, and flocks of goats are looming in the film. The world of children is pure, beautiful and full of fancy. The shadow reveals the fairy tale world that the children desire to see -- they can see their mom there. Such comprehension may be subjective. But it is the subjectivity of children. Fortunately, the camera can demonstrate their fancy.

 

4. Are there any challenges or difficulties which are unique to making films in rural China? How did you overcome those challenges?

A: There are a lot of difficulties. I made this short film when my wife was having her postpartum confinement. It was in autumn harvest then. Everyone was busy. Most people in the village were children and the aged. No one could help you. So, I played almost all roles: the director, the screenwriter, the cameraman, the film cutter, the art designer and the producer. I just employed film crew. I don’t want show off how cool I am. What can I do with the budget of several thousand yuan? As there was no one to assist me, my wife had to help me though she was still in postpartum confinement. It caused her to suffer from delectation. She has no breast milk. When I was shooting, if the lamb ran away, I had to leave the camera behind and catch the lamb. The pond was drained as the farmers needed a path to reach their crops. I had to communicate with them. Then  I held a hoe to build a dam for holding the water. The first sound recorder disliked working on such a small project. He broke his promise and went away. I had to find another crew member. The agenda planned for all people had to be adjusted. I was not merely considering how to shoot. I had to consider other trivial matters. I needed to prepare the bells fastening to the goat, the clothes for the girl with a broken corner, the mood of the children and whether the tricycle for carrying people had power. I have very limited ability to deal with a lot of things at the same time. Many details of the film have lost. They can be better. But in this way, there is an advantage. As I am the screenwriter, the director, the cameraman, the art designer and the film cutter at the same time, when there is something difficult, I can always deal with in the most suitable way.

Though the film is small, it is complete. It has all elements of a film. No section of it can be neglected. The work is hard and tiring. But it is beautiful!

5.Xu Youshi, the director of My Beloved, has recently been working on his first feature film. What can you tell us about that?

A; I am very small in face of film. I am learning about film all the time. I wish I would have the opportunity to meet everyone in the journey of film making and to enjoy the days with like-minded partners in film making. 

Interviewed by: David James Bell   

Editted by: Li Yingdeng