The 2023 Maritime Guangdong Young Director Support Program (shortly referred to as the "2023 Maritime Guangdong Program"), hosted by Yangcheng Evening News, recently conducted its inaugural salon on Shamian Island, Liwan District, Guangzhou City. On the day, Hu Lufeng, a mentor of the "2023 Maritime Guangdong Program" and a veteran film and television producer from Malaysia, alongside Yang Yiheng (English name Edmund Yeo), a renowned young director from Malaysia, led a deep discussion with young filmmakers and Guangzhou locals on the topic of "Multicultural Landscape in Films: Malaysia as a Prism".

The year 2023 marks the 10th anniversary of the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Malaysia, and 2024 will welcome the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. As an important medium of cultural exchange, movies have emerged as significant witnesses of the deepening Sino-Malaysian friendship. In addition to inviting guests from the Malaysian film and television field to China for the first salon, the current program will also hold its first overseas screening event in Malaysia in October this year. At that time, a number of short films themed around Lingnan stories created by young directors from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area will be presented to Malaysian audiences, marking another significant chapter in Sino-Malaysian cultural exchange.

The film journey of two Malaysian Chinese: From leaving home to returning

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"My family are Hakka people from Fujian, who migrated to Malaysia three generations ago," Hu Lufeng introduced himself, "My father loved reading Jin Yong"s martial arts novels, while my mother was fond of Qiong Yao"s romance novels. Therefore, I grew up with and influenced by Chinese culture."

For a diverse professional background, Hu Lufeng had worked as a reporter, an artist and performance manager in an entertainment company, and the chief producer of an online TV station in Malaysia. While 15 years before that, Hu chose to return to China, the birthplace of his great-grandfather, for his career development. Commissioned by the Li Ka-shing Foundation, he founded the Integrated Media Lab at Shantou University and served as the head of the Department of Radio, Film, and Television of the Cheung Kong School of Journalism and Communication at Shantou University. Under his guidance, the graduation work "Wonder in Dream" by students from Shantou University was selected for the short film section at the 70th Festival de Cannes, marking the first works from Shantou University that were showcased at a top international film festival.

Yang Yiheng (English name Edmund Yeo ) also boasts a rich career experience. His family is originally from Shantou and settled in Malaysia from his grandfather"s generation. Influenced by his parents who loved watching movies, especially Hong Kong movies, he ignited his aspiration for filmmaking at the age of four or five. After growing up, he studied in Japan and made films in both Japan and Malaysia. In 2009, Yang Yiheng became the youngest Malaysian director to have his short film"Kingyo" selected for the Venice Film Festival. In addition, his works "Inhalation" and "Aqérat (We, the Dead)" respectively won the Sonjie Award for the best Asian short film at the Busan International Film Festival in 2010 and the Best Director Award at the Tokyo International Film Festival 2017.

Yang, who has never returned to Shantou, took his parents on a trip to his ancestral home this time. Along the way, he was deeply impressed by the local cuisine. "There are Chaoshan restaurants in Malaysia, but it was not until this trip that I understood what true Chaoshan cuisine is."

Malaysian audiences love Jackie Chan and"The Wandering Earth II"

Yang said, "It is hard for film and television workers in Malaysia because the local audience prefers Hong Kong films and TVB dramas." Hu Lufeng also revealed that Malaysia can produce more than 40 local films per year, "But including Malays, everyone still prefers Jackie Chan, and the first thing to do every year after the reunion dinner is to watch Jackie Chan"s movies."

In recent years, as Chinese films have gained increasing influence in the world, Malaysians often watch blockbusters synchronously with the Chinese. Hu Lufeng said, "Malaysians are familiar with famous Chinese actor Wu Jing, renowned Chinese director Zhang Yimou. Not only movies, but TV dramas are also very popular in Malaysia, such as "Eternal Love" and "Empresses in the Palace"."

Although domestic films are not as influential as those in China, many Chinese blockbusters actually involve the participation of Malaysian Chinese filmmakers. Hu Lufeng introduced, "For example, action films like "The Rescue", "Operation Red Sea", and "Fox Hunt" were all shot with the assistance of Malaysian filmmakers." He specifically mentioned Ipoh, the fourth largest city in Malaysia, "With a large Chinese population and architectural styles resembling Hong Kong, many Hong Kong films are frequently shot here. Hong Kong"s old buildings have three stories, while Ipoh"s have two, making it easy to add another layer during post-production. "

Encouraging the directors of the "Maritime Guangdong Program": Portray cities as characters

In July, the "Maritime Guangdong Program" concluded with ten young directors selected to be granted financial support of 1.6 million yuan by the Yangcheng Evening News to create short films featuring Lingnan stories. Hu Lufeng, serving as a mentor, witnessed the entire selection process and said, "The "Maritime Guangdong Program" encompasses a diverse range of projects. There are directors who delve into personal experiences, capture family histories, and focus on stories of Chinese communities from different regions. It never fails to astonish me how these young directors in their twenties possess such rich perspectives on the world."

For the young directors, the two Malaysian filmmakers offered valuable advice. Hu Lufeng said, "Imagine the city you want to film as a character - not merely capturing its visuals, but authentically incorporating it into your narrative."

While Yang Yiheng, on the other hand, encouraged young directors not to fear their youthfulness, stating, "Treasure every filmmaking journey. Each of your films is a product of a different stage in your life. Only focusing on the "present" can you capture the essence."

马来西亚人有多爱中国电影？“山海计划”首场“山海沙龙”在广州沙面举行

由羊城晚报报业集团主办的“向山海走去”青年导演创作扶持计划（以下简称“山海计划”），近日在广州荔湾区沙面岛举行了首场“山海沙龙”活动。“山海计划”导师、马来西亚资深影视制片人胡禄丰和马来西亚知名青年导演杨毅恒，当天以《电影中的多元文化景观：以马来西亚为棱镜》为题，与在场的青年影像创作者和广州市民展开深入交流。

今年是中马建立全面战略伙伴关系10周年，明年将迎来两国建交50周年。电影作为中马两国文化交流的重要媒介，持续见证着中马友谊深化发展的进程。据悉，除首场“山海沙龙”邀请马来西亚影视界嘉宾前来中国，“山海计划”还将于今年10月赴马来西亚举办首场海外展映活动。届时，一批由粤港澳大湾区青年导演创作的岭南故事短片将与马来西亚观众见面，为中马文化交流再添重要一笔。

出走与归来，两位马来西亚华人的电影路

“我家是福建的客家人，从我曾祖父那代起迁居马来西亚。”胡禄丰自我介绍说，“我爸喜欢看金庸的武侠小说，我妈喜欢看琼瑶的言情小说，因此我从小就在中国文化的熏陶中长大。”

在马来西亚当过记者，做过娱乐公司的艺人与表演经理，还担任过网络电视的首席制片人，但胡禄丰此前的人生15年却选择回到曾祖父出生的中国发展。他受李嘉诚基金会委托创办了汕头大学融合媒体实验室，并担任汕头大学长江新闻与传播学院广电系主任。在他的指导下，汕大学子的毕业作品《夜短梦长》入选戛纳国际电影节短片单元展，那是汕大学子的作品首次亮相于国际A类电影节的舞台。

杨毅恒同样经历丰富。他祖籍汕头，爷爷那代起便定居马来西亚。由于父母都爱看电影尤其是香港电影，深受影像熏陶的他四五岁时便树立了拍电影的理想。长大后，他到日本求学并在日本和马来西亚两地拍片。2009年，杨毅恒以短片《金鱼》入选威尼斯影展竞赛片，成为马来西亚历年入选该影展的导演中最年轻者。此外，他的作品《都是正常的》《阿奇洛》分别获得釜山影展最佳亚洲短片奖和东京国际影展最佳导演奖。

从没回过汕头的杨毅恒这趟还专程带上父母返乡寻根。一路上他被当地美食给狠狠震撼了，“马来西亚也有潮汕菜馆，但这次回来才明白什么才是真正的潮汕美食”。

马来西亚观众爱成龙，爱看《流浪地球2》

杨毅恒说：“在马来西亚工作的影视人很辛苦，因为当地观众更爱看香港电影和TVB的电视剧。”胡禄丰也透露，马来西亚一年能生产四十多部当地电影，“但包括马来人在内，大家还是更喜欢成龙，每年吃完团圆饭第一件事就是要看成龙电影”。

近年来，中国电影在世界的影响日益增大，马来西亚人也经常跟中国人同步看大片。胡禄丰说：“马来西亚人认识吴京，认识张艺谋。不光是电影，电视剧在马来西亚也相当流行，譬如《三生三世十里桃花》和《甄嬛传》。”

虽然本土电影影响力不及中国，但其实很多中国大片背后，都有马来西亚华人电影人的身影。胡禄丰介绍：“譬如《紧急救援》《红海行动》《猎狐行动》这些动作片，都是在马来西亚电影人的协助下拍摄的。”他特别介绍了马来西亚的第四大城市怡保，“这里华人多，建筑跟香港风格很接近，所以香港电影经常在这里取景——香港的老楼是三层，怡保是两层，后期制作的时候加一层就行了。”

鼓励“山海计划”导演：把城市写成角色

“山海计划”7月完成10位青年导演的选拔，由羊城晚报出资160万元扶持他们拍摄岭南故事短片。作为导师的胡禄丰见证了活动选拔的全过程，他感慨，“‘山海计划’的项目很多元。导演们有的阐述个人经历，有的记录家庭历史，还有的聚焦各地华人之间的故事。每每想到他们还不过是二十多岁的年轻人，我都会为他们对世界的关注点如此之丰富而感到惊喜。”

对青年导演，两位马来西亚电影人也给出了自己的建议。胡禄丰提出：“把你想拍的城市想象成一个角色——不是仅仅拍到它们就算了，而要把它真正写进你的故事里。”

杨毅恒则鼓励青年导演们，不要害怕自己太年轻稚嫩，“珍惜每一次拍电影的历程，你的每部电影都是你人生不同阶段的产物，只有在‘当下’才拍得出来”。

出品人 | 杜传贵 林海利总监制 | 孙爱群 孙璇 胡泉 林如敏总策划 | 孙朝方品牌运营 | 李艳文 朱帆 蒋铮 郑华如执行总监 | 吕楠芳执行副总监｜郭文瑜传播执行｜李丽 胡广欣 艾修煜文｜羊城晚报全媒体记者 李丽译｜陈萱

来源 | 羊城晚报•羊城派责编 | 王楠校对 | 赵丹丹

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