Kwan Pun Leung: The image creator of nature

0:00Kwan Pun Leung:This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. This is not the future we were promised. Like, how about that for a tagline for the show? From the BBC, this is The Interface, the show that explores how tech is rewiring your week and your world. This isn't about quarterly earnings or about tech reviews. It's about what technology is actually doing to your work and your politics, your everyday life. and all the bizarre ways people are using the internet. Listen on BBC.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

0:39Shan Ng:It's not about the movies anymore or what I did. Whether I'm a cinematographer or a director or an editor, it doesn't matter. It's just a creator of certain kind of energies. We can call it inspiration, maybe.

0:58Kwan Pun Leung:Welcome to In the Studio from the BBC World Service, the series that takes us inside the minds of artists as they create new work. I'm Shan Ng. In this programme, I'm following Kuan Poon Leung, the cinematographer behind some of Hong Kong cinema's most celebrated films, including In the Mood for Love, named Best Film of the Century, which was co-shoots with Christopher Doyle and Mark Lee Ping-Bing. And 2046, also shot with Doyle and Lai Yiu-Fei, for which they won Best Cinematographer at both the Hong Kong Film Awards and the New York Film Critics Circle Awards.

1:44Kwan Pun Leung:I've known Quan for many years. He's very different from most cinematographers I know. Quiet, gentle, deeply attentive. His image reflects that. Poetic, restrained, sensitive. And at the heart of his work is a belief that filmmaking means responding to the world as it is. Working with nature, not controlling it. Whatever he sees on location, he embraces. I'm following Kwan in the making of his latest project.

2:19Kwan Pun Leung:In May 2025, Kwan is shooting a music video for one of Hong Kong and Taiwan's biggest musical artists, Joaquin Chow.

2:29Shan Ng:This is a music video project, Laisi Hwa Bian.

2:33Kwan Pun Leung:His English title is Fragile Love.

2:37Shan Ng:The song is about lace. It's the lace metaphorically expressing the softness and the romantic feeling of a female. The artist, he's a male singer, but he's very good at expressing himself through a female perspective.

3:00Kwan Pun Leung:Kwan and his crew are filming on the streets at night, and a member of the crew sits on the track, moving in circle, as he shines a big light onto the wall.

3:11Shan Ng:When I look at the set, there is a tree, that's nice. But then when the light was moving, the branches and the leaves, the shadows, all moving along the wall, behind the corner of the street where the ladies stand. So I suggested to take a shot of that shadow and it becomes the opening of the scene. The ending, I planned it at the beginning. I did not plan it. That's how things work together. I planned something, but I did not plan everything. I let things evolve along the way. The shadows all moving along the wall. It's like a symbol of beauty that is always around us, but we are not realizing.

4:00Kwan Pun Leung:Kwan is talking with his lighting crew. He's saying it's too much light. He's looking for something more impressionistic. In another area, Juan was asking for an extra lamp to access moonlight because he found it too dark to see the shape and colour of the object he's trying to capture.

4:26Shan Ng:Life is full of light and shadow. Without the shadow, you cannot appreciate the light. But too much light, you find the image very boring. Camera is how I see the world, and lighting is how light and darkness work in my life. At the moment, I'm going through a little bit of shadow here, even though it looks quite smiley. What do you use to do? I'm using auto. I have manual. I use auto. I think it's dreaming and abstract.

5:00Kwan Pun Leung:I catch up with his camera assistant, Jefferson Yeap, On set, when Kwan was busy directing. Because you know that Kwan previously famous Wong Kawa is Ophi. So you can see some style or some elements, like it's beyond like the wet, very humid role. The style is so-called old Hong Kong fashion. So how's your relationship with Kwan? Because I studied in the Chinese University of Hong Kong. I took a course in cinematography. It came for lecturing. So the relationship is like teacher and students. He takes care of me very, very, very much. Give him his camera and then teach me how to operate it, how to do tricks.

5:47Kwan Pun Leung:Could you tell us a bit about this production? During this shooting, you can enjoy how the director like guide the lights and the shooting. And I feel very impressed. Kuan is very talented and experienced in controlling the lights, how the lights come and how the shadows and the lights can cooperate with each other. I learned a lot from it.

6:15Kwan Pun Leung:He's talking with his crew about aperture. I think to be a cinematographer, one needs to be artistic but also technical. Kuan definitely has both.

6:28Shan Ng:I see cinematography not only skills and not only techniques. They are the basics. The more important thing is the energies. The energies merging together and then playing with it, become an orchestra.

6:48Kwan Pun Leung:So maybe that's your definition of cinematography, an orchestra of energy.

6:53Shan Ng:I just try to get in touch with my feelings. Not only the script or the dialogues, I will imagine all the elements, like the words and the location into my brain, and then I try to immerse myself into it and then get some image out of it. And then it's, how is the feeling?

7:20Shan Ng:One of the filmmakers I like best, Tarkovsky. It's how he captures the existence of things, like water drops. He somehow captures the existence of that thing in front of you, the image.

7:38Kwan Pun Leung:Kwan often references Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky, a director who believed cinema is to create an environment that taps into the viewer's subconscious, a sensibility Kwan shared. Cinematography can be a work of subconscious.

8:00Shan Ng:I study hypnopsis. There's so much similarities between cinematography and hypnopsis. In a feature film, there are a lot of dialogue for the actors. Whenever they use words, something becomes very concrete, very detailed or accurate. But visual is something ambiguous. It's like setting up a background or an atmosphere for the audience to step into the world of the story and start to believe it is real. Of course, it is fake. But like hypnosis, you are giving the client hints, different guidance in words in order to bring out their subconscious feelings, which they're not aware of. like hints to their background of their mind.

8:55Shan Ng:So it helps the audience to start believing in what's happening in the screen. And once they believe in it, they are living with the character. The character is like a friend of them and they have empathy or feeling as if they are going through the journey with the character. There are so many similarities, but the use of hints is not words in cinematography. We use light, shadow, movement and colour.

9:28Kwan Pun Leung:As I watch Kwan at work, I start to see how he weaves together every shadow, every reflection, every movement to pull the audience into the world he's creating. He brings this to life on me with a scene from 2046, Wong Kar-wai's sequel to In the Mood for Love, starring two of Hong Kong cinema's most iconic actors. Tony Leung and Fei Wang.

10:21Shan Ng:actors that are in the world was. For example, Tony Leung tries to persuade her to call him so that she finds that her boyfriend in Japan is with another person at this moment. Very simple shot. I remember that. I took only one or two takes. Then the director says, okay, because the magic happens. I know approximately how it will happen through the mirror, but I did not know the exact timing. It's all about a collision and the spark comes out. So is the cinematography teach me how to make me first, not me being the total control.

11:04Kwan Pun Leung:What is it like working with the energy and skills of the director like Wong Ka Wai?

11:10Shan Ng:He doesn't like to tell you everything. He wants your contribution. He wants something out of his expectation. And that's why he's famous of not following the script, let things happen, like doing a collage. Stage director needs a lot of rehearsal in the rehearsal room. But for Wong Kar-wai, I always say that the negatives is like a rehearsal room.

11:37Kwan Pun Leung:Expensive rehearsal room. This year, a short film Kwan Ko shoot over 20 years ago, In the Mood for Love 2001, a spin-off from the original, was released in cinema for the first time. Kwan reflects on what it was like to see this work resurface after so many years. This is not the future we were promised. Like, how about that for a tagline for the show? From the BBC, this is The Interface, the show that explores how tech is rewiring your week and your world. This isn't about quarterly earnings or about tech reviews. It's about what technology is actually doing to your work and your politics, your everyday life.

12:23Kwan Pun Leung:And all the bizarre ways people are using the internet. Listen on BBC.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

12:33Kwan Pun Leung:Yes.

12:35Shan Ng:It is hard for me to describe the feelings, but I saw the film coming out. Well, I never did a production that has been buried in underground for 20-some years, and then suddenly it comes alive again when not as many people are coming to the cinema any longer these days. As you know, many cinemas and theatres are closing in Hong Kong, and then not many people are still chasing after Wong Kar-wai's big name. And then it's like all the years has passed. I could hardly tell you the feeling.

13:15Kwan Pun Leung:I grew up watching Kwan's films. When In the Mood for Love came out, it blew my mind. Now this short film has resurfaced. It's surreal. Maggie Chung, Tony Leung looked exactly as they did 25 years ago, caught in a nostalgic black-and-white corner store scene. The visual style and storyline are still somewhat familiar. But time has passed. For Kwan, seeing it coming back to life was a moving experience.

13:48Shan Ng:When I came out from the cinema theatre, I was planning to do other things before leaving Hong Kong. But then I changed my mind. I suddenly decided that I should go to visit my parents and my sister in the cemetery. That's what I did. Maybe you do not understand exactly how I feel about you. can somehow have a glimpse of what I experienced.

14:16Kwan Pun Leung:Back to the set, I'm catching up with Kwan's producer, Opo Chui. First thing is how to control the budget. So even though I had quite a lot of budget this time, we try to remind him every time, hey, this is only five minute music video, it's not a movie. But Kwan is trying to make movie. So that's why he tried to invite some of his friends to help. One of them is Penny Chai. She's also a Golden Horse Award winner, the art director. This is only a music video, but because of Quan, the relationship and friendship, we are using award-winning filmmakers to work on this production. What's your experience working with Quan?

15:00Kwan Pun Leung:I love Quan over 20 years. He's a shy guy, not talk too much, but he has a lot of ideas. He's artistic, right? He's very diverse and he understands every position. He likes to use everything around him. I think that's why people like working with him because he helps the director or the acting a lot. He's very open. When he sees something on set, he has an instant feeling. Out and back, and action! Opal, is there any memorable moments about Kwan's interaction with actors, directors or crew members you can share with us? Karina is my very good friend. So I remember her first movie, July Rhapsody.

15:51Kwan Pun Leung:Karina Lam, the three-time Golden Horse Award-winning actress, whose debut film, July Rhapsody, was a film widely regarded as one of the best work of modern Hong Kong cinema. When was the cinematographer, there was a scene that Karina expected to cry, but she needed some time to get ready. I remember there was this one particular scene where it's between me and Jackie Chan. We got off the bus and I had to cry. I remember knowing that it was a crying scene was very stressful and I felt a lot of pressure and I couldn't do it. Later on, I asked if I could have a little break and I went across the street from that bus stop and there's this wall.

16:33Kwan Pun Leung:I was holding the wall with my two arms and there was this pile of fallen leaves. So I remember I was kicking the leaves and you could hear the leaves crunch. And Kwan observed the shadow from the trees and the light reflecting to the wall that is Karina was. So he discussed with the director and her. He suggested to roll the camera first and then when Karina get ready, they just film right away. I was very beat up about not being able to cry on spot. So I was doing this for quite some minutes. And then Jackie Jones very quietly just came in and he was saying the lines for that scene. And I responded to him.

17:18Kwan Pun Leung:And then Jackie responded back and I replied. And then all of a sudden I heard, cut. And then that's when I realized, oh, they shot the scene so effortlessly. I just realized, oh, this is such a beautiful moment. If it wasn't for Aguan to be this observant, it wouldn't have happened the way that it did. So this is one of the examples, how Kwan's sensitivities and understanding to capture the moment and timing, that is very helpful, especially for the first time editing. Were there any other moments in the film shot by Kwan that you particularly remember? I remember the scenes in the classroom where Jackie had his back towards us because he was writing on the blackboard.

18:04Kwan Pun Leung:I was sketching him. So I could feel that camera movement slowly tracking in. Wang doesn't just look. He really focuses on you and he gives you that gaze through his camera. I felt empowered for the fact that he had to track in. As an actress, I just feel like you love that kind of attention. Even though me and I Guan, we don't really talk on set, there's like this mutual language between me and I Guan. This is the documentary from the BBC World Service. You're listening to In the Studio, and we're following the creative process of cinematographer Kwan Poon Lang as he creates the music video, Fragile Love.

18:47Shan Ng:This is the first shot of the music video. You will see an impressionist kind of image because I merged the traffic lights, which is blurred onto a shot of a lady wearing a trench coat. I'm walking on a cold, rainy night. The story starts from there.

19:06Kwan Pun Leung:Two days after the shoot, Kwon is in a tiny editing room working through hours of footage with his assistant. He hangs a black cloth on the wall and points the camera at it.