Anthony Chen Just Completed Shooting His First Mainland Chinese Feature Starring Zhou Dongyu, Liu Haoran And Qu Chuxiao - 8days Skip to main content

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Anthony Chen Just Completed Shooting His First Mainland Chinese Feature Starring Zhou Dongyu, Liu Haoran And Qu Chuxiao

The film is called ‘The Breaking Ice’ and was shot in Yanji, China.

Anthony Chen Just Completed Shooting His First Mainland Chinese Feature Starring Zhou Dongyu, Liu Haoran And Qu Chuxiao

Singaporean filmmaker Anthony Chen, the award-winning director of Ilo Ilo and Wet Season, has finished shooting his first Mainland Chinese feature The Breaking Ice, Variety reported.

Written and directed by Chen, The Breaking Ice stars Zhou Dongyu (Better Days), Liu Haoran (Detective Chinatown) and Qu Chuxiao (The Wandering Earth).

Shot in Yanji, a border city in northeastern China, follows — per Variety — the blossoming relationship among three young adults in their 20s, set over a short few days in the winter snow.

Chen told the publication, “It was a very memorable experience especially for someone who has grown up in tropical Singapore adjusting to minus 20 weather.

“I shot rain in Wet Season, snow and ice in The Breaking Ice, next I would love to work with lots of sunshine. I was blessed with an amazing cast and crew who gave so much to the film.

“By the time I was out of quarantine, we only had three weeks to prep an entire feature. But we pulled it off with everyone’s dedication. It was a leap of faith for all of us.”

Chen has previously directed Zhou in his segment of the pandemic anthology The Year of the Everlasting Storm, which premiered at Cannes last year and was released commercially in Singapore in October.

When 8days.sg contacted the London-based Chen via Whatsapp, he won’t say when principal photography on The Breaking Ice started, except it happened “literally this winter”.

​​​​​​​Meanwhile, Chen is gearing up for his first English-language film, which is expected to commence production next month. He’s tightlipped about the project, but says more information will be announced soon.

Chen also gives an update on We Are All Strangers, the third chapter in his ‘Growing Up’ trilogy, which also includes 2013’s Ilo Ilo and 2019’s Wet Season, reuniting him with actors Yeo Yann Yann and Koh Jia Ler.

If all things go according to plan, Chen hopes to start shooting “end of the year” when he and the cast, notably Yeo, are available. Yeo is set to star in the Disney+ series American Born Chinese, alongside Michelle Yeoh, Daniel Wu and Chin Han; cameras are slated to roll later this month.

On the two-time Golden Horse Award-winning actress’ recent Hollywood projects (she’s also in the Tom Hardy-led Netflix thriller Havoc), Chen says, “I’m so happy she is going places and pursuing those opportunities.”

The Breaking Ice currently has no release date.

Photos: Canopy Pictures, TPG News/Click Photos

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