Interview with director Ding Ziguang ｜ Why did Liu Yifei choose ＂To a Windy Place＂？

1905 movie network feature What do you do when your life slows down, you say goodbye to stressful work, and you don’t have your phone to bother you?Go to sleep or do something else? The hit drama "Go to the Windy Place" may provide a good reference answer.

Compared to many current cool dramas, the opening mode of this work has slowed down a lot, especially for many viewers who are used to the "short and fast" pace of short videos, "Go to a Windy Place" is more gentle and an unexpected experience.

Just like the title of the film, the slow pace of "Go to a Windy Place" is like a person basking in the sun and feeling the breeze in the afternoon. Of course, some audiences feel that the rhythm is too slow for this lazy feeling.

In the face of controversy, Ding Ziguang, the director of "Going to a Windy Place", gave an exclusive interview to the 1905 Film Network, bluntly saying that the drama was an unconventional creation, hoping to give everyone a "comfortable" feeling.

In order to achieve the goal of "comfort", Ding Ziguang also requires everything in the script, performance, camera movement and camera to be "real, natural and comfortable".

It was just the comfort shown in the picture, but it was another experience behind the scenes. From the real-life construction to waiting for a sunny afternoon, the crew of "Go to a Windy Place" waited for the light, the clouds, and the wind during their 162 days in Yunnan.

As the director Ding Ziguang said, "Although the pace of’Going to a Windy Place ‘is slow, there are rich and delicate emotions and information in the work, and you can find a lot of connections and designs in it."

01

In 2019, Ding Ziguang was busy filming "In the Name of Family", and at this time, Guanxinqing Studio had formed a stable and tacit team of producers, directors, and screenwriters.

At that time, the filmmakers proposed to make a life-streaming drama series that returned from the city to the countryside. Everyone agreed that this was an unconventional and novel theme in China, allowing them to express their observations and feelings over the past few years, including the mental health problems of urban people, rural revitalization, left-behind children, empty nesters, and the dissemination of traditional culture.

Therefore, "Go to a Windy Place" began to create.

In the early stage of the preparation, the creative team had already anticipated these problems, "But after we really got into the creation, we didn’t think about the pressure at all. We just thought about how to present what was in our minds without too many distractions. And this is what we feel and want to do, and this pressure is also a kind of motivation."

In recent years, Ding Ziguang has filmed many urban dramas with a lifestyle. "Next Stop is Happiness" and "In the Name of Family" have received constant attention, but in comparison, "Going to a Windy Place" does not have too strong theatrical conflicts. "How to make the audience look at it comfortably is what I thought about the most during the shooting process.

Of course, "To a Windy Place" did not remain dull from beginning to end. The first two episodes of the story had a great difference in perception, from urban oppression to pastoral relaxation.In order to convey this sense of contrast, Ding Ziguang has incorporated many details into his creation.

At the beginning of the first episode, the story focuses on Xu Hongdou (played) in Beijing, which is the living situation of many young migrant workers. They repeat the same things every day, going to work, getting off work, two points and one line between home and company, and occasionally gathering with friends. However, as they get older, there are fewer and fewer friends around them, but the relationship is getting stronger and stronger. It’s just that in life, there will inevitably be a sense of loneliness in living in a big city.

Ding Ziguang chose Xu Hongdou’s home next to Guomao, "Outside her window is Guomao, showing the contrast between the prosperity of the city and her loneliness as an individual, but the prosperity has nothing to do with her." In the second episode, the camera turned and Xu Hongdou came to the village, and the whole state changed, from individual to group, the surrounding area slowly became lively, and the rhythm slowed down.

Not only did the image change, Ding Ziguang also put in a lot of small thoughts, "The audience can feel it, and the bgm (background music) in the first two episodes has also been processed a lot."

02

During the writing stage of the script, the team turned the camera on Yunnan and experienced the local life twice.

After setting the filming location, someone suggested whether to set up a scene in the shed, but the director insisted very much, hoping to make a real shot. The team repeatedly failed to find a suitable place, so Ding Ziguang decided to set up a scene on the spot.

Therefore, the crew found an ancient village on the ancient tea-horse road, "It is an ancient village on the ancient tea-horse road. We have built a small courtyard in the ruins to repair the ancient, including our choice of wood, stone, and even the roof. It is from the local thrift market."

In addition to restoring Yunnan’s style, the core culture has also not been left behind.

As we all know, there are many ethnic minorities in Yunnan, as well as a lot of intangible cultural heritage. The series "Go to a Windy Place" tries to show it as much as possible, especially the clothes of many villagers, which are the customs of the Bai people. "When we created, we unanimously decided to show the rich culture of our country to everyone. Because many people have not been to Yunnan, I hope that through this play, everyone can feel the charm of that place."

Traditional cultures like wood carving, tie-dyeing, and even making tea were all important elements that the team was very determined to put into the script, including the utensils, tea sets, and rice bowls they observed, which "ended up being rubbed into our play."

Everything is ready, only "Dongfeng" is owed. This sentence seems to be more direct in "Go to a Windy Place".

The series officially started filming for a total of 162 days, but during this time, the crew was always "competing" with the weather.

"I’m not exaggerating, it really rained for 100 days during the shooting period, and it was cloudy, as well as all kinds of extreme hail winds." Even Ding Ziguang, a native of Beijing, lamented that he had never seen such a big hail. "I feel like I have seen all the weather in Yunnan. We have experienced four major transitions, and we have snatched out the few blue skies, white clouds and the sun at that time."

Ding Ziguang said with a smile that every time the camera was turned on, we felt very comfortable inside and outside the camera. But as soon as the card was called, the crew quickly dealt with various problems, "We just want to ensure the presentation of the next shot, so that the audience can feel comfortable when watching it."

03

Since the official announcement of "Go to a Windy Place" to go LIVE, in addition to the issue of drama constantly being discussed, the cast cannot be ignored.

After all, this is the first modern drama starring Liu Yifei, and it has always been high in terms of topic and acting skills.

In 2020, people often talk about various characters during the creative process. Once, the producer mentioned that Liu Yifei’s temperament is very compatible with this pastoral drama, and the play is also very good.

But after all, it was still in the early stages of creation, and it was not really decided. Until the script was almost finished, everyone still felt that the previous proposal was feasible, so they found Liu Yifei’s team with the script.

Although the other party had never starred in a modern drama before, Ding Ziguang was very confident, "I think this theme is very novel and unique, she should like it."

Before finalizing the cooperation, Ding Ziguang and Liu Yifei met and chatted, "She likes Xu Hongdou very much, and thinks this kind of life drama is very challenging. She is interested and worried, but I told her that she will definitely be able to act Xu Hongdou. I think her performance is very detailed and real."

Facts proved that Liu Yifei and Xu Hongdou had a very high degree of compatibility. "Now the audience can also see that she really acted very well, very comfortable and delicate."

The team hopes that the whole work can show Xu Hongdou’s state of mind, especially the living conditions from Beijing to Yunnan. "When you see our first shot, she wakes up earlier than the alarm clock. After arriving in Yunnan, she wakes up automatically at first, and then slowly becomes late."

Before filming began, Ding Ziguang asked Liu Yifei, "What would happen if you were in this situation yourself?" The other party said that when you are not looking at your phone, you will wander around. Therefore, in the play, Ding Ziguang put in a lot of Xu Hongdou’s slow pace of life and watered the flowers. "Anyway, Xu Hongdou doesn’t know what to do, just do whatever you want, and then get used to this rhythm."

"I asked her if she was feeling up." After getting a positive answer, "I’ll let her show it naturally, and then slowly feel it. After sleeping in this place a few times, she may not feel up."

As for the other lead actor, during the contact, the director found that he was particularly hot-blooded, in the second year of middle school, and did not follow the rules. "I think he is A Yao," and even did not forget to joke, "His skin color is just right."

Just as netizens commented, all the actors fit the characters of "Go to a Windy Place" very well, and every time the director looks at the actors’ performances behind the monitor, "The little details they give are accurate and surprising."

Perhaps, all the comforts that fit together are the sincerity that "Go to a Windy Place" wants to convey, "try to be yourself, feel, enjoy, and strive for life."