The Hong Kong film “Fly Me to the Moon” was selected for the “Hong Kong Panorama” section of the 23rd New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF) in 2024. The film had its North American premiere on July 19 and 21, with director, writer, and actress Sasha Chuk, along with producer Lee Jun-suk, attending a post-screening discussion to share the stories behind the movie’s production.
“Fly Me to the Moon” is a work of Sasha Chuk, a promising new director who wrote, directed, and starred in the film. Produced by Kwan Kam Pang and Lee Jun-suk, the film is based on Chuk’s upbringing and adapted from a short story of the same name, exploring themes of new immigrants, identity, and parent-child relationships. The story follows the two sisters, Lin Ziyuan and Ziqu, who grew up in Hong Kong after moving from Hunan, depicting their experiences in 1997, 2007, and 2017, showcasing various moments in their family’s life in Hong Kong. Their drug-addicted father, Lin Juemin (played by Wu Kang-ren), is a frequent visitor to prison due to his theft and erratic behavior.
Ziyuan and Ziqu once viewed their father as an idol but as they grew older and gained autonomy, they rebelled against him, yearning to escape the family yet finding it challenging to break free from their father’s influence, with their experiences reflecting the imprints left by their childhood.
The director, Sasha Chuk, revealed that most of the story is fictional, with only the childhood parts based on her own experiences. For instance, the scene of riding a glass elevator in the film, which she particularly cherished, was inspired by her first sweet moments in Hong Kong with her family. She recounted her fond childhood memories from arriving in Hong Kong in 1997 and the multiple appearances of McDonald’s scenes in the movie that left a lasting impression from her initial days in the city, even showcasing the 90s themed toys from childhood entertainment centers in the film.
In the film, an essential role is played by Lin Juemin, the father who smuggled himself from Hunan to Hong Kong, portrayed by Taiwanese actor Wu Kang-ren, a recipient of the Best Actor award at the 60th Golden Horse Awards for “Rich Young Master.” Wu’s portrayal of Lin Juemin, spanning from his youth to old age, presents the challenge of embodying a common man’s life.
At the post-screening discussion at the New York Asian Film Festival, Sasha Chuk praised Wu Kang-ren’s dedication and professionalism in portraying the character: “Stars of his caliber usually try to minimize filming time, but not him. He arrived in Hong Kong a month before filming to observe patients outside drug rehabilitation centers and the lives of elderly people at Sham Shui Po Park, learning their mannerisms to enhance his performance. His portrayal in the film is truly surprising.” To excel in the role, Wu put in considerable effort to practice Cantonese and Hunanese dialect, dedicating at least four months to language study and holding weekly virtual rehearsals with the director.
Moreover, despite a significant amount of Hunanese dialogue in the film, none of the actors were familiar with the dialect except Sasha Chuk. Producer Lee Jun-suk praised Chuk’s dedication, as she meticulously recorded every line of dialogue, making it easily accessible for the actors to find their character’s recorded lines. Chuk believed that the actors displayed a natural aptitude for language, and their performances in the movie met her satisfaction.
The two sisters from Hunan in the film always maintain a sense of ambiguity towards Hong Kong, constantly questioning their sense of identity and origins. In a poignant scene, the elderly father meets Ziyuan before returning to Hunan, leaving her with his phone number for the first time, not realizing that it would be their last encounter. Sasha Chuk reflected, stating, “I really liked the suggestion made by art director Zhang Shuping for the final meeting between Ziyuan and her father, depicting the bittersweetness of every goodbye, never knowing if there will be another.”
Sasha Chuk mentioned that the film’s title “Fly Me to the Moon” and the names of the two sisters, Ziyuan and Ziqu, were inspired by the Song Dynasty poet Su Shi’s “Prelude to Water Melody,” emphasizing the transient nature of life’s joys and sorrows, likening it to the lunar phases. She believed that the poem epitomized the central theme of the story, highlighting the imperfections of life as its essence.
“Fly Me to the Moon” was Hong Kong’s first awarded feature film project in 2020 and was nominated for the “Asian Future” section at the 36th Tokyo International Film Festival in 2023. It also received a nomination for “Best Adapted Screenplay” at the 60th Golden Horse Awards and won the “NETPAC Award” from the Asian Film Promotion Alliance, the “FIPRESCI Award” from the International Federation of Film Critics, as well as the “Best Screenplay” at the 30th Hong Kong Film Critics Society, and was nominated for the competition section of the 26th Udine Far East Film Festival.