Entry for Golden Goblet Awards | The Grace Ends: Between choices, the power of persistence will matter

This afternoon, the entry film for the Golden Goblet Awards of this SIFF “The Grace Ends”, which is produced by Wang Xiaoshuai and directed by Wu Di, held a press conference. Director Wu Di will make an appearance with the leading players Tu Men, Wu Xiaoliang and Ni Hongjie.

Wu Di is a long-term photographer partner of Wang Xiaoshuai. He had taken the shots of “Shanghai Dreams”, “In Love We Trust” and “Chongqing Blues”, etc. Two years ago, Wang Xiaoshuai, who was far away in Italy, called Wu Di, “He gave me the script of “The Grace Ends” and asked me to direct it. I, though delighted, was surprised.” Then, Wu Di proposed several adaptation directions, and Wang Xiaoshuai went straight to the restaurant from the airport to meet him after returning home. “We started talking about the story the time we met. I shared my understanding of the script and the direction of adaptation, and we reached the consensus immediately.”

As for his role changing from photographer to director, Wu Di said with a smile, “Formerly, I can follow other’s direction, but now there is no one directing me”. He also extended gratitude to Wang Xiaoshuai for his full support. “Not long after the filming started, He came to the scene and checked the costume with a costume guide, pointing out that the clothes were not worn off enough. So, they exchanged the clothes with local villagers. In fact, these are all trivial things, but he takes care of them all. And I was really touched and will remember the support he has given to me. Director Wang is a good producer, and he had helped us complete the entire filming process.”

The Grace Ends” brings together excellent performers such as Tu Men, Wu Xiaoliang, Ni Hongjie. The old friend of SIFF, Tu Men, starred in the film as an old policeman. He believes that what this role wants to convey to the audience is to “believe in the power of persistence”, “The old policeman had regrets over his youth, but with persistence, he made up for all of them in his life. I rarely praise the films I acted in, but after watching the whole film today, it really exceeds my expectation.”

Young actor Wu Xiaoliang contributed an outstanding performance to “The Longest Day in Chang'an”. It is precisely because of this film that producer Wang Xiaoshuai invited him as the leading actor in “The Grace Ends”. In the film, Wu Xiaoliang has to capture the transition from “murderer” to “monk”, which is extremely challenging. “It takes 4 hours to put on makeup every day, but I don't want to remind myself that I played two roles in any way special.” Wu Xiaoliang said, “I will not think about how to behave as a ‘monk’. Also, after changing the makeup, I will not think about how to play Li Baocai either. Because after putting on makeup, I will believe that I am Li Baocai or a monk. It’s difficult to balance between two roles, but I will try to convince myself that I am the one I play, and perform in the film with this faith.”

Ni Hongjie appears only in a few scenes in the film, but she has played a role vital to the development of the plot. “Without me, the story would not be true. I am the only one indispensable.” And she has interpreted the whole life of the role through a few performance: “Her eyes used to be shining with dreams, but finally dulled with sufferings. I get something else from her. There are no magic wand in life. If you reach the destination without this experience, you will really miss the splendor of life. So, every step in life matters.”