MUDEDE: The cast in The Promise is international, or at least pan-Asian. Was there a financial reason for using actors from various countries? Meaning, it opens up, for the film, markets in Japan, Korea, and China.

You won't believe me if I said that it's not totally a commercial consideration. Yes, there is a commercial consideration on the one hand; but on the other, they're all very good for their parts. You know, judging from their previous work, you can see that they've done a very good job.

Was there a language problem during the filming? If so, how did you solve it?

We worked with interpreters on the set. When there was something I wanted to say to the actors, I went through the interpreter. But I don't think the language is the problem; we all understood the characters and so worked closely.

What was the source of the story?

The story is original but you know I did my research before I started to write it. I think I was influenced by some famous Chinese texts. For example, one famous thing is there was a man who could run with great energy, confidence. I used that story in the film. I was also largely influenced by the current situation in China because I hope those things, those themes about where China is at the moment, where Asia is today, can be recognized in the film.

What time and place is it set?

Actually, you know, it's a timeless story. The film is not like The Emperor and the Assassin. With that film, you needed to know something about Chinese history before you go and see it. But The Promise is a timeless story, so that's why the costumes, the designs are, at once, of ancient Asian times and of modern Asian times.

I'm fascinated by the fact that Chinese directors tend to use special effects—of which there are a lot in your film—like CGI technology, for recreating the past, whereas in the West, directors tend to use it to create the future. Is that a fair interpretation?

You are right. It seems like we use the high tech to recreate the world existing a long time ago. I wish that we could do something about the future, really.

This is your first martial-arts film. Was it easy to make?

You know, it's really tough. Because every shot uses these wires, it took a long time to do. A lot of times we'd spend a whole day where nothing happened. The martial arts are complicated stuff.

It's a beautiful film: the colors are pronounced and it's poetic and gorgeous.

I think it's good to have a cameraman like Peter Pau. He helped me a lot in terms of how to do the colors, to design the shots, and so on and so forth. We worked very closely.

Where was The Promise shot?

We shot it all over China. We started in the northern part of China, and then moved to Beijing, and then the east coast, and then we went to the southwestern part of China. We wanted to shot in the most beautiful locations available in China.

What is the present state of Chinese cinema?

I think American cinema is too strong. Hollywood films are too strong. I think the concentration of American films is too much.

Do you think America's too strong as a force in the marketplace?

In the marketplace, yes. Basically Hollywood films are dominating the market and that's the reality.