Rediscovering Missing Moments with Tsui Hark

To capture the best moments in the sea, special high-definition cameras were acquired from Panasonic while Yoshitaka Sakamoto and Tateo Yano were hired as director of photography and cinematographer.

On the experiences underwater, Tsui Hark says, "Initially, I find it hard to get used to it. After descending more than 10 metres, the water pressure was very strong, your ears started to feel the pressure, going deeper, you'd feel as if your head was exploding. The coach told me to relax myself. And gradually, after 2 hrs, everything became better."

Moving about on land and underwater are completely different things. One's speed and perception of depth would be affected. When underwater, the production could only communicate with hand signs, like which scene to shoot, what expressions to show, all these were discussed beforehand.

Sometimes, the distance was too far, it was impossible to see the hand signs. So, the production had to come up with other means of communicating. First, they used bells. But later, even the bell couldn't be heard, "We wanted to do a shoot from 200m, in between, we had 15 crew members to relay the signals to roll the camera or stop filming. Moreover, the relay members had to hold their breath when filming was going on, for lots of bubbles would be generated when they breathed out." 

What comes next? "Once we met with a very strong current, we were sloshed about in the sea, later, when we looked at the photographs, all of us were in a mess, it's as if everyone was flying in the water, imparting a wuxia-esque feel. So, I began to have the itch to do a wuxia film underwater." says Tsui Hark.  Guangzhong Daily, Shanghai Morning Post, Sina