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On May 8, the press was granted a visit to the set of Grand Master Yip Man on a Shanghai soundstage, where filming of Butterfly Lovers/Butterfly Swords, starring Wu Zun and Charlene Choi as the re-incarnations of the star-cross lovers, with choreography by Ching Siu Tung, is also going on nearby.

They were filming a scene whereby Yip Man (Donnie Yen) goes shopping with his wife Zhang Yong Cheng (Lynn Hung) and son Yip Chun (Li Ze) in the bustling streets of Foshan. However, owing to unexpected drizzle, filming was affected. At one end of a street is the congregation of all kind of martial arts schools. The set will be altered at a later stage to give a worn-down, grim and dismal look following Japanese invasion and occupation.

Gordon Lam plays constable Li Zhao and while enforcing his duty, he inevitably comes into conflicts with Yip Man. It's Li Zhao's duty as a constable to ensure law and order, but those martial arts practitioners are constantly taking on each other. Thus, they are a perennial threat to public security as well as a headache to the police force. In other words, Gordon Lam's character per se may be a wet blanket to the audience for potentially disrupting any matches.

More photos at: Sina. Here are the videos from the set visit at Sina: Shopping, Interviews with Donnie Yen, Wilson Yip, Lynn Hung, Gordon Lam

-- Grandmaster Yip Man --

Videos from May 7 Shanghai press conference featuring Donnie Yen interview with some film footages from Sohu/Sina/QQ: A, B, C, D, E, F

During the press conference, director Wilson Yip explains the reasons for focusing on Yip Man's life in between the 1930s to 1940s.

As Yip Man came from an affluent family, he could afford the time and energy to engross himself in the studies and research of martial arts. He did not have the cares of the world on his shoulders, was not particularly concerned about anything around him. He's a refined, well-cultivated person.

But at the age of 30, Yip Man's family underwent severe changes. At that time, Foshan fell to the Japanese. His tranquil and quiet life was shattered, his family became impoverished, and he was at his lowest ebb. It's at this point that Yip Man began to realise to importance of his family and his friends, and he started to take a completely different outlook and perception.

Out of love for the people as well as his continual and dawning realisation of the essence of wushu, Yip Man gradually snapped out of the limitations as a martial arts fanatic, and amidst countless battles and struggles without any ego, took on the new onus of restoring the flag of the nation.

 
"To me, this period marks a significant turning point in his life, at the same time, it is a detailed portrayal of the values of Yip Man wushu spirit, as such, our movie is based largely on this portion of his life." explains Wilson Yip.  Sohu | Photos: TheFirst.cn, MTime

-- Grandmaster Yip Man --

 Press conference for 《一代宗师·叶问》 Grandmaster Yip Man (tentative), budgeted at around 80m yuan, was held on May 7 afternoon in Shanghai, attended by producer Raymond Wong, director Wilson Yip, the cast Donnie Yen, Simon Yam, Gordon Lam, Lynn Hung, Xing Yu, etc. Grandmaster Yip is the fourth collaboration between the "golden team" Wilson Yip and Donnie Yen.

 Both Wilson Yip and Donnie Yen indicate that they're taking a more down-to-earth approach in portraying on the screen the life of this legendary grandmaster of martial arts as well as his rich spiritual world, as well as presenting a scintillating, fresh martial arts choreography, courtesy of martial arts choreographer Sammo Hung.

-- Yip Man --

After busy shooting on the set of 'Yip Man' for the entire May Day holiday, Xing Yu has finally completed his role as Martial Zealot Lin by the following day. He wishes everyone a happy May Day and says that he has benefited tremendously from working with Sammo Hung, Donnie Yen and Wilson Yip again, his acting and screen fighting ability being taken to the next levels. Xing Yu would be resting for a few days before joining another film. He says he'd continue to work hard and strive to present more quality works.  Xing Yu Blog

--Yip Man, Painted Skin --

On the set of Yip Man, actor Donnie Yen was seen busying himself, running about, and giving instructions intently, such as completely immersing himself in admonishing a kid, while martial arts director Sammo Hung appeared to be more relaxed, seated comfortably in a chair.  NetEase

A press conference was held on April 29 for Donnie Yen's other film Painted Skin remake, during which contracts were signed with 10 major Chinese cinema operators regarding its distribution in China. The release date was announced as September 28. Donnie Yen says that he has never approached a role from the perspective of love, and it's a breakthrough for him in terms of acting. He says that while Painted Skin doesn't contain much action, the characters are very fresh. Video: Sina

Numerous pics from "Yip Man" may be found at the blogs of cast members Zhou Zhong and Xing Yu.

-- Yip Man --

On Saturday afternoon, on the set of 'Yip Man', under martial arts choreographer's Sammo Hung's coaching, Li Qi Long and Fan Siu Wong begin going through the moves for a duel between them. Li Qi Long is training very hard, trying to get himself fully prepared. This scene will be shot in a day or two, and Li Qi Long is set to bring about an exciting bout between Fan Siu Wong and him. Following this might be the exchange between Li Qi Long and Donnie Yen.  Li Qi Long's Blog

-- Yip Man --

-- Yip Man -- 

When at a promotional event on March 25, Donnie Yen was wearing sunglasses. It turns out that there was a gash on the area around Donnie Yen's left eye, "When rehearsing an action scene in 'Yip Man' whereby I fight against a group of people, an axe wielder accidentally slashed the side near my left eye. Blood was gushing out."
 
 Donnie Yen was worried that he would be disfigured. Fortunately, the doctor on the set immediately used ice bag to staunch bleeding. When he was rushed to the hospital, he needed no stitches, and filming won't be affected. When he called his wife, he told her that his eye was nearly blinded.
 
 Donnie Yen says that 'Yip Man' is the film he is most concerned about, for Yip Man was the mentor of his idol Bruce Lee. He says he has spent months to get himself ready for this role, training in Wing Chun, and learning more about Yip Man through his two sons, he has even stayed in his hometown for quite a long time. He says that filming hasn't formally begun, he's in Shanghai doing preparation works and rehearsals.
 
 Because of the countless injuries he has sustained over the years, Donnie Yen sighs, saying that after a few years, after shooting a few more films that he is partial to, he'd retire to the backstage. Instead of acting, he'd be working behind the scenes as producer, martial arts director, before the audience grows tired of him as he gets older. He wants to retire as an actor when he's at his peaks.  Shanghai Youth Daily | Photo: Sohu

-- Yip Man --

Zhang Yan Bin, casting director for Yip Man, which began production on March 4, says that casting for the production, which took three months, is settled; his job with the production is done and he's proceeding to other projects. He also mentioned earlier regarding looking for someone to fill up the role of adolescent Bruce Lee and teaching lead child actor(s) acting. Below is the cast list.