ChannelNews Asia has an article in which the directors discuss their attempt to bring the uber-popular Initial D franchise to the medium of live action cinema.
One part I found kind of funny (at least when you compare it to Hollywood finance standards) was their excitement and concern over the large monitary investment being put into production:
"There is definitely pressure stemming from the expectations of investors and audiences," Initial D director Alan Mak said. After all, the film boasts a star-studded cast and has a sizeable production budget of US$12 million ($20 million).
Apparently the directors wanted to play it safe by going with actors that they were familiar with.
"I choose actors whose personalities are close to those of their roles," said Lau. And what better pool to select from than one with actors they've worked with before. "We already know their characters and behaviour, so it's easier to do casting and bring out better performances in them," said Mak. "After all, many directors always work with the same actors."
And they even talked about the wrecked cars. I heard they had totalled like 7 86's during the filming -- though that may be exaggerated.
"All the stunts had to be real and stay true to the spirit of the comic."
Hence, it was inevitable that car crashes occurred on the set, with Jay Chou and Chapman To having first-hand experiences. Thankfully, nothing nasty happened to them.
"These young guys like to speed," said Mak. "We told them to slow down, but they still raced along in the end."
But it was all in the name of producing a good film.
It might have been a risky shoot, with an element of danger, said Lau." But it was the only way for viewers to enter the world of car racing, and we're glad to have recreated it on screen for them."
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