Film director Yonfan
Veteran film director Yonfan has seen his share of controversy —he directed Daniel Wu and Stephen Fung in the gay scenes in “Bishonen” (1998) and cast attention-seeking socialite Teresa Chang as a S&M queen in “Color Blossoms” (2004). This month he is releasing “Prince of Tears,” a film based on his childhood memories of Taiwan.
I was born in Wuhan in 1947. Then in 1951 we relocated to Taiwan because my father got a job to teach in a university. I am the youngest kid.
I hung out with college kids even when I was around 8 years old. I grew up on a college campus so I didn’t really have a choice.
They liked having me around because I was their love messenger—a crying college girl asked me to pass a note to her boyfriend one day. I did it and they got back together. Aw. In return, they taught me photography.
When I was 9, I started to take the bus by myself into town to watch movies.
I only saw black and white films back then. My favorites were Jack Lemmon’s “Days of Wine and Roses” and “The Apartment.”
Of course, I was the only kid in the cinema because black and white films were not as popular as the color ones. Seeing black and white films made me feel superior.
