Justine Yeung: Still Perspectives 楊應琪: 電影定格

Chinese: ALBERT C.

english translation: jasmin yeunG

As featured in the Fête Chinoise edition 7: perspective 覺 ⋅ 渡

Photography are courtesy of Justine Yeung

《救火英雄》As the Light Goes Out, 2014

F

or a long time, many members of the Hong Kong film industry, both on and off screen, have moved to North America or constantly traveled between the two places for work, education, or simply in search of a better life. You can find them on film sets and post-production studios all over Hong Kong and Asia, while simultaneously making their mark in many North American film studios or international film festivals.

We asked one of these industry veterans, the Canadian-based Still Photographer Justine Yeung, to share her perspective, stories and personal recommendations for readers to discover more about this amazing and very specific genre of filmmaking.

image of justine yeung, underwater photogrpahy in progress

During her early years of study, Justine fell in love with Wong Kar-wai’s films. The book of photographs from Happy Together was her most prized possession. In fact, she was so inspired by the photos she saw in the book that she travelled to Iguazu Falls and the Chinatown of Buenos Aires in Argentina just to experience the settings for herself. Justine’s introduction to the Hong Kong film industry began with a summer job as a Photographer’s Assistant. After returning from school in New York, she got a job at renowned photographer Wing Shya’s studio. The legendary Shya, who studied Art and Design in Canada when he was young, was already very well established and sought-after at the time. He was Wong Kar-wai's designated photographer and their collaborations included the Hong Kong classics Happy Together, In the Mood for Love and 2046. At that time, Shya’s own studio, Shya-la-la Workshop, was the "Shaolin Temple" in the hearts of young photography students everywhere. His studio walls were covered with his works from Wong’s films; each photograph on its own has become an internationally-renowned work of art. It was at this studio that Justine’s career as a still photographer began — amazingly at the very place the Happy Together book that inspired her own journey was born too. In the years that followed, she learned the craft and worked on different advertising and music projects under the studio’s umbrella. Once she had paid her dues, Justine officially “graduated” from Shya’s training and went out on her own. At the time, she was one of the first females in this role and remains one of the few women in the industry, even today.

《寒戰》Cold War, 2012

Still photography is very demanding and challenging. The photographer must be invisible in the scene, yet be in the right place to capture the perfect moment of the actor's performance. It is not possible to use a flash, but additional soundproofing equipment like a silencer to reduce the shutter sound of the camera is a must. A still photographer must document the action and emotions happening in any given scene, highlighting important parts of the atmosphere and acting. The process has been described like this: “The photographer must breathe in sync with the actor and plunge into the heart of the character in order to intuit the actor’s next move. Absolute accuracy is required to press the shutter at the exact moment that will freeze important scenes, performances and critical moments forever in time.”

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Any given movie can produce up to two thousand stills, yet in the end, only ten or less are selected for public release. These photos become key assets when promoting the film. The best stills may also become that movie’s poster and are therefore required to capture the essence of the movie. She has worked on over thirty films that include: Cold War (2012), Overhead 2 (2011), Young Bruce Lee (2010), As the Light Goes Out (2014), Insanity (2014), Rigor Mortis (2013), Golden Chickensss (2014), 12 Golden Ducks (2015), Sword Master (2016), Finding Mr. Right 2 (2016), The Brink (2017) and Warriors of Future (2021). 

《北京遇上西雅圖2》Finding Mr. Right 2, 2016

Still photography requires skill, artistic cultivation, physical strength, imagination, and stamina for all the frequent travel. In the film The Brink starring Shawn Yue and Zhang Jin, a major scene was set during a terrible storm on a ship at nighttime. In order to shoot scenes underwater against artificial waves, Justine was required to get her diving certification. On the sci-fi action film Warriors of Future with Louis Koo, she had to attend all the pre-production meetings with the director and special effects team; this film took many years to complete due to all the intense visual effects. Justine’s work has been featured as the final movie poster for Overheard 2, Two Thumbs Up, Finding Mr. Right 2, As the Light Goes Out, Bends (2013), Amphetamine (2010), Motorway (2012), First Time (2012) and Tales from the Dark 1 (2013).

Justine currently resides in Vancouver and recently worked on Fresh, starring Sebastian Stan.

Justine’s Recommended films:

Overheard 2, Happy Together, In the Mood for Love, He’s a Woman, She’s a Man (1994), A Chinese Odyssey Part 2-Cinderella (1995) and Infernal Affairs (2002).

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一直以來，不少香港電影業的幕前和幕後成員都因工作、進修和移民而於北美生活，或經常穿梭兩地，在不同崗位參與香港的電影製作。你會在香港或亞洲各地的片場和後期製作室找到他們的踪影，又同時會在美加的電影製作場所和國際電影節現身，其中一位便是劇照攝影師楊應琪（Justine Yeung）。

Behind the scene, Justine yeung and Nicholas Tse working together.

早於讀書時期，Justine已鍾情王家衛的電影，一本1997年的《春光乍洩》（Happy Together）劇照特刊更是她的無價寶，甚至因此慕名而到阿根廷的伊瓜蘇瀑布和布宜諾斯艾利斯唐人街的取景地尋找電影中的感覺。念念不忘，必有回響，Justine與香港電影業的結緣，結果就由一份難得的攝影助理暑期

工開始。Justine原於美國修讀傳理，從紐約讀書返回香港時，經朋友介紹到一間攝影師工作室當助理，這間工作室的主人便是香港著名的攝影師夏永康。年輕時在加拿大修讀設計的夏永康當時已是炙手可熱的電影劇照專家，正是王家衛的指定攝影師，作品以《春光乍洩》、《花樣年華》（In the Mood for Love）、《2046》等劇照最廣為人知。當時，夏永康的工作室Shya-la-la Workshop是年輕攝影學生心中的「少林寺」，四周掛滿了由夏永康操刀的王家衛電影海報和劇照，每一幅都已成為國際知名的經典藝術作品。就這樣，Justine開啟了難得的攝影事業之路，如夢一般進入《春光乍洩》劇照的誕生地，參與工作室旗下不同的廣告和音樂項目。幾年後，Justine再經引薦晉身電影劇照攝影崗位。

劇照攝影要求甚高，攝影師要隱身於場景之中，從一角捕捉演員演出的最代表性一刻，既不能用閃光燈，更要用滅聲箱等額外隔音器材減少攝影機的快門聲响，仿如幽靈般在神不知鬼不覺下將電影主角的靈魂牢牢捉住，將一剎那變成永恆。沒有閃光燈的支援，就更考劇照攝影師對現場光源掌握的技巧。攝影師更可謂必須與演員「同步呼吸」，一起投入角色內心，以預先掌握演員下一秒即將出現的反應，準確按下快門，將重要的場景和演出定格，留住關鍵一刻。一齣電影往往會拍攝出一、二千張劇照，最終選定為公開劇照的往往只有十張或更少，它們化成電影宣傳的重要材料，亦往往會成為電影海報的構圖，從此成為與電影光影不離的永恆影像。

《驚心破》Heartfall Arises, 2016

Behind the scene, 《狂獸》The Brink, 2017.

在香港電影界，Justine是極少數女性劇照攝影師之一。在拍攝現場，Justine會隱沒於視線以外，從一角捕捉演員最富張力的一刻。在片場拍攝之後，Justine需要按電影色調再加後期處理，將硬照化成與整齣電影的延伸。歷年來，Justine負責的作品包括有《寒戰》(Cold War, 2012)、《竊聽風雲2》(Overheard 2, 2011)、《李小龍》(Young Bruce Lee, 2010)、《救火英雄》(As the Light Goes Out, 2014)《暴瘋語》(Insanity, 2014)、《彊屍》(Rigor Mortis, 2013)、《金雞sss》(Golden Chickensss, 2014)、《金鴨》(12 Golden Ducks, 2015)、《三少爺的劍》(Sword Master, 2016)、《北京遇上西雅圖2》(Finding Mr. Right 2, 2016)、《狂獸》(The Brink, 2017)和《明日戰記》(Warriors of Future, 2021)等三十多齣電影，每齣都風格強烈，別具個性，既有色調冷酷的動作片，也有用色溫暖的愛情劇，亦有仿如詩畫般的古裝電影。

劇照攝影不單講求攝影技巧和藝術修為，對體力和想像力的要求亦非外人能道，亦需與劇組一樣經常到外地長駐，隨隊保留影像紀錄。以由余文樂和張晉主演的打鬥片《狂獸》為例，故事其中一個主要場景置於狂風巨浪中的黑夜海面上，當時的拍攝就於韓國的片場進行。為此，Justine需要事前特意考取潛水資格，以在片場中的巨型水池內頂著人造浪拍攝場面，捕捉在船上和水底下的緊張場景。結果，那一段戲足足拍了三十天，Justine在片場的人造浪水池中拍攝七天，浪花更打壞了相機，箇中的艱苦、體力消耗和挑戰可想而知。至於由古天樂耗時經年拍攝的科幻片《明日戰記》，在實景以外更有大量在綠幕前拍攝的虛擬場面，Justine除需要事前與導演和後期製作團隊充份了解外，亦會參與後期製作，讓演員與電腦畫面合成最終劇照。能成功捕捉電影靈魂的劇照最終有機會成為電影海報的構圖，Justine的作品便最終成為《竊聽風雲2》、《衝鋒車》、《北京遇上西雅圖2》、《救火英雄》、《過界》(Bends, 2013)、《安非他命》(Amphetamine, 2010)、《車手》(Motorway, 2012)、《第一次》(First Time, 2012) 和《李碧華鬼魅系列迷離夜》(Tales from the Dark 1, 2013)等電影的海報。

《明日戰記》Warriors of Future, 2021

從劇照攝影師的角度，Justine尤其欣賞電影畫面的構圖，因為深明每一個選取的角度都有其意思和內涵，她特別喜歡影像和色調強烈的作品，由潘耀明作攝影指導的《竊聽風雲2》便是她印象最深之一，其他同樣構圖出色的推介電影包括《春光乍洩》、《花樣年華》、《金枝玉葉》(He’s a Woman, She’s a Man, 1994)、《西遊記大結局之仙履奇緣》(A Chinese Odyssey Part 2-Cinderella, 1995）和《無間道》(Infernal Affairs, 2002)都是不容錯過的俵俵者。

幾年前，Justine來到加拿大，現居溫哥華，並參與在當地拍攝的荷李活製作，近期擔任劇照攝影師的作品包括有由Sebastian Stan主演的最新電影Fresh。

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