Ashley's Proposal Draft (get excited)

TITLE:

Welcome to the Hong Kong Drive-Thru: how Wong Kar-Wai depicts the relationship between the transnational and the local

ABSTRACT:

In recent years, films are more and more becoming a global commodity. Films are being co-produced and distributed internationally, featuring transnational film stars and transcultural elements. However, how does transnationalism affect the idea of national identity?

For close to a century, Hong Kong, once a part of the Chinese Empire, was a British Colony. It is not a nation and therefore had no national identity. Additionally, Hong Kong resented British colonial rule but also did not support the Communist movement in China. As a result, Hong Kong was neither East nor West but rather an amalgamation of both cultures. It is the epitome of a transnational location.

I am interested in analyzing Wong Kar-Wai’s 1994 film, Chungking Express, because I am trying to find out how his works express such transnational qualities and concerns. I want to ask my audience whether transnationalism present in the film erases the Hong Kong “local” culture or if it is a reflection of certain characteristics of Hong Kong society at that time. I plan on leaving my thesis ambiguous, allowing the audience to come to their own conclusion.

My thesis will be aimed at a peer audience consisting of people, college-aged and older, possessing some, but not expert, knowledge of cinema. The audience will be able to engage in an interactive and experiential interface. In the main menu, the audience member will be presented with three different platforms he/she can choose from: “The Mu-Shu Delight: or Hong Kong’s fictitious national identity”, “The Hong Kong Hamburger: or transnational elements”, or “The Happy Meal Prize: or international reception”.

“The Mu-Shu Delight” will explore the absence of national identity in Hong Kong, including a brief history of Hong Kong, tracing its colonial history, the international immigration to Hong Kong and relating the events surrounding its return to mainland China. I will then explore Wong Kar-Wai’s treatment of characters, desperately trying to reinvent and discover their identities. “The Hong Kong Hamburger” will allow the audience to maneuver around certain spaces within Hong Kong. Hot spots will be present revealing transnational elements and influences present within Chungking Express. The last platform, “The Happy Meal Prize”, will trace Chungking Express’ global success and why different countries found the film to be appealing (may end up nixing depending).

DESCRIPTION:

Genre:
My thesis will be of the interactive, experiential and documentary genres. The interface will allow the user to explore the space and to interact with the interface. The hot spots presented will convey useful information.

Research Methodology:
The primary aim of my thesis is to illustrate the relationship between the transnational and the local. I am asking the audience to decide whether the transnational elements present within the film succeeds in erasing the sense of Hong Kong local identity or if it instead is a reflection of the Hong Kong local culture present at that time. Chungking Express was an internationally successful film. Did people respond to Chungking Express because it depicts a universal, non-nationally defined culture? Or did people see some kind of “Hong Kong-ness” depicted within the transnationalism present? Is Hong Kong’s local identity defined by their transnational identity?

I am synthesizing pre-existing ideas including Gina Marchetti’s analysis of Wong Kar-Wai’s use of global commodity and Stephen Teo’s exploration of WKW’s use of borderless spaces. Also I will use Kwai-Cheung Lo’s essay “Transnationalization of the Local in Hong Kong Cinema of the 1990s”.

Delivery Format:
My thesis will be presented as a DVD-ROM. I will use programs such as DVD Studio Pro and Flash to create an exploratory and interactive interface in order to illustrate the “local” Hong Kong space and the ubiquitous transnational elements that exist within this space.

In order to illustrate transnational themes present in Wong Kar Wai’s work, his transnational influences, as well as international reception of his work, the interface will have three platforms. Each platform will allow the audience to maneuver around and click on informational hot spots. These hot spots will utilize text, using After Effects, images, music, narration, and video, using Final Cut Pro.

Project Goals:
While a written paper can address the concerns I am trying to explore, the multimedia format is necessary in order for my viewer to actively engage and interact with the subject matter. I want my viewer to feel like he/she is exploring the space of Hong Kong as well as the landscape of Chunking Express. Ultimately, there is no “answer” to my thesis. It will be up to the viewer to decide whether Chungking Express is a depiction of Hong Kong at the time or whether it does not portray a local identity, rather a transnational “borderless” identity.

Because of increased globalization, increasingly, films have become more and more transnational. This a pertinent and current topic that affects the film industry now so I think it is an important subject to address.

Project Significance:
Transnationalism is a relatively new and current concept that has stemmed from efforts to globalize and loosen national borders. In terms of the film industry, transnationalism can be quite positive. It allows for the global distribution of films meaning that a film can seek a larger, international audience. However, transnationalism also has its downside. In order to appeal to this larger, international audience, many “local” or national qualities are watered down. Did Chungking Express, which received international acclaim, portray a borderless, global culture with no national identity or was merely a reflection of a localized, Hong Kong experience?

Hopefully, this project will create a forum for investigation and discussion of the effects of globalization and whether cultures are able to inscribe their identity in an increasingly more global culture or whether the global culture dominates and ultimately erases the national identity and culture present.

TIMELINE

Summer 2007:
Learn AfterEffects and Flash
Re-watch Chungking Express
Read Wong-Kar Wai: Auteur of Time as well as the novels that helped influence Chungking Express.

August 24-31, 2007:
School starts and so shall I

September
Confirm proposal
Being constructing interface and making hot spot videos, text, etc

October
Continue constructing hot spots
Test out hot spots placement and format

November
Halfway mark, prototype/draft presentation

December-on
Conduct interviews? (Prof Hyung Sook Lee, Stephen Teo?, Gina Marchetti?)
Finish up hot spots
Test interface, etc

May
Present Final Project

BUDGET:

I don’t anticipate it costing more than $200 for, perhaps, an external hard drive and maybe some software I may or may not have to purchase.

CONFIRMED ADVISORS:

Critical Studies:
Professor Hyung-Sook Lee

IML:
Professor Holly Willis

PRESENTATION AND/OR DISTRIBUTION PLANS/VENUES:

Right now I’m thinking it should just be presented on a huge screen and allow people to navigate around the program themselves.

PRODUCTION RESOURCES:

Hardware Needs:
I will be doing this project using my MacBook Pro and probably the Macs at the IML. I am guessing I will need an external hard drive. I do not own one but I could probably buy one in the future.

Software Needs:
I will probably be using DVD Studio Pro, FinalCut Pro, Photoshop, AfterEffects and probably Flash. I have all software except for Flash and I need to learn both Flash and AfterEffects. I am going to “teach myself” both programs over the summer but if there is someone who could teach me the basics, I would probably be much better off.

PRIOR RELATED WORK:

I am currently taking CTCS 494: East Asian Transnational Cinema and Stars taught by Professor Hyung-Sook Lee. I will incorporate themes learned as well as essays read in the class into my thesis project.

RESEARCH BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Marchetti, Gina. “Buying American, Consuming. Hong Kong: Cultural Commerce, Fantasies of Identity, and the Cinema.”

Lo, Kwai-Cheung. “Transnationalization of the Local in Hong Kong Cinema of the 1990s”.

Teo, Stephen. “Space-Time Tango.” Wong Kar-Wai, Auteur of Time.