Filming halted on ‘The Grandmasters’, released delayed until Winter 2011?

Sohu Entertainment News are reporting that filming on ‘The Grandmasters’ has stopped and Wong Kar-wai has something else to be busy with. The film has been in preparation for almost 8 years and in production for 2 years, yesterday was rumoured to be coming to a production halt. It had been assumed that the film was near completion and was in the promotional phase. However, this could not be further from the truth.

In the interim its lead actor Tony Leung, who has focused on making and not taken any other role, recently accepted a role in Derek Yee’s ‘The Great Magician’ whilst he waits for ‘The Grandmasters’ to resume.

According to an insider of ‘The Grandmasters’, actress Song Hye-kyo has left the team in December 2010, and she has not returned in January 2011 when filming resumed. According to the staff, Hye-kyo was ‘very gentle’, she has not complained about the shooting delay as what has been rumoured. She did not need to do any kung fu fighting scenes. Though she should be playing an important role, she has only done a small portion of the shooting, so she might need to return to continue shooting later. However, Wong Kar-wai still has no idea how to fit her into the movie. There is a chance that not only Hye-kyo, but some of the other actors/actresses portions will be ‘cut’. All the main roles including the part played by actor Chang Chen, except Hye-kyo have a lot of fighting scenes.

The release date for ‘The Grandmasters’ has repeatedly been delayed, from National Day to Lunar New Year of this year. Thus its goal was to finish by May. Reportedly from the current progress it would have difficulty with its completion. Wong Kar Wai decided to halt the production for Tony Leung to make money first while he could explore new elements before consider when to resume production. For the past two years Tony Leung has decided not to accept any other film roles so that he could focus fully on playing the role of Yip Man. However, it has been decided that he will begin work on ‘The Great Magician’ in the next few weeks and resume filming on ‘The Grandmasters’ at a later date.

http://yule.sohu.com/20110304/n279640686.shtml

Meanwhile The Hollywood Reporter has noted that the film “has been delayed until the fourth quarter.”

http://http//www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/bona-posts-2010-revenue-gain-163845

The Grandmasters Press Conference and Teaser Trailer

Director Wong Kar-wai and cast members of The Grandmasters appeared at a special press conference held in Beijing on December 28th.
The event was for the 60th anniversary of Sil-Metropole Organisation Ltd, one of the film's production companies.
Most of the attention went to the cast of The Grandmasters, including Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Zhang Ziyi, Chang Chen, Zhao Benshan, Song Hye-kyo, Xiao Shenyang and Wang Qingxiang, who rushed from the Guangdong set. The team presented an oil painting poster to the company.
The event showed a promotional reel for The Grandmasters but it did not include any actual footage from the film. Host Zhang Guoli joked that this trailer was mysterious enough, after such a long shoot the trailer had no scenes at all.
Then actors Leung Chiu-wai, Zhang Ziyi, Chang Chen, Song Hye-Kyo, Zhao Benshan, Xiao Shenyang, Wang Qingxiang appeared on stage.

Speaking of the fight scenes, Tony Leung said that he was not worried as he practiced for a long time. He practiced so much that his arm was broken at the hands of his Wing Chun teacher. Zhang Guoli joked that the scene of Tony Leung's arm being broken was not preserved, which truly was a regret for Chinese film because it was worth a lot of money. The fight scene in the rain he said was very difficult and took 30 days to shoot. Zhang Guoli joked that it only took 30 days, someone had to thank Wong Kar-wai as normally it might take 3 months.
Zhang Ziyi plays a martial art expert in the film, Zhang Guoli praised her eight diagram palm technique in the snow scene, saying it was very pretty. Zhang Ziyi said that this scene was shot last winter. At the time, the crew joked that this shoot would not be completed as they predicted whether or not they would have to shoot it again next year. Surprisingly they were right. She recalled the 30 degree below zero (Celsius) shooting environment as truly tough.

Chang Chen plays an eight diagram expert in the film. For the film, he trained for two years but the training benefited him a lot and his health improved. 
Song Hye-kyo plays Yip Man's (Tony Leung) wife in the film, but they did not stand together on the stage. She joked that they (she and Tony) were together everyday during filming so they didn't have to stand together now. Zhang Guoli said that this was understandable to avoid suspicion from Tony Leung's wife (Carina Lau). This was Song Hye-kyo's first film shooting in China and she was truly pleased to be able to work with a group of such great actors. She thanked director Wong Kar-wai for his help, because at first she was not too used to his style of directing. Director Wong helped her a lot.
Wong Kar Wai appeared in the end to pose for a group photo with the cast.
Host Zhang Guoli asked Tony Leung to make a kung fu pose but Tony only had his hands in his pockets and played cool. He explained that he was dressed modernly so he posed with his hands in his pockets in front of the poster.
The actors finally sang a birthday song to celebrate Sil-Metropole's 60th year, but they looked somewhat embarrassed.

Video: http://www.tudou.com/programs/view/1pJ4zaNwui8/
http://ent.sina.com.cn/m/c/2010-12-28/23443191325.shtml?from=nominated
http://ent.qq.com/a/20101229/000025.htm#p=7

After two days promoting The Grandmasters in Beijing, Tony Leung returned to Hong Kong. Reporters asked him about the filming schedule and he revealed that he will return to the Mainland later to continue the shoot. He has been shooting more than 10 hours a day, most likely with no time off during the new year. He thinks they will finish around the Lunar New Year (February).
Tony was in good spirits and full of smiles. He said, "Maybe it's because of this Grandmaster hair cut." His earlier injury has now basically healed, but during action scenes he would be even more cautious as he did not want to be injured again.
According to news in Hong Kong, initially the investors wanted 'The Grandmasters' to be released in the Lunar New Year period (early February), but now they are saying that the film will be in Chinese theaters during Easter.

http://news.sina.com.tw/article/20101230/4076088.html

Teaser Trailer:

Translation of the text in the trailer:
"Their valor is transmitted by men of chivalry, accurately recorded by the brushes of history that begin to flow into myriads of seas, and due to the dao, the fortunes of their affection are long, and the elements once a generation bear witness to the masters."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OnlUQjUn-8o&feature=player_embedded

The Grandmasters news round-up

New pic via ScreenDaily:

Fortissimo, Wong Kar Wai's Jet Tone Expand Relationship

Fortissimo chairman Michael Werner will associate produce 'Grandmaster,' with the company also handling the Jet Tone library.

Fortissimo Films and Wong Kar Wai's Jet Tone Films have expanded their relationship around the upcoming title The Grandmaster and Jet Tone's library, Fortissimo chairman Michael Werner and Jet Tone's Jacky Pang Yee Wah said at the American Film Market on Wednesday.
Werner will associate produce Grandmaster, the film starring Zhang Ziyi (Memoirs of a Geisha), Tony Leung Chiu Wai (Lust, Caution) and Chang Chen (Red Cliff), and Fortissimo will handle sales in select territories retained by Jet Tone Film including Japan, South Korea and India.
Werner will work closely with producer Pang to advise on the marketing and release strategy for the film around the world.
Fortissimo also will handle the Jet Tone Films library, including titles such as Wong Kar Wai's Chungking Express, Fallen Angels and Ashes of Time Redux.
From the set of Block 2 Pictures and Sil Metropole Organization presentation last week, Werner observed Wong has built Grandmasters around "one of the most exciting sets and fighting sequences that I have ever seen."
Fortissimo and Jet Tone have worked together more than 20 years and Pang said of Werner: "We have always seen Michael as a member of our team and we are very happy to have him physically on board Grandmaster utilizing his background and knowledge of Asian cinema and his expertise in international sales, marketing and distribution."
Chan Ye Cheng and Song Dai are executive producers, while Philippe Le Sourd is shooting the film with action choreography from Yuen Wo Ping and production design by William Chang Suk Ping.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/fortissimo-wong-kar-wais-jet-35435

French sales house Wild Bunch has picked up international rights to two of the biggest Chinese-language films of the year.
With the American Film Market starting tomorrow (3 Nov 2010) the company has picked up the upcoming martial arts film The Grandmasters (一代宗師), by Hong Kong auteur Wong Kar-wai (王家衛). It has also secured Under The Hawthorn Tree (山楂樹之戀), the romantic drama by Zhang Yimou (張藝謀) that has been a hit on home turf in China and was set as the opening film at the Pusan and Hawaii film festivals.
The greater surprise is the pickup of Grandmasters. As is typical of Wong, the film has been carefully shrouded in secrecy. But this time, as the film was independently financed without recourse to a minimum guarantee from a sales company, or territory pre-sales, producers at Wong's Jet Tone Films (澤東製作有限公司) have been able to keep buyers and audiences guessing. Many of Wong previous movies were represented by Hong Kong and Amsterdam-based Fortissimo Films.
A period piece, Wong's film is the fourth in a recent string of pictures about Ip Man (葉問), the legendary martial artist who taught Bruce Lee (李小龍). It has been tentatively positioned for release at Chinese New Year in late-Jan or early-Feb 2011. However, other recent press reports suggest that shooting will continue in early 2011.
Wild Bunch, which has rights outside Asia, says it will provide buyers with a synopsis and screen a 2-minute promo reel at its booth. But the company did not confirm the delivery date.
Partial rights in much of South East Asia were previously picked up by Hong Kong-based film and pan-regional broadcast group Mei Ah Entertainment. In Hong Kong itself Mei Ah has TV and home entertainment rights, while one of the film's investors SIL-Metropole will oversee theatrical.
Consecutive with the Wild Bunch pickup is a change in title, from The Grand Master to The Grandmasters, the announcement of tagline "in martial arts there is no right or wrong, only the last man standing" and the release of two poster images.
One, in near monochrome, highlights the powerful combination of Wong, Yuen Woo-ping (袁和平) as action choreographer and its stars Tony Leung Chiu-wai (梁朝偉) and Zhang Ziyi (章子怡).

http://www.filmbiz.asia/news/wongs-grandmasters-joins-wild-bunch

Tony Leung spotted jogging and Song Hye-kyo spotted playing badminton in between filming:

http://ent.sina.com.cn/m/c/2010-11-03/09213134461.shtml

A better look at Zhang Ziyi's character in the film, fighting at the side of the railroad tracks. (Click to enlarge)

The film has been tentatively positioned for release at Chinese New Year in late-Jan or early-Feb 2011. However, other recent press reports suggest that shooting will continue in early 2011.

The Grandmasters plot synopsis revealed

The Grandmasters press release via the American Film Market:

Cast：Tony, Chiu-wai LEUNG, Zi-yi ZHANG, Chen CHANG, Hye-kyo SONG, Ben-shan ZHAO, Xing-chang WANG

Director：Kar-wai WONG
Producers：Kar-wai WONG, Jacky PANG 

Synopsis: 

With martial arts getting more popular in the Thirties, more people seek to learn them via the professionals at Foshan in Southern China. Some of the experienced masters like to challenge their counterparts and undergoing battles. To have their whole concentration, it is their practice to lock up the venues and no one is allowed to leave during battles. No food and no rest before reaching any results.
Ip Man is a young rich man extremely talented in martial arts, but he chooses to keep a low profile. Yet this doesn't keep him out of these troubles ahead. One day he is trapped in this battleground so he has to use every means in order to get out of there. The masters are amazed by his abilities. Master Kung and his daughter Kung Yi are amongst, and the latter is attracted to this newcomer.
A high warlord is assassinated by his own guard Yi Xian Tian. All masters in Foshan vow to take Tian down no matter what....

http://www.thefilmcatalogue.com/catalog/FilmDetail.php?id=10435
http://www.heyuguys.co.uk/2010/11/02/casting-news-first-images-and-a-plot-synopsis-for-wong-kar-wai%E2%80%99s-the-grandmasters/
Official Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Grandmasters/
If this synopsis is accurate then it sounds like the plot is fictitious rather than based on fact.

Song Hye Kyo meeting with Wong Kar-wai, confirmed to be playing Yip Man's wife

Actress Song Hye-kyo met with director Wong Kar-wai on 19th October 2010 to discuss the progress of filming The Grand Master. Paparazzi managed to film the secret meeting and were able to capture exclusive images of reference photos shot for the film.
The first photo on the right is Song Hye-kyo with Zhang Ziyi (wearing a man's suit).
The other one is Hye-kyo, Tony Leung (as Yip Man) and the actor playing their son. This pretty much confirms that Song Hye-kyo is playing Yip Man's wife.
Wong Kar-wai began reshoots of the film starting in mid-September.

Credit: wloi @ Soompi.com

See the video shot by the paparazzi at the following link:
http://hk.sw.nextmedia.com/template/sw/art_main.php?iss_id=796&sec_id=1000863&art_id=14602421

UPDATE: Larger scans added (click to enlarge).

The Grand Master poster is a fake

It's being reported in the Hong Kong press that this artwork purporting to be a real poster promoting Wong Kar-wai's The Grand Master is in fact a fake created by fans impatient for the filmmakers to release an official one.

http://yule.sohu.com/20100928/n275319717.shtml

The Grand Master undergoing reshoots?

With the release of a promotional poster for The Grand Master it was expected that the film would be finished sooner rather than later.
However, a person purporting to be a crew member on the film has been tweeting messages on their Weibo account (Asian version of Twitter) which suggests otherwise. According to the staff member, they have recently been shooting scenes with both Tony Leung and Song Hye-kyo in a secret location in Guangzhou.
They were shooting past 4 a.m. as the child that Hye-kyo has been carrying was crying non-stop, and they needed to re-shoot it many times.

A photo of the meal schedule for the 21st of September for The Grand Master crew:

Breakfast: 06:30-08:00
Lunch: 12:00-14:00
Supper: 18:00-20:00

If the report of reshooting is true then it would certainly push back the intended release date for the Lunar New Year, making a Cannes 2011 premiere more likely. Director Wong Kar-wai has a habit of reshooting scenes as he spent three days re-shooting the final kiss in My Blueberry Nights.
Song Hye-kyo is scheduled to begin work on a new film (directed by Lee Jeong-hyang) in October.
However, Tony Leung won't start work on his next film (directed by Derek Yee) February of next year.

http://t.sina.com.cn/1527186771
http://tieba.baidu.com/f?kz=897058853
Credit: wloi @ soompi.com

UPDATE: They were filming in Chikan Movie and Television City.

Teaser Poster for The Grand Master

Teaser poster artwork for The Grand Master directed by Wong Kar-wai.
Currently scheduled for a December 2010 release in Hong Kong and mainland China.

http://twitchfilm.net/news/2010/09/poster-art-for-wong-kar-wais-the-grand-master.php

Song Hye Kyo on a Taiwanese talk show

In a recent appearance on a talk show in Taiwan, actress Song Hye Kyo discussed some recent events in her life, saying she has been filming for Wong Kar Wai’s The Grand Master (一代宗師). “I’m putting in a lot of effort and always learning new things on the scene.” She also added, “It’s not easy, but I get a lot of help from people around me.”Song plays the lead role The Grand Master (一代宗師), directed by auteur-director Wong Kar Wai, and is currently busy filming alongside such renowned actors as Tony Leung, Zhang Ziyi, and Chang Chen.

http://en.korea.com/blog/enter/movie/song-hye-kyo-on-a-talk-show-in-taiwan-keeps-remains-silent-about-hyun-bin/
http://www.tvdaily.co.kr/read.php3?aid=127951718773996002

Casting call for The Grand Master

As I suspected filming on "The Grand Master" continues.
Credit to: http://www.soompi.com/

Here's a casting call for hiring supporting actors/actresses for the film:

*Auditions for a maid, to start filming end June / early July, accommodation will be provided.
Audition to be held on 9 June.
Age: either 13-18 or 25-30.

*4 replacements for Tony Leung, Zhang Ziyi, Chang Chen and Song Hye-kyo, as well as a number of actors for portraying students.
The audition is on 13 June.

http://www.gzucjob.com.cn/showjob.asp?id=1425
http://www.soompi.com/

Lunar New Year release for The Grand Master?

Wong Kar-wai's "The Grand Master" is said to have completed filming and is now entered the editing phase. Ultimately, Brigitte Lin did not make a comeback appearance. Zhang Ziyi's role is said to be that of a female killer/assassin. Zhao Benshan and Song Hye-kyo also appear.
The film began shooting in Guangdong last November and has been shrouded in secrecy. A Lunar New Year opening is still anticipated despite some delays.

It will compete against four powerhouse films: Chen Kaige's Zhao's Orphan, Zhang Yimou's Love Under the Hawthorne Tree, Jiang Wen's Let the Bullets Fly and Feng Xiaogang's You Are the One 2.

http://ent.sina.com.cn/m/c/2010-06-22/10312994107.shtml

The Grand Master filming break

Director Wong Kar-Wai has been busy working on his own movie about the legendary Wing Chun master Ip Man. They recently completed shooting in the Northeast region of China and will soon head South to Guangzhou. Before filming resumes for The Grand Master, his all-star cast gets a one-week break while the crew is moving the set.

Korean star Song Hye-Kyo will be one of the cast members participating in the Guangzhou filming. She was previously rumored to have gained weight, but the actress looked very slim when she was spotted in Hong Kong shopping for some DVD’s. According to the news, she has been working hard on her moves as well as her Chinese, and hopes to complete the film with her own voice.

On the other hand, “Ip Man” Tony Leung didn’t get much of a break as he had to film a commercial in the mainland. When asked about working with Song Hye-Kyo, he said they actually met each other back at the premiere of his film 2046. He was also asked if they share any intimate scenes, Tony Leung responded, “How would I know! There hasn’t been any in the script so far. (Will there be some later?) We’ll know when the time comes!”

Their co-star Chang Chen hasn’t been home for months since filming started, therefore he returned to Taiwan during the break to get some summer clothing. Meanwhile, actress Zhang Ziyi will also take part in the Guangzhou filming, but the production remained tight-lipped concerning what role she is playing.

http://news.sina.com.tw/article/20100525/3181954.html
http://www.nownews.com/2010/05/26/340-2607400.htm

Song Hye Kyo in Hong Kong (part 2)

Actress Song Hye-Kyo was spotted yesterday in HMV buying 4 DVDs, including Lust Caution and 2046. It was said that she left for Guangzhou by car yesterday to meet up with Tony Leung, Zhang Ziyi and Julian Cheung Chi-Lam.

http://orientaldaily.on.cc/cnt/entertainment/20100525/00282_001.html

Song Hye Kyo in Hong Kong

Actress Song Hye-kyo was sighted shopping in Central, Hong Kong, a few days ago. She has been staying in a rented apartment costing HK$93,000 per month in Happy Valley, she occupies one room and the other for her assistant. She has been secretly training for her role in "The Grand Master" and has also been learning Cantonese to make communication easier with Wong Kar-wai and Tony Leung. She was tired and bored with training and took a rest to go shopping and was spotted in The LandMark near Oriental Mandarin Hotel.
The report also mentioned about her thick waist and thighs.
The movie is expected to be released in December this year.

http://stars.zaobao.com/pages9/songhuiqiao100522.shtml
Video report: http://hk.dv.nextmedia.com/template/dv_channel/index.php?fuseaction=dv15.player&mode=section&range=d&dv_iss=20100522&sort=promo&id=462&iss_id=20100522&sec_id=462&art_id=14055181&av_id=14056466

Tony Leung says The Grand Master will be action-packed

The 6th Hong Kong Entertainment Expo will take place on March 22 to April 18th. Tony Leung attended the press conference as the Entertainment Ambassador. When asked how his filming was going for "The Grand Master"? Tony replied saying he had filmed scenes in Kaiping earlier. The team is now in Shenyang filming. Originally he was not part of the filming in Shenyang, only Zhang Ziyi and Zhao Benshan were filming there. However, as director Wong Kar Wai felt the snow scenery was too beautiful, he decided to add Tony in as well. He will rejoin the crew after Chinese New Year's. Because of that, he will not go skiing during New Years, as he doesn't want to risk getting injured.

Zhang Ziyi was rumoured to have gotten ill filming in Northern China and apparently need to go to the hospital for treatment. Tony said, "It's pretty common receiving IV fluids. The feeling is like eating chicken. When Ang Lee was filming "Red Cliff", he had to go to the hospital after suffering from exhaustion. I hope everything will go smoothly for me." As for the rumours that Zhang Ziyi's screen time will be reduced? Tony says he hasn't heard anything about it. However, it seems highly unlikely as Wong Kar Wai already has the script in place. He does not foresee any changes. Has Zhang Ziyi's mood been affected by her negative press lately? He says he doesn't know, as they haven't filmed any scenes together yet. He only knows that Song Hye-kyo will be appearing in the movie. As for whether Gong Li will appear or who will play his wife? He expresses he doesn't know either. However, Tony expresses he's looking forward to working with Song Hye Kyo. He met her when he was in Korea promoting 2046 and felt that she was very special.

When asked if he was a good fighter? Tony joked and said, "You wouldn't expect any less from the Grand Master right?" He expressed that while he hasn't been seriously injured in training, he does have lots of body contact with his instructors so he often gets bruised up. He jokes and says, "I'm looking forward to counting all my injuries when the movie is complete." Donnie Yen has said, 'if you don't fight, you won't be injured'. Tony says, "This is an action movie. It's the same as soccer, there will be physical contact. Injuries are to be expected." He praises Yuen Woo-ping, saying his style is very good.

He admitted that when filming of "The Grand Master" started, the action was so fast-paced that he "almost couldn't hang in there." "This is a genuine kung fu movie," Leung said, adding "there really will be many action scenes."

http://ol.mingpao.com/cfm/star5.cfm?File=20100203/saa01/mba1.txt
http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory?id=9724040
http://community.livejournal.com/aiyatheydidnt/273515.html

Song Hye-kyo cast in The Grand Master

December 2009

According to China's portal site, Sina.com on December 21st, Song Hye Kyo (Full House) has decided to appear in director Wong Kar-wai’s The Grand Master and is currently undergoing intense training. Tony Leung, Zhang Ziyi, Chang Chen, and other top stars from Greater China are also appearing. This will be Song Hye Kyo's first challenge in an action role since her debut. It has been known that Song Hye Kyo went to China at the beginning of this month to undergo martial arts training. Sina.com revealed photos of her practice form where she is sporting casual attire.
Wong had continuously expressed his interest in working with Song, officially stating so at the Pusan International Film Festival in 2004. He also invited her to the premiere of his film "My Blueberry Nights" held in New York of August 2008.
A rep for Song Hye-kyo confirmed, " Due to confidentiality stipulations, further details cannot be revealed, but it is correct that Song Hye Kyo she is currently preparing for a new project in China."
Song Hye-kyo's management company, Eden9 stated, "Since first receiving director Wong's proposal, she decided to take part in the movie. As of yet, we are not at the stage to reveal which role she will take. Currently, she is learning Cantonese and practicing martial arts."
Director Wong Kar-wai stated, "Though she won't have many action scenes, we want her body to be familiarized with natural movements." Also, she will work with a native tutor to study Chinese.

http://www.songhyegyo.net/press/articles_010610.htm
http://star.moneytoday.co.kr/view/stview.php?no=2009122017021753955&type=1&outlink=1
http://www.dramabeans.com/2009/12/song-hye-gyo-cast-in-wong-kar-wais-new-film/
http://www.songhyegyo.net/press/articles_122109.htm

For her first advancement in China with the movie, "The Grand Master", 'Hallyu Queen' Song Hye Kyo (28) is living life like a high school senior as she takes the most excellent measure in preparing for this project.
Ahead of next month's full-scale filming for the movie, these days she remains on location in China, coming and going between her lodging quarters and the martial arts practice room. In between this, she receives two hours of private Chinese lessons everyday. As she is in an area without internet access, she speaks with both her mom and lover Hyun Bin by telephone to send each other their best regards and love.
A close associate of Song Hye Kyo conveyed how she has been getting along. "This is her first Chinese advancement work, so she has great enthusiasm for this movie." She added, "As of late, she pretty much just goes to and from her lodging quarters and the martial arts practice room and cannot even cast her eyes to any other place. She is no different than a high school senior preparing for exams."

http://www.songhyegyo.net/press/articles_032910.htm

Song Hye-Kyo on The Grand Master

On March 17, 2010, Song Hye-kyo sneaked to Hong Kong to meet with Tony Leung in preparation for "The Grand Master". The two chatted for two hours and after the meeting, she walked out cheerfully. She is now in China.

http://ent.qq.com/a/20100318/000047.htm#p=1

Song Hye-kyo is currently in China working on her next role in "The Grand Master", the martial arts movie directed by renowned Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar-wai, and will apparently be displaying some “real action” skills in the film.

"The Grand Master" stars Tony Leung as Wing Chun grandmaster Yip Man, and also features Chang Chen and Zhang Ziyi. Each of the actors has been outfitted with specialized protective gear that has been made especially for this film, to prevent injury while upping the realism of the fight scenes. The guards are made of silicone and fitted to each actor’s body to move with them and, as they are lightweight, remain undetected underneath clothing. As Song Hye-kyo is reportedly using these guards in filming, we can look forward to seeing her in action. (It’ll be an interesting sight, that’s for sure; Song has always been known for her femininity and beauty, so a martial arts action film will be a complete turnaround from her existing image.)
Song has been traveling back and forth between Korea and China since December, and has been diligently practicing her Chinese language and martial arts skills. "The Grand Master" recently began filming, and is planning for a release in the second half of next year.

http://news.donga.com/3//20100301/26533047/1

Whilst promoting the drama "Worlds Within" in Taiwan, actress Song Hye-kyo told reporters that she is a self-proclaimed fan of Kar Wai, and loves his films such as "As Tears Go By", "ChungKing Express", and "In the Mood For Love". Being able to participate in his film for her first Chinese movie, "The Grand Master", she is excited. Kar Wai is a director who keeps the script safe in his heart, so actors often don't know what he's thinking. However, she is not worried at all. She likes Wong Kar Wai's style of movie direction, no scripts will give the director more freedom in shooting the movie. "Since I debuted, it's the first time I've come across such an acting style, so I am very excited."

http://showbiz.chinatimes.com/2009Cti/Channel/Showbiz/showbiz-news-cnt/0,5020,100105+112010041200010,00.htm

Filming The Grand Master near Diaobingshan

"The Grand Master" has been secretly filming in Diaobingshan, Tieling City for the past two months. In order to prevent the plot from being leaked out, the crew has been extremely strict with reporters visiting the set. Even those delivering food had to sign confidentiality agreements.
On March 30th, reporters were finally able to uncover the latest progress from the movie. Actress Song Hye-kyo finished filming her scenes from the film yesterday. She flew back to South Korea from Shenyang earlier in the day.
Joining the crew after Chinese New Years, Tony Leung had a chance to meet with his idol Zhao Benshan in Diaobingshan. According to sources, Zhao Benshan will be making a guest appearance in "The Grand Master". While his screen time has still not been confirmed yet, Wong Kar-wai will be keeping the workload light for his friend and will only arrange for him to film one scene in the movie.

http://big5.ce.cn/xwzx/shgj/gdxw/201003/31/t20100331_21210949.shtml

Chinese news report regarding the filming of "The Grand Master" near Diaobingshan, China.
Filming at the old station of South Manchuria Railway (before 1945) with a steam engine. Also some scenes of a big funeral, possibly for Yip Man's relatives.

http://video.sina.com.cn/ent/m/c/2010-04-12/021668241.shtml

The Grand Master - Yip Man biopic

Wong Kar-wai's next film is The Grand Master (一代宗師), a biopic of Wing Chun teacher Yip Man.
The film will star Tony Leung Chiu-wai in the title role.
Zhang Ziyi, Chang Chen, Song Hye-kyo and Zhao Benshan are also confirmed.
The actors have training in Wing Chun and other martial arts styles with Yuen Woo-ping's stunt team for a couple of months. Their preparation hit a setback in 2009 when Leung broke his left arm during training but he has since recovered.
Gong Li and Brigitte Lin were rumoured to star but nothing came of this.

Before anyone complains that Wong Kar-wai is jumping on the Yip Man bandwagon after the recent film, be aware that WKW has been planning the film for nearly ten years.

Wong Kar-wai formally announced plans to make a film about Ip Man in 2002, with Tony Leung and Yip Chun (son of Yip Man) in attendance. However, filming on “2046” overran due to the outbreak of the SARS virus and the subsequent rescheduling problems of the actors. Additionally, the editing and post-production also took longer than expected. After working on-off on "2046" for four years, as well as extended periods working on “In The Mood For Love” and “Happy Together”, Tony Leung wanted to delay making the Ip Man biopic so he could take time off from working with Wong Kar-wai.
In the interim, Wong Kar-wai planned to make “The Lady From Shanghai” with Nicole Kidman but the project was shelved and he made “My Blueberry Nights” with Norah Jones instead.
He also spent a number of years restoring “Ashes Of Time” which resulted in the new 'Redux' version. In 2007, producer Raymond Wong announced that he would make a rival film entitled "Ip Man" starring Donnie Yen. In 2008, Tony Leung turned down a number of films in order to spend an extended period training in Wing Chun for “The Grand Master”.

(UPDATED)
ENGLISH TITLE: The Grand Masters
CHINESE TITLE: 一代宗師, Yut Doi Jung Si (Cantonese title), Yi Dai Zong Shi (Mandarin title), First Generation Master (Literal English translation), The Grand Master (working title)
DIRECTOR: Wong Kar-wai
STORY BY: Wong Kar-wai
WRITTEN BY: Wong Kar-wai, Zou Jingzhi and Xu Haofeng
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Chan Ye Cheng, Song Dai
PRODUCER: Wong Kar-wai, Jacky Pang Yee-wah
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER: Michael J. Werner
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Philippe Le Sourd
EDITOR: William Chang Suk-ping
PRODUCTION DESIGNER: William Chang Suk-ping
COSTUME DESIGNER: William Chang Suk-ping
ACTION CHOREOGRAPHERS: Yuen Woo-ping (Wing Chun), Lau Kar-leung (Hung Gar)
ACTORS: Tony Leung Chiu-wai
Zhang Ziyi
Chang Chen
Song Hye-kyo
Zhao Benshan
Wang Qingxiang
Julian Cheung Chi-lam
Bruce Leung Siu-lung
Cung Le
GENRE: Action, biography, drama
COUNTRY: China
STATUS: According to a report from Beijing, filming will run from December 12, 2009 to April 18, 2010
Reshoots began in mid-September.
RELEASE DATE: 2011 (Hong Kong)
LANGUAGES: Mandarin, Cantonese
BUDGET: US$25 million
PRODUCTION COMPANIES: Block 2 Pictures, Metropole Organization
TAGLINE: "In Martial Arts There is No Right or Wrong, Only the Last Man Standing."
PLOT: A biopic of Yip Man — the first Chinese man to teach the martial art of Wing Chun openly, training many major level students, including Bruce Lee.
SYNOPSIS: "With martial arts getting more popular in the Thirties, more people seek to learn them via the professionals at Foshan in Southern China. Some of the experienced masters like to challenge their counterparts and undergoing battles. To have their whole concentration, it is their practice to lock up the venues and no one is allowed to leave during battles. No food and no rest before reaching any results.
Ip Man is a young rich man extremely talented in martial arts, but he chooses to keep a low profile. Yet this doesn't keep him out of these troubles ahead. One day he is trapped in this battleground so he has to use every means in order to get out of there. The masters are amazed by his abilities. Master Kung and his daughter Kung Yi are amongst, and the latter is attracted to this newcomer.
A high warlord is assassinated by his own guard Yi Xian Tian. All masters in Foshan vow to take Tian down no matter what..."
FILMING LOCATIONS: Chikan Movie and Television City, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China
Kaiping, Guangdong, China
Diaobingshan, Tieling City, China
Shenyang, Liaoning province, China
Liaoyang, Liaoning province, China