TUE NOV 6

7:00 PM

ISABEL BADER THEATRE

Opening Night Gala Party

BUY TICKETS

FIRST TIME

CANADIAN PREMIERE | RATED PG

Director: Han Yan (in attendance) | China/Hong Kong 2012 | 106:00 | DCP | Mandarin w/English Subtitles
Producers: Ivy Ho, Bill Kong, Hao Lee | Writer: Han Yan | Cinematographer: Charlie Lam | Editor: Angie Lam
Sound: Zhou Lei | Music: Chan Fai Young, Zhou Jiao Jiao | Cast: Angelababy, Mark Chao, Shan Jiang, Bai Baihe, Tian Yuan, Allen Chao

Official Selection-Shanghai International Film Festival 2012

Suffering from a lifelong illness that requires constant medication, shy college student Song Shiqiao (Hong Kong model, Angelababy) spends each day with her overprotective mother (Shan Jiang) and earnestly chronicles her quiet life on cassette tapes in order to replay and supplement her patchy memory. Serendipitously, Shiqiao runs into a past crush from school named Gong Ning (Taiwanese heartthrob Mark Chao, Monga, Black and White). Much to the interest of Gong Ning’s bandmates and to the dismay of Shiqiao’s mother, an unlikely romance quickly blooms between the sickly Shiqiao and the seemingly nonchalant rock singer. But like every cassette tape, there is an “A” and “B” side to this love story.

A remake of the 2003 Korean film (with the unusual title, “...ing”), this heartfelt tale of first love has been revamped by director Han Yan. This latest adaptation surpasses the Korean original by utilizing whimsical visuals (by Hong Kong artists Wing Shya and Sui Hak) and rich cinematography to depict the sweetness of romance, equally full of laughter and tears. First Time’s fascinating twists and turns elevate the story beyond more than just a saccharine romance, to one with a deeper message about living, and loving, life.

- Anderson Le

ABOUT THE DIRECTOR:

Han Yan is a graduate of the Central Academy of Drama in Beijing. He has made four feature films to date: Who I Gave My First Kiss To (2006), Angel’s Heart (2007), The Tropic of Cancer (2008) and Let’s Go (2009). The Tropic of Cancer was Han’s answer to the popular Taiwanese coming-of-age film Winds of September (Dir. Tom Lin). Han was hand-picked among many young Mainland directors chosen by the project’s producer, veteran actor Eric Tsang, in Tsang’s effort to showcase new talent from Taiwan, Hong Kong, and China.

REVIEWS:
"[First Time] impresses as an exercise in narrative ingenuity, and brings out maximum appeal from its leads" - Variety

PRINT SOURCE:
June Wu
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EDKO Films Limited