THE WATERFALL 2009-09-24 updated Early in the creation of TRUE LEGEND's story, we had planned a fighting scene on a ship, which would have the feel of PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN. This was a scene when Su Can discovers his father killed by his foster brother Yuan, and chases after Yuan to a river bank. Yuan has already kidnapped Su's wife and son onto a ship. Su fights with Yuan on the ship, but the stronger Yuan wounds him and throws him into the sea. Su's wife jumps into the rapid current to save her husband. Maybe this reminds you of Ziyi Zhang's character in CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON, who also leaps off the mountain to pledge her loyalty. Why is our young screenwriter of TRUE LEGEND, Christine To, so hooked on jumping into the sea? We spoke and I realized that it was a TITANIC legacy. This huge Hollywood blockbuster certainly influenced a lot of young people, and "You jump, I jump" has somehow become the ultimate confession of love. In that respect, I certainly have no objection to adding the part of Su's wife jumping into the sea. We changed the scene later on – the ship fight was changed to a duel on the river bank. But still it wasn't easy to find the right location. One day, a producer had an idea – Hukou Waterfall in Shanxi province. Hukou is the second largest waterfall in China. The day we departed for Shanxi from Shenzhen, the weather was terrible and the flight was postponed for hours. When we reached Shanxi, everyone was dog-tired. But once we reached the waterfall, our eyes shone and all our fatigue vanished instantly. We were simply amazed at the close match between the roaring water and the tumultuous emotions of the protagonist. Immediately we started to design the action sequence and camera angles, and how to build the set by the waterfall. Before the actual shooting, the action team had to rehearse extensively and check all wires and props with great care. Greater caution was called for during shooting, as it was indeed a matter of life and death. Even as we stood on the wooden platform we built, we felt a bit shaky due to the river raging past below us. And it was hard to imagine the courage needed for the crew who had to stay beneath the platform! During filming we accidentally dropped a dummy into the river, and it was dragged away by the current at once. There was simply no way to get it back, and suddenly we were reminded how dangerous the whole thing really was!