In 2016-2017, Film Director Rocky Jo was approached to direct Wang Pai Yu Shi aka Guardians of Night, a superhero action horror movie based on one of China’s most popular comic book IP’s. The film was AHA Entertainment’s (headed by EP Aiken Zou) first movie that would be exclusively released on China’s streaming giant IQIYI.com.
Guardians of Night synopsis: The world is filled with demons and spirits that can only be seen by the special few in the world known as Guardians. A band of young guardians soon find themselves as the city’s last hope, as more and more people mysteriously transform into mind-controlled zombies.
Able to speak Mandarin and English, Rocky soon found himself traveling constantly between Taiwan and China to prep for the film. (production was to take place in Taipei, Taiwan, while the studio and execs were all based in Beijing, China.) The goals were lofty as AHA Entertainment expressed their desire to create a Marvel-like film, but at an independent film budget. To accomplish this, Rocky had to get creative, both with the re-writing, directing, and post-production.
One of the key players he brought on to aid the production was cinematographer Johnny Ching, a Los Angeles DOP that has shot huge music videos for various bands. Another important key was visual effects supervisor Andor Zahonyi, who brought his team at Umbrella Effects in Hungary, including on set Visual Effects supervisor Ivan Sarosacz. And the final piece was the action choreographer, led by Ming-Sing “Sam” Wong, who came from the legendary Jackie Chan action choreography team.
The schedule was grueling and nonstop, as the production team had to deal with bad weather, last minute location changes, and the realities of stunt injuries despite all the best efforts to protect everyone. Nevertheless, after nearly 4 months of planning, 40+ days of filming, over 100+ crew and 2 film units, Guardians of Night proved to be a huge success for its budget, earning over 24+ million views compared to the 3-4 million its peers typically receive.
The experience was unforgettable and Rocky is eternally grateful to the amazing cast, the incredible film and action team, and Aiken Zou of AHA entertainment. They are the true reason for the film’s success.
To see Rocky’s previous feature film, you can check it out here at: Lovesick Movie Montage
To see more of Rocky Jo’s works: Showreel
TAGS: film director • feature film • movie • action • horror • superhero • comic book • film production company