Jamie Chung & Bryan Greenberg – Already Tomorrow in Hong Kong

By: Lisa Steinberg

Q) The film includes a stunning backdrop. Did you find yourself getting lost in the beauty?

Jamie: It was pretty easy for me to resonate with my character because she is literally a fish out of water. It’s her first time being in this busy, busy place. Even though she is Chinese-American, it is her first time being there. Getting lost and not knowing the language didn’t require much prep. It was really sweet to enjoy the views for the first time during film.

Q) Bryan, you and Jamie are Executive Producers on the film. What was it about the story that Emily Ting tells that drew you to the movie?

Bryan: I worked with Emily on two other independent films and we had a really nice working relationship. She was a producer on them and I didn’t know she was a writer. She approached me to see if Jamie and I wanted to work on this script with her. We just really related to the telling of how two people meet and the timing wasn’t right. I think it was really interesting view point into a romantic film. Also, the backdrop of Hong Kong through western eyes was awesome. We worked the script with her and got to a place where everyone felt comfortable doing it. We developed a really good trust and working relationship and went off and shot in aa short time.

Q) How collaborative were you and Jamie with Emily?

Bryan: Emily is great! Even though it is a personal story for her, she still gave us the trust and freedom to make these characters our own. A lot of first time directors don’t have the confidence to let go of the story and let moments happen and let go of preconceived notions. But Emily did and I think the film really thrives. She was a great director. She was always there when we needed her and she also let us do our own thing and play.

Q) Ruby and Josh have this undeniable chemistry, but the timing doesn’t seem to be right. Where do you connect with these characters?

Jamie: The reason that we were so intrigued by the story when we read it outloud was because I think anyone can relate to this story. When Bryan and I met, the timing was never right. He was always in a relationship. It was always a respectful encounter, but you kind of felt like something was there. So, you were always daydreaming, “I wonder how it would have played out if we were both single.” For years, we would run into each other, but again the timing wasn’t right. We really resonated with the story that unfortunately, it wasn’t the right time for them.

Q) What were some of your favorite scenes to shoot?

Jamie: I like the ferry. I thought it was so beautiful seeing the lights of the city from the water. The lights reflected off the water in a way that made it look endless. I thought it was pretty cool.

Bryan: I liked shooting in the night market. We just kind of went and freestyled it. We improv’d it. The whole montage of us buying selfie sticks was so much fun. She just threw us in a crazy mix. A funny story – we had to get permission from the Triads to shoot there. So, we had a Triad scout looking out for us, which I thought was so crazy and so funny. We felt pretty safe. I think that’s where all of our budget went – the Triads. [laughs]

Q) What was the most challenging part of filming in Hong Kong?

Bryan: It was a challenge to shoot in another country an independent film where you can’t lock the streets down. We were doing a lot of long takes so you get drunken people coming out of bars just stumbling through your take right when as an actor you thought you nailed it. Then, you have some drunk guy yelling at the camera and you are like, “Uh! I have to do that again?!” That was a bit of a challenge. Also, for me, I had to play a local and I had never been there before. So, I had to get familiar with the city quickly. I had to do quick research and take lessons in Cantonese. That was very hard for me because it’s a very difficult language. I’m like a typical American where I can only speak English. Then, I think the challenge was the heat. It was super hot! With the rain, we got really lucky with it. Even at night it was super hot walking around. It, for sure, had its challenges.

Jamie: I think he answered the question perfectly.

Q) What did you learn about Hong Kong from being a part of the film?

Jamie: You understood why Hong Kong is the leading part of China in terms of film. Culturally, it’s the perfect mesh of east meets west. You have the Hong Kong side and the Kowloon side. There is so much business coming in and out that you can understand why it is the busiest port city in China. I think I learned that it is a city that I could actually live in. It kind of resembles New York and Paris. It’s kind of the center of everything.

Q) What do you hope viewers take away from watching Already Tomorrow in Hong Kong?

Jamie: I think that, for me, what I took from the film is everyone is going to have their own opinion as to when it is officially cheating. The movie plays into this gray area of what is right and what is wrong as it’s all just personal preference. I think you will certainly have an opinion of what is cheating and not after seeing this film. You’ll know your line.

Bryan: I got to know the city and I hope that people get a sense of this amazing city that they have never seen before in a way like this.