Interview Special: Tiger Ji: ‘Death And Ramen’

This short plays in part classic Monty Python sketch, but focuses also on the serious issues of mental health and suicide.  What was the start-off point for the short?

The start-off point came from a desire to subvert through play! I wanted to turn The Seventh Seal into a buddy comedy.

I thought that the subject of mortality needed an injection of levity. There are so many short films dealing with similar themes that begin in the same way – a man in a bathroom commits suicide. Boring, right? Yeah. So, I felt that the only way to make it interesting while functioning within such a well-worn trope was to avoid both irony and tragedy porn, and be as playful and sincere as possible.

I felt like it’d be quite fun if we turned Ingmar Bergman’s somber and self-serious masterpiece into a soulful buddy comedy, whereby instead of ‘man challenges Death at chess’, we witness an act of acceptance: man sits down and offers Death a bowl of ramen. 

Although this is a very dark tale, the cinematography is rich in colour palette. Tell us about your working relationship with your cinematographer.

Stefan (my DP) and I both felt like we wanted to lean away from the somber, drab, and muted colors associated with films that deal with death. But we didn’t want to go full camp either. We wanted to show that there is this ‘glass-half-full’ version to it, where it can be this gentle thing, worthy of acceptance, and even celebration. The color palette is an attempt at that. 

I’m a pretty serious storyboarder, and I make these very planned out animatics before I set to work. This helps my DPs achieve a really high level of precision, where we know exactly what each other are thinking, since we’ve both watched the animatics hundreds of times. It’s a pretty fun system if you’re both a little anal-retentive.

Tell us about your cast.

Bobby and Matt were obvious choices for a comedy subverting death. They didn’t need to try very hard to be hilarious, and striking the balance between darkness and humor was also pretty easy.

I’ve just been a huge fan of both of their work for so long, and reaching out to them to be in this was a no-brainer. I’m still honestly shocked they both agreed to be in my little film. 

Where did you shoot and for how long?

Five nights in Little Tokyo, LA.

We understand you are developing DEATH AND RAMEN into a feature. How will the feature differ from the short in terms of expanding the narrative, without giving away spoilers?

Put quite simply – I’d like to go deeper, especially in the culinary aspect. With the feature, I set the film’s roots deeper in the ramen shop. Instead of this sprawling, late-night odyssey, I see the film as being set firmly in the ramen joint.

I’m also actually going on a research trip soon, where I’ll be driving through Japan, visiting all the best ramen shops. I just want to taste the best ramen in the world. I feel like that will inform the writing process in a pretty visceral way.

You are from Hong Kong but based in New York. Hong Kong has such a rich history of film-making from the territory with the likes of Bruce Lee who passed away 50 years ago this year. How has the creative community changed there and how have you evolved since moving to New York?

I really jive with the philosophy of fusion, this idea of putting two conflicting flavors or essences together to make something entirely new. And Hong Kong, as a place, is like that. Bruce Lee does that pretty well, this Asian guy taking over Hollywood in that way. Everybody does fusion differently, like Wong Kar Wai has an entirely different take. 

It’s honestly quite a shame to see the film industry in Hong Kong — or the creative community at large — go down the drain because of China’s never-to-be-satiated hunger for control. I moved to New York when I was 14, and I really felt this dissonance from my life back home.

It was really cool to see the bustling film scene in New York, and I think it’s been really cool to see how the West has influenced my sensibilities, but also how much of Eastern-ness I’ve retained.

Who and what are your key cinematic influences?

It ranges from film to film. I’ve recently been obsessed with Oldboy because of that new Neon release. Maybe you can spot a little sprinkle of Park Chan Wook in Death & Ramen. 

Finally, what are you most proud of about this short?