On the eve of the View Finder film festival, Mark Tjhung speaks with promising young Macanese director Sergio Perez

“It’s not really a film festival,” the representative from the Macau Cultural Centre tells me. I apologise profusely, and tell him I won’t get into that kind of semantic stumble again. But regardless of how you wish to label it, this year’s instalment of The View Finder to Asian Film, running from the November 24-30 in the Centre’s Small Auditorium, is an exciting development for the enclave’s nascent film scene.

Organised by the MCC, and in its fourth edition, The View Finder to Asian Film is being re-launched as a bi-annual event that aims to promote the cultural, artistic and alternative aspects of specific Asian film. Every two years it will focus on a particular nation (it previously encompassed works from across the continent), showcasing a collection of films and documentaries that reflect a country’s contemporary cinematic landscape. In 2008, the spotlight will be on China, with seven films in total (including one each from Macau and Hong Kong), screening over the course of a week.

This year’s opening film is the Macau submission, Macao Stories, a collection of five short films by five local directors, inspired by the 2006 composite piece Paris Je T’aime. The last in the quintet to run is Rua de Macau (Macau Streets), directed by Macau-born Sergio Perez. “I came late into the project,” says the director. “I saw an interview in a magazine with the other four directors announcing the plan. At the same time, I was finishing shooting Rua de Macau. In that interview, they stated that [Paris Je T’aime] inspired them to move forward.” As it happened, this film was also one of the main driving forces behind the up and coming director’s first work of fiction. A few phone calls later, and Perez and his filmwere on board.

Rua de Macau tells the story of Miri, a young woman born and raised in Macau, who has recently returned to her hometown after working overseas. The narrative follows her voyage of rediscovery. As a mixed Macanese who also spent time aboard (he attended film school in Portugal, remaining there until 2003, and is of Chinese, Spanish and Portuguese descent), it’s hard not to see Perez’s work as partly autobiographical. Indeed, the clash of cultures is a concept that the director seems absorbed by, regarding it as an extremely important aspect in his film-making. “China is probably one of the richest places in the world, in terms of cultural heritage. Every region is an endless pot of unique stories. You can tell them in a mainstream approach or in an art-house fashion, but these unique stories are what audiences want.”

Of course, Perez’s particular passion is for Macau, a town which he believes, despite a lack of cinematic representation, has all the right ingredients to make the same impact on audiences as other culturally rich cities such as Hong Kong, Paris and even LA. “It’s the way people communicate, the ’Macaista’, the cuisine, the ’Patuá’, the Cantonese opera that is performed in the gardens, the incredible harmony of religions and their co-existence, such as the Na Tcha temple right next to Saint Paul's Ruins… Call this pure luck, but the fact is, around every corner [of Macau], if you take the time to look for it in these centuries-old streets, you can find something magical.”

Perez obviously loves his hometown. And in the context of this culturally intricate city, he understandably thinks that the essence of Macau is best portrayed by a local filmmaker, familiar with all of its idiosyncrasies, good or bad. But the director is realistic about the ‘industry’ in Macau, and its ability to produce many movies, at least for the time being. “Does [Macau cinema] even exist?” he asks rhetorically. “There's potential for sure, but nowadays we cannot say there's a Macau film ‘industry’ as such.”

However, Perez remains excited about The View Finder to Asian Film, and the great reaction thus far to his collaborative effort: “The opening night of Macao Stories [is only] two or three tickets away from being completely sold out, which means that people are really eager to see local cinema.”

Perez hopes to see this positive response translate into a greater level of home grown production, not to mention more Macanese considering cinema and the arts as a potential profession. “As a local film director, I can see that The View Finder to Asian Film could be a start of something bigger.” We couldn’t agree more. While, according to the MCC at least, it may not be a film festival, it still promises to be a true celebration of the cinematic.

At time of print, tickets were still available. See: www.ccm.gov.mo/prog08/VFAF