Mainland director Ning Hao is trying a different style and pace in his new movie, Crazy Stone. The movie, one of the works under Focus Film's First Cut project, is an action comedy about a group of thieves fighting for a precious jewel. The effort marks a change from his critically acclaimed works Incense (2003) and Mongolian Ping Pong (2004). The movie will screen on Star TV this summer. 'Most mainland movies are too serious and dark. I want to make a movie which is more fun this time,' said the 28-year- old director (left), a Beijing Film Academy graduate. Ning, whose debut movie, Incense, won the grand prize at the Tokyo Filmex in 2003, wants mainland movies to be more diverse. 'There's no film industry on the mainland since the movie genre is so limited,' he said. 'There's no market and positive investment. There's no money to make something fun and entertaining. There are lots of movies made with a budget of several 100,000s of yuan.' He said he believed that mainland directors preferred serious topics as an easier way into the European market. 'There have been loads of successful cases,' he said.
