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SCMP Reporter

Three young directors have warned that the end is near.

They have made short  films for environmental group Greenpeace to  make the public  more  aware of the issue of climate change.

The award-winning filmmakers are Wong Ching-po, John Chan and Jervis Suen. Wong's two films, which star Canto-pop star Kelly Chen Wai-lum, and Chan's animation, which features the voice of veteran actor Liu Kai-chi,  can be seen on the organisation's official website.

Suen's short film is currently in post-production,  and will be released later this month.

Wong, who was awarded the Best New Director prize at the 2004 Hong Kong Film Awards, said: 'I'm  scared of very hot weather. So when Greenpeace approached me and brought up this topic, my first question was whether there would be winter anymore.

'Winter arrives late and it feels more like autumn. This is like seeing something that you  love slipping away, and you don't know when it  will totally disappear.'

Wong's first short features a melting planet and a solemn-looking Chen under water. The second  is  bleaker and more shocking. It shows  Chen holding a baby  who melts like an ice-cream as the temperature goes up year by year.

Wong said he was partly inspired by a photo of a seal sitting on an isolated icecap  surrounded by water.

'It's  pathetic ... We need  a safe place  not only for these animals [to live] but also for ourselves,' said Wong.  He added that the government and giant corporations should take the lead in promoting the  fight against global warming.

While Wong's shorts are dark and sad, animator  Chan adopts a different approach to the issue.  His animated short, which features a sweaty weatherman who takes his clothes off while reporting the soaring temperatures around the world, is hilarious and fun.

'When I learned that the animation was going to be launched near the end of November, which was then still very hot, I decided to portray the scenario at its most extreme,'

he said.

Chan, who won the top animation prize at the 11th Hong Kong Independent Short Film and Video Awards, said he had always wanted to make a short that  promoted green messages.

'When I  think about climate change, images of doomsday ... come to my mind.  I am also reminded of the images in some animations that I've watched.'

Sci-fi animations such as Hayao Miyazaki's Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind, which feature ecological themes,  have influenced Chan.  He sees animators as taking on the role of prophets.

'They  [draw]cartoons images, but they are very shocking.'

To  bring home the threat of climate change, Suen's film is like a mini-version of The Day After Tomorrow - with Hong Kong people as victims of  a natural catastrophe.

Shot in Central, it features local streets flooded by seawater - with the help of CG effects.

'I want Hong Kong people to feel that the issue is related to their lives,' said Suen.

He added that the situation would improve if everybody  did their part - such as recycling plastic bottles or turning off the air conditioner - to protect the environment.

'If everyone  did these  little things, the [accumulated] effect  would be huge.'

Chan  pins his hopes  on the education system, adding that schools and parents  should set  a good example. 'If the teachers, principals and parents are doing [their part to protect the environment], the children will follow suit,' he said.

See Street Talk on page 3 and feature spread on pages 6 and 7

Visit www.greenpeace.org/china/ch/photosvideos/videos to watch the videos.



Lights, camera, green action