The Unexpurgated interview with Eric Khoo

SINGAPORE — You probably already know this, but film-maker Eric Khoo is one smart cookie.

Just ask him any question — about his relationship with his parents, whether he fears getting dementia — and he’ll find some way to talk less about himself and more about his new telemovie Recipe, which premieres on Sept 29 on Channel 8.

Commissioned by the Health Promotion Board, Recipe tells the story of a chef, played by Tay, who learns how to relate to her ageing mother (Li Yin Zhu) after she begins to show signs of dementia.

That is, until you start chatting about Khoo’s other source of pride and joy — his four sons.

Then you begin to see the man behind Mee Pok Man and 12 Storeys.

Q: You say Recipe is a very personal movie for you. Does anything about it remind you of your own relationship with your parents?

A: Well, you know, I think it is the food element, like my mother’s chicken curry. And unfortunately, she is no longer with me. When I was approached by Health Promotion Board to actually create some awareness for Alzheimer’s, I thought, because we are dealing with a very tough subject matter, and if the film was just pertaining to the illness, I don’t think it would have a lot of traction. And ultimately we want to create awareness, right? So I started pondering over the concept of food. For me, food is about memories. I still remember the Sang Suk Dan (Cantonese for “half-boiled egg”) my mother made me as a kid, and these very important, simple dishes that you cherish. So in that sense, it is personal and it took us quite a while actually to come up with a script that I felt comfortable about.

And it was the actors that I had to think about, who I wanted to cast. And definitely Zoe was someone that I wrote the character for. And I did tell them many times that I want to have Zoe because I’ve never worked with her before, but I’ve been a fan of hers for many years.

And same also for Yin Zhu-jie. I loved Little Nyonya, and that was her last television role. Then she retired. Then for some of our productions, we had contacted her, but she goes, I’m too busy looking after my grandchildren. It was great to get her on board.

And really, in terms of the production and the shoot of Recipe, it went very smoothly because I had these wonderful, talented professionals. And I would spend time actually talking to them about the characters. When it actually got down to the shooting, and the blocking and all that, it was very simple. And they are very intuitive. I remember that scene when we had Zoe hugging Yin Zhu-jie, I mean we shot it, I was in a different room, looking at the monitor. But I was weeping. And a lot of times, also for this film, we would do a few takes, for safety reasons. But a lot of the first takes were actually what we used. Working with professionals, you don’t have to worry about overtime, because they are so fast.

Q: Are you afraid you might get dementia one day?

A: You know, I think it’s something that... it’s pretty frightening. And unfortunately, there is no cure, at this point in time. And I’ve had friends whose loved ones have been afflicted. And it’s very, very sad. I try not to think about it and you just move on. I know for Zoe, it was quite harrowing because we had gone to a caregivers’ talk. And essentially three of the actual caregivers are in the film. And when you hear them, it’s very moving. I admire the caregivers because it’s so much work. And I guess for the patient with dementia, the initial period is very, very frustrating. You know that you’re losing something. Painful.

Q: If you had dementia, what is one memory you wouldn’t want to lose?

A: My mother’s cooking. The memories of childhood, and with the food, and the association. With that long gone memory. If you lose it then you just don’t really have anything.

Q: How would you describe Zoe Tay as a type of food?

A: I would say she’s like the food I chose for the film — Hainanese curry rice. I chose it because it’s so diverse, in terms of the flavors of the sauces. When you look at the curry sauces, there’s the Assam fish, there’s the sotong, there’s the pork curry, there’s the chicken curry. And it’s so intricate. I would say, with Zoe, having acted for so many years, she can do everything. She is multi-faceted. So, yes, I’d equate her to a Hainanese curry rice.

Q: And you have four sons. What do you think they would remember most about you?

A: I think it’s my cooking. (laughs) And how I force them to eat what I like. It’s all about food again. Because I make it a point during weekends, I cook and then we all enjoy and eat. When they were small, I would give them like maybe twenty dollars and bring them to the wet market. And then (I’d) let them buy, and we’ll cook the stuff. And I think, definitely, it’s all about the eating sessions, which they will remember. Well, and going to see films.

Q: Was it difficult to squeeze everything into a 46-minute television-movie?

A: Ya, it’s almost like, you’ve got 46 minutes, and you have to put information across. You have to ensure also it’s not too heavy-handed, and to get the audience to embrace it. But ultimately, to let them be a little bit more aware. That if you see a lot of certain of these traits, to try to get early detection. Because medication can sort of retard it a bit. I would say the hardest process for this whole thing was in the material. Getting the script. And the next was picking the right talents. But I feel with the talents that we’ve got, they brought it to another level. Which, I am very proud of.

Q: Zoe said you saw an old fan on one of the sets and you brought it home with you. Why are you so attached to old things?

A: I like things old. It was an old National fan. And it was in the home of the Yin Zhu-jie character. I just looked at it and I was asking the owner of the place. “I’ll give you a new fan. And you give me this.” The fan is now in my living room.

Q: Is it dusty?

A: Not really.

Q: Have your children watched the film?

A: Yes they have!

Q: What did they think about it?

A: I was very pleased — three of them cried, so I think I struck a chord. The one that didn’t cry is my composer son, Christopher, who wrote the main theme. The brothers were raggling him like, “you’ve got no heart”.

Q: Is he the youngest?

A: No, he’s number three. The youngest one cried also.

Q: Which scene was it that touched them?

A: I think it was the last scene. I had to meet up with a lot of doctors. I needed to know more about dementia and Alzheimer’s. And actually I was talking to a neurosurgeon. He told me about a particular case, where this patient was actually just lying in bed for six months, staring into the ceiling with no real expression. And every day, the caregiver — the daughter — would clean her, and wash her. And one day, out of the blue, she just grabbed hold of her daughter’s hand, and looked into her eyes and said, “Thank you so much for looking after me”. So when he told me that, it worked its way into the film.

Q: Do you always show your movies to your sons?

A: Oh ya, I do. And it’s funny also, because my eldest boy is now in the army, 19. He recently watched 12 Storeys. I think I showed them 12 Storeys when he was very small. And ya, I mean, they sort of dig what I’ve made.

Q: Do you seek their approval in some way?

A: Okay, actually of late, I’ve been seeking their approval and also the development of Recipe, and putting it together. Just like, during meal times, say, what do you think of this idea, that idea. Definitely with Christopher, my third kid, because he composed the music for several of my films already. I’ll sometimes show them my little drafts, and get feedback. And then my eldest boy, 19, made a short film last year, which went to Busan Film Fest. And he’s very interested to actually make a career in making films. I’ve been trying to persuade him not to go to film school. I feel that in today’s world, anybody can be a film-maker. You can even make a film with a smartphone. In the old days, when you had to originate the thing on 35mm, 16mm, it was important to go to film school. But not anymore. And he’s making another short film, which is kind of cool because then you know we can sort of speak the same language. It’s all about like the characterisations, the pacing. It’s great because my kids, as much as they love the Marvel superhero films, are also open to the less commercial films, whether it’s going to be Ilo Ilo. And I think it’s important to have the diverse sort of cinematic experience, and watch as much as you can.

Q: So family is actually a great influence to your films.

A: Oh, yes, yes. Actually one of my favourite genres is horror. So when they were very small, I did a very horrible thing. I showed them The Ring. What I did was, I showed The Ring first, with no sound. Then I showed that same scene, with happy music. And then I showed the thing with the actual image and sound.

There was also another film that I showed to them, which I found so brilliant the opening. That was Saving Private Ryan. It was the Omaha Beach Invasion. And I said, okay, when you watch this, you see the intestines and all that. But it’s all make-up, it’s sausages, it’s not real. But just watch it for how it’s being shot and framed. At one point, one of them — I think it was my eldest son — he goes, “The camera’s in the water. It’s bopping up and down.”

Q: So your kids have been exposed to films since young.

A: Yea, since young. My mother was a cinephile. And she would bring me to the cinema when I was very small, maybe three or four years old. I remember every week, we’d go and see maybe one, two films, four o’clock show. And then she loved horror. So I was subjected to all these exorcisms, and really, really, like, scary films. But it gave me, I don’t know, it created a love, in a way, for cinema.

Q: What can we look forward to for your next film, that you’re directing?

A: Actually I’m working now on a script. And it’s essentially a love story. But it spans a hundred years. If all goes well, maybe I’ll start shooting this at the end of the year.

Q: Is it set in Singapore?

A: It’s set in Singapore.

Q: Romance?

A: It’s romance, love and many different facets of love that I want to explore.

Q: Do you have an idea of who you might want to cast?

A: I would love to actually have Jayley, Zoe and Yin Zhu-jie. And maybe have them play the same character, but she ages through the film. There’s a nice similarity with their faces.

Recipe premieres on Sept 29, 9pm, on MediaCorp TV Channel 8.