Movie: Journey To The West - Walker - No No Sleep

The WALKER series is a special heaven-sent in my film-making career.

In 2011, I was mesmerized by Xiaokang's slow walking performance on stage.

It was transcending, and I vowed then to make it into a film.

I let Xiaokang do his signature slow walk around the world, as a reflection of the long-lost preaching spirit, an homage to the monk-traveler Xuanzang in the Tang Dynasty, who embarked on a ten-thousand-mile overland pilgrimage to India.

FIDMarseille's director Jean-Pierre Rehm saw NO FORM in my WALKER series, and extended assistance to make Xiaokang's Marseille trip possible.

The film concept was finally realized thanks to the support from the Festival Les Instants Vidéo and Arte Television.

JOURNEY TO THE WEST is the sixth installment in the WALKER series.

It's Xiaokang first time setting foot in the West as a monk donning red robes.

There's a mountain resembling the looks of a monkey, conveniently called the Monkey Mountain.

It reminded me of the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West, and conjured up images of French actor Denis Lavant.

A wrinkled face carved by the knife of age.

His face drew me in like the rocky texture of Monkey Mountain.

I began to brainstorm—I want Xiaokang to walk on his face.

Roaming this ancient sun-dappled port city in the late summer, kicking up dust all over the place.

I also thought of the Diamond Sutra:

All things contrived are like

Dream, illusion, bubble, shadow,

And as dewdrop or lightning,

They should be regarded as such.

—Tsai Ming-liang

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