Made in China (2009 film)

The film started as an idea between James Choi and Judi Krant who sought out to make a micro-budget film together, with Choi acting as producer and Krant as director.[1] Due to the film’s cinematographer Peter Eldin’s recommendation to shoot in China, where he believes it could be cheaply done, the film’s co-writers (Judi Krant and Dan Sumpter) began to work on a China-centred script.[1] During this time, Choi worked to cast Jackson Kuehn as the film’s lead role and introduced him to Krant “with a note that said, “Meet Johnson”.[1] Many of the production crew would also make cameos throughout film, with some like Sumpter and Browyn Cornelius, the film's respective writer and producer were also part of the cast.[2]

As an indie production with limited resources, initial development on the film was slow and the crew struggled to find a production company. Since receiving formal permission to film in China can be challenging[3] the original production team was intent on filming Shanghai’s old neighborhoods without approval from the local Censorship Board.[1] This resulted in one instance in which a London-based production company’s offer had to be rejected because they deemed the crew’s guerilla shooting style too risky and wanted to switch filming locations to Hong Kong instead.[1] Krant insisted that Shanghai’s cityscape was essential to providing production value since it was “inherently visually exciting” and has yet to be fully explored by the indie lens.[1] As many of these old neighborhoods were or in the process of being demolished, Krant felt thrilled that some of them could be memorized in the film.[1] It was after Monnie Wills, the film’s subsequent executive producer, took an interest in the script and Beachwood Pictures became involved that filming was set in motion.[1]

As the film’s development was running on a humble budget with no legal permits, the crew had no cultural or linguistic mediators present in China, director Krant and producer Cornelius opted to arrive two weeks earlier than the rest of the crew to familiarize themselves with Shanghai.[1] Made in China was shot on location in East Texas and Shanghai over the course of around 20 days, at approximately 10 and 25 different locations respectively.[4] Guerrilla-style shooting was risky so production was constantly ongoing, lead actor Jackson Kuehn recounted that he would often be up at 5 A.M. and would only return home by 1:30 A.M.[5] Kuehn also recalled vomiting in a train station after days of suffering from lack of sleep and China's hot-humid weather, which reached upwards to 100 degrees Fahrenheit by day and had heavy pouring rain by night.[5] After approaching director Krant about the situation, Kuehn described her temperament was akin to that of "a king cobra about to strike a blind burrowing rodent" and he concurred.[5] It is these unconventional ideas and difficult environment, what Kuehn deems the "consequences of indie filmmaking" that he thinks creates the "natural aptitude".[5] Posing as an Italian Documentary Crew, the Made in China production crew each came from different backgrounds but all shared the purpose of proving an "unbending indie principles and strong diet of independent filmmaking."[5] After the 15 days long shoot in Shanghai finished, Kuehn remembered feeling out of place upon his return to Los Angeles and longed for China; that was until one of the producers contacted him for a reshoot.[5]

The entirety of the film was shot using a Panasonic AG-HVX200 P2 HD handheld camcorder, which Krant and Eldin researched and chose as a budget-friendly camera that was capable of shooting in HD quality and 24 fps.[4] Krant said: "You always want the best image acquisition you can afford and, working on a micro-budget, we were delighted by the picture quality we achieved with the HVX200".[4] The HVX200 was also chosen because it allowed the crew to be nimble and efficient whilst navigating Shanghai's busy streets and shooting under the radar in mainland China.[4] The film was shot in High Definition at 720p, 24 frames per second, with natural lighting being utilised in the majority of the sets and was edited in Final Cut Pro by Sumpter, Victoria Mauch, Bart Rachmil.[4] Made in China's music was composed by Matt Mariano, who performed and recorded the soundtrack in MM Music Inc studio using a variety of instruments and objects, including a toy guitar, slinkys and squeaky toys amongst other things.[6]

A map of Made In China (2009 film) film festival locations in the USA.

As a micro-budgeted production, Made in China encapsulated many elements of the typical mumblecore scene.[7][24][25] Honolulu Star-Advertiser's Burl Burlingame called it "a thoroughly charming, quirkily funny independent film with a standout performance that would never have been touched in a million years by a major studio".[26] Nick Otten from the St. Louis Beacon describes it as the classic example of a true indie film, one that is created by friends.[17] Made in China was "Wes Anderson’s whimsy meets David Mamet’s love of duplicity" according to IndieWire's Brian Brooks.[27] A sentiment that is echoed by Richard Whittaker of The Austin Chronicle, who called the film a "semi improvised comedy" that "dances charmingly between the ingenuity of human inventiveness and the deviousness of the duplicity people commit on each other."[28] Whittaker specifically notes how the film invites audiences to sympathise with Johnson rather than ridicule him for his "sense of wonder".[28]

Melanie Addington, a writer for the Oxford Eagle and assistant director for Oxford Film Festival in 2009, wrote that "instead of just squashing Johnson’s dreams, the audience travels along with him as a sort of business coming-of-age story. His naivety charms us and we hope along with him that things may work out."[14] Addington further gave notice to director Krant's influence on Made in China citing that: "Her own ingenuity helped mark the film as a stand out at festivals this year."[14] Made in China is "a very American story set in China" Addington describes and she credited Jackson Keuhn and Dan Sumpter' performances for helping to "make the film what it is – a charming all American tale."[14] Scott Roxborough of The Hollywood Reporter called the film a "globalization comedy" and "crowd-pleaser", referring to it as a story of an inventor "who follows his American dream all the way to Shanghai."[21] Film producer Ted Hope said that as much as Made in China was "ambitious, inventive, funny and moving", the center of the film "Jackson’s comic and committed star turn."[5] Hope referred to both Kuehn and Krant as "the real deal" and recommended Made in China to audiences as a piece of "diverse & unique film culture" which showcased ambitious indie film-making, one that created a lot from very little.[5]

Duane Byrge of The Hollywood Reporter praised the two main actors’ performances for how convincing they were, with Jackson Kuehn as the good-natured Texan and Sumpter as a versatile scammer.[15] Byrge also gave credit to the “zingy, light” music done by Matt Mariano, which he said contributed to the “aw-shucks whimsy” of the film.[15] Ray Pride of Newcity Film describes Made in China as “micro-budgeted yet inspired” and “small but sure-footed”.[20] The film’s cinematography, shot on the run, had mixed reception: with some, like Byrge and Pride, appreciative of its “droll” and composition[15][20] whilst others like Variety's Alissa Simon criticizing it for being amateurish.[2] Despite acknowledging the film’s achievements at the SXSW Film Festival, Simon was also quick to point out how “limited production values and amateurish thespian will likely confine it to the fest circuit”.[2]