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The Ghost of Grandpa Tong
In Production at CSV |
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DirectorCeleste Koon | | Eight years ago my Yeye (Chinese word for grandfather) died. When asked to speak at his grave I was stumped. I, a ‘halfie/hapa,’ like my film’s protagonist Zoe, do not speak Cantonese, and he, although a once prominent Hong Kong businessman fully capable of speaking English, preferred not to. It wasn’t until his funeral itself, when old American friends said their final farewells that I fully realized... He spoke English. It leaves me wondering; what would I have said to him.
This film is based on that experience.
The Ghost of Grandpa Tong brings a new spin to the Canadian multi-ethnic ‘identity’ story in the form of a humorous ghost story about a stubborn old Chinese man who returns as a ghost that can only be seen by Zoe, his granddaughter’s halfie English speaking best friend. Grandpa Tong is a hilarious character we all know… and often avoid. He rants to Zoe about Simon, the young skater boy who holds his granddaughter Alice’s hand as she cries by the grave. He complains about Simon being a bad influence on Alice’s studies and more than anything his long floppy hair that resembles a ‘dirty yellow mophead.’ But after a while he opens up to Zoe that he misses his family whom he loves dearly and worries about.
This is not a sad story. It is a story full of humour and heart. It is a story relevant to many Torontonians and Canadians about the widening cultural gap between generations, and the overriding connectedness that draws us all together despite our differences.
| | Year: 2014
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