Meet Bruce Puyu Wang | Director & Cinematographer & Musician

We had the good fortune of connecting with Bruce Puyu Wang and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Bruce Puyu, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I’ve been working as a director and cinematographer for about seven years. It’s been a long journey, but one that I truly enjoy. I’ve been away from my hometown, wandering in foreign lands for over a decade. During this time, I’ve witnessed the clash of different cultures and seen how people view things from unique and different perspectives.
I picked up my camera when I was in junior high school. At that time, my self-awareness was just sprouting. With the passing of time and the increase of professional knowledge, cinematography is my nutrition for my pursuit of self-worth. “Time” is the central theme in the vast majority of my work. I am obsessed with the concept of time.

The most effective way to experience the past is through films and old footage. It is the most direct and romantic way. Whenever I watch material from decades before me, I feel a connection just by looking into the eyes of those on the screen. They make me travel through time and enrich my life. By watching such material, I feel the importance of preserving our lives. I therefore want to shoot more footage closer to this theme: our daily lives and the current world we live in. I imagine that a hundred years from now, people will be watching it and feeling the same emotions I felt watching the films of the past. I wish to relay artistic romanticism.

“Emotion is all we’ve got.” This is what Jong Lin, the Director of Photography of the Ang Lee trilogy, taught me. He has been the most influential teacher throughout my life. We worked together as part of the same crew. He taught me that cinematography always serves to convey emotions and stories and, as a cinematographer, how to help the director complete the work. Mr. Lin has been an inspiration to me in this field. I will never forget his words of wisdom.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’m pround of the works that I create. whether it’s films, songs, writings, or photographs. They are all different yet meaningful to me. They show that my brain is not a playground for other people’s thoughts. They are the proof that I have existed. We will keep changing, but they won’t; they become the light marks in the tunnel, and that is time. The world is a dream, and everyone treats this dream differently, but for me, it’s not how the world sees you but how you see the world, and I have been working hard just to provide all with a unique perspective of it. It wasn’t meant to be an easy road, and my journey continues because I’ve never reached the mountain top of where I want to be, so I need to keep working for it. How to make better work and how to be seen is probably a question every filmmaker needs to face. Maybe the only solution is to keep shooting, don’t stop, there’s always hope.

Take my musician career for example, a few years ago, I often thought about giving up music entirely to devote myself to filmmaking. I felt that making music drained a lot of my energy, and I wasn’t sure how far I could go down that road. But then, I began receiving messages from listeners who told me that my music helped them through difficult times and gave them strength. That made me realize that the work I had done was not in vain. In striving to fulfill myself, I was also touching the lives of others. What they didn’t know was that their words inspired and supported me in return, helping me overcome many of my own struggles. We are always in this cycle of mutual empowerment with our listeners and audience.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
The best time ever for me is when I can fully immerse myself in the beauty of the world around me, undistracted and present. We could dive into the vast Pacific, watch the sunset over the desert, or glide across Echo Park’s lake on a gentle night, the breeze carrying the faint scent of summer as city lights ripple across the water. We could climb hills to overlook the city at night, then get lost in the music at a club, dancing until we’re blissfully drunk. I’ll bring my friends to see, to live, to feel it all.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to shout out to the incredible films, music, and books in this world that inspire and push humanity forward. They represent the inheritance of will and serve as my sustenance. For example, my favorite director, Krzysztof Kieślowski, and his film series Dekalog, the album In Rainbows, and my guitar hero David Gilmour have all indirectly shaped my aesthetic and the standards I hold for my own work.

Website: https://www.puyuwang.work/films

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bruce_wang_lee?igsh=YTQwZjQ0NmI0OA%3D%3D&utm_source=qr

Other: http://163cn.tv/w5qmKsF