Moongate Films

09/08/2025

Building on my last post about literary adaptations, I’ve been thinking about the late Tibetan director Pema Tseden’s film Tharlo and how carefully he adapts his own story. The original text, clearly translated by Jessica Yeung, is simple, with concise dialogue and clear actions. Yet Tseden turns those twenty pages into a two-hour black-and-white film made up of only eighty-four shots. I really admire how he uses silence and imagery to show the characters’ feelings instead of spelling everything out. It’s been two years since he sadly passed away. For anyone new to his work, Tharlo, about a lonely Tibetan shepherd who travels to the city to get an ID card and faces the challenges of modern life, is a wonderful film and a great place to start.

06/08/2025

This isn’t a new piece, but I thought it worth sharing: Sarah Tomlinson (no relation!) interviews several authors in Lit Hub about what they’ve learned from adapting their own novels for the screen. One recurring theme, long development cycles, definitely resonates. The script for Chen Xiwo’s I Love My Mum (the source material for Hidden) took years to develop, going through many, many drafts, not to mention repeated censorship knockbacks! What I’d add, though, is that adaptation doesn’t end with the script; it continues through the director’s vision in production and post. Our director Pamela Pan found some very cinematic ways to convey the most difficult material (particularly the S*M scenes), going well beyond what we had imagined on the page. Another key point is the shift from the internal nuance of fiction to the external demands of screenwriting; how thoughts and emotions must be expressed through action, dialogue, and visuals. Would love to hear others’ thoughts, either on your own experiences with adaptation or on literary adaptations you love (or hate)!

When I moved to Los Angeles as a journalist and aspiring novelist and screenwriter in 2006, most of the prose writers I befriended seemed a bit suspicious of my TV aspirations. But nearly two decad…

14/07/2025

I've been thinking about Chen Xiwo recently, a writer of rare integrity and courage whose work resonates deeply. It was a real pleasure to be able to share with him that the film adaptation of his work is moving forward.

Remembering his visit to the UK for the launch of the English translation of The Book of Sins (translated by Nicky Harman) brings back many happy memories.

Here’s a video from that time: an English PEN event where Chen was interviewed by historian Julia Lovell, alongside the poet Ou Ning.
📽️https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgQnm6A2LW8&t=3s

Ou Ning and Chen Xiwo share their stories from inside China. Chaired by Julia Lovell.