Winner by unanimous decision

For Li Miao, the movie's production designer, YOLO has provided him the opportunity to witness the progress of the Chinese film industry.

Despite being set in a city, and with most of its scenes taking place in ordinary locations, like a neighborhood gym, a small restaurant, and an inconspicuous apartment building, Li reveals to China Daily that most of the scenes were shot on soundstages.

"The light in the studio can be artificially controlled, making the shooting process more relaxed and unhurried in terms of time. Even at night, we can shoot daytime scenes without having to wait for natural light," Li explains.

One of the most impressive scenes was shot in a four-floor set, standing 14 meters high, on a 28-meter-tall soundstage in Qingdao, Shandong province. The scene features the protagonist attempting to take her own life by jumping out of her apartment window after being overwhelmed by all of her painful experiences.

"We shot the scene in one long take. The audience will have an immersive experience, feeling as though they are following Du as she ascends the stairs, sits on the edge of the window, and then jumps out in a desperate emotional state," says Li.

As one of its most highlighted visual effects, the movie uses a mirror as a key prop. Revealing his inspiration from the 1941 novel The Garden of Forking Paths by Argentine writer and poet Jorge Luis Borges, Li mentions a scene featuring Jia's character walking through a hallway leading to the boxing ring before the competition begins. The protagonist suddenly shifts her head, looks at herself in a mirror, and sees her previous self smiling back at her.

Li explains that the scene seeks to convey a thought-provoking message: A person's fate can be completely altered when they encounter a crossroads in life and choose a different direction.

A graduate of the fine art and design department at the Communication University of China, Li was invited to work on the movie shortly after concluding shooting of the drama, Home Coming, in the Ningxia Hui autonomous region in 2022.

Expressing gratitude for the opportunity to collaborate with an exceptional director like Jia, Li said after the movie's release that he hoped to see the movie shown abroad so that it reached a wider international audience. He added that the film would provide foreign viewers a closer look at the lives of ordinary people in China.

Currently, YOLO has a score of 7.8 points out of 10 on the popular review aggregator Douban.

The movie has since been released in over 200 cinemas across North America, starting on March 8, and pulling in $800,000 on its opening weekend. It then became the highest-grossing Chinese film in the US market during its opening week, according to American box-office tracker Box Office Mojo.