To Russia, for love

For Xia Hao, who has co-directed the film with Russian filmmaker Akaki Sahelashvili, the shoot became an opportunity for the young Chinese director to learn more about Russian culture and lifestyle.

"I have some friends who are married to Russians. Their stories are inspirational to me," Xia tells China Daily during a promotional event for the film in Beijing.

Xia learned about the project in 2017 while preparing for another film and found the script funny. After rounds of discussions to polish the script, the film started shooting on Jan 1, 2018, in Shanghai, with more sequences shot in Suzhou, Jiangsu province, as well as in Beijing before moving to Moscow two weeks later.

"Most rich Russians live in the suburbs of Moscow, which are somewhat similar looking to the areas outside Beijing's Sixth Ring Road," says Xia.

"It took us five or six hours to drive from downtown Moscow to the filming locations. The story is mainly set there," he says, adding that the outdoor temperature was nearly minus 10 C last winter.

Aside from the freezing cold and snow, the language barrier was a challenge for the crew.

Dong, an actor from the National Theater of China, reveals he had a Russian teacher who coached him the lines from the script and corrected his pronunciation during shooting of the film.

"I had never been to Russia before shooting began in Moscow. It was a very exciting and fresh experience to 'live' like a Russian," says Dong, who also makes his big-screen debut with this film.