In a Moment Of Pause, Learn To Love Yourself Anew
On April 24, the Official Selection of Tiantan Award Loveable held its premiere at the Emperor Cinema. Actress Helga Guren attended the post-screening Q&A session, meeting the audience in person. The film won big at the 15th Beijing International Film Festival, taking home Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress, and Best Screenplay under the Tiantan Award, becoming this year's biggest winner.
“I discussed nearly every detail with director Lilja,” Helga recalled. “What kind of trauma has she been through? How does she live her life? What does she truly long for in her subconscious?” The role is complex and deeply private - like a prolonged dive beneath the surface. As a performer, one must also dive into the depths of the character’s inner world.
Helga GurenThe film reaches its emotional peak when Maria confronts her reflection in the mirror - a powerful moment of dialogue, reconciliation, and release, portrayed with stunning grace. She shared the behind-the-scenes of the shooting: “That was a shot we shot three times. Initially, I wanted the mirror to reflect me, but in the end, I looked directly at the camera, which was much more difficult than I thought.”
The Premiere Event of Loveable
One audience member asked about the scene at the end of the film, in the café, when she finally reaches out to her husband. “This is the first time she says, I need you,” Helga explained. “She never dared to say it before - because she was terrified that if she accepted love, she would be abandoned. But in that moment, she chose to believe.”
Helga Guren
But the film doesn't offer a formula for mending all the cracks. Another audience member asked: “Why wasn't there a reconciliation between her and her mother?” Helga responded: “Maybe it's too late. Maybe not all relationships have an ending, but she started to face it, and that's the most important thing.”
Helga Guren
Maria's choice is rooted in her fears. She embarks on an inward journey, gradually learning to embrace love, to accept the loss of control, and to welcome change. “That fear was deeply engraved in her heart, but it was also this experience of 'dying once' that made her truly start to live.”
The Premiere Event of Loveable
Loveable doesn't offer a simple answer to “how to love”, but instead invites us to journey alongside its characters, learning through moments of pushing away and drawing near, the very first lesson in “loving oneself”.
Where there is film, there is dream. The brilliance never ends. The 6th Beijing Youth Film Festival is on the horizon - stay tuned for more cinematic brilliance!
