Cold Flame

Cold Flame is a hauntingly beautiful short film that delves into the intricate nature of relationships and the fine line between love and obsession. Follow Alice as she navigates the painful realization that her art teacher's affection for her is not what it seems and discovers a deeper connection to herself and her own art along the way.

  • Jing Yu
    Director
  • Huan Hu
    Director
  • Jing Yu
    Writer
  • Huan Hu
    Writer
  • Chuyao Huo
    Producer
  • Lizzie Wilson
    Key Cast
    "Alice"
  • Bec Kuper
    Key Cast
    "Ms. Greenwood"
  • Huan Hu
    Cinematographer
  • Yidi Liu
    Cinematographer
  • Project Type:
    Experimental, Short, Student
  • Production Budget:
    2,000 AUD
  • Country of Origin:
    Australia
  • Country of Filming:
    Australia
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital, Super 8
  • Aspect Ratio:
    4:3
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    Yes - University of Sydney
Director Biography - Jing Yu, Huan Hu

Jing Yu is a Sydney-based Chinese emerging filmmaker and visual artist.

Having grown up in a small coastal town in Southern China, Jing relocated to Sydney in 2016 to study a Bachelor of Media at Macquarie University. During her studies she made multiple experimental and narrative short films, including 'I, Dear' which would be selected for the Liftoff Global Network Film Festival, Changing Face International Film Festival, Joy House, Film Festival and Heart Of Gold International Film Festival.

Jing's painting and art-making background has fundamentally shaped approach to filmmaking and storytelling. Her works to date which largely explore intimate human relations, spirituality and mortality through the conceptual, aesthetic and structural elements of the cinematic medium. Her solo-produced experimental short film 'The Distance Between Me and Death', a highly personal work which explores her personal connection with trauma in the form of an animated pop-up book made a profound impact on audiences at the Made In The West Film Festival 2020 and earned her awards for Best Director and Best Editor.

She is currently completing the Masters Of Moving Image at Sydney College where he is developing her thesis project, 'Cold Flame'.

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Director Statement

As a filmmaker, my goal has always been to tell stories that challenge and inspire audiences. With my latest project, I aimed to explore the complexities of human relationships and the ways in which we connect and disconnect from one another. I first became interested in this topic after hearing a story from a podcast listener. The story was about falling in love with a public education teacher at the age of 18. After spending time together, the relationship ended naturally. However, the individual later discovered that the teacher had pursued many other 18-year-old girls and was only interested in them for a short time. This experience led me to question the boundaries between love and manipulation, which became the focus of my film. Initially, I planned to explore the narrative and subject of teacher-student relationships, but during discussions with Ash, we decided to focus on the broader topic of "the border between love and art."
Specifically, we asked, "What if the person you love only sees you as a masterpiece? Is it still love?" The subject of love and art is vast and personal. In our film, there is already a power imbalance
between the teacher and the student. Miss Greenwood, a painting teacher, loves Alice as if she were a perfect work of art. Alice's affection for Miss Greenwood encompasses admiration, curiosity, and rebellion against a conformist past, much like her love for the volcano she has never seen. Alice is like fire, primal and life-giving, while Miss Greenwood is like the sea, vast and loving. Throughout the creative process, Ash and I worked to understand Alice and Miss Greenwood's motives for their actions. We asked questions like, "Why was the sculpture burnt down? Why does
Alice like volcanoes? Why does Alice have feelings for Miss Greenwood?" To make the characters more tangible, I wrote short biographies for them early in the process. We also considered the
viewer's perspective, ensuring that the emotional shifts and Alice's struggles were natural and reasonable. The creative process was both exciting and painful. However, we polished the film repeatedly to ensure that it effectively conveyed the message of the border between love and art. The result is the film "Cold Fame," which explores the complexities of human relationships and challenges the audience to question the boundaries between love and manipulation.