Tony Leung stars opposite a ginkgo tree in his new indie film – and the role was written just for him

Questions and answers have been edited for clarity. Some of Leung’s answers have also been translated from Mandarin.

Ildiko, you wrote the role for Tony after seeing his interviews. What was it about his presence that spoke to you? 

Ildiko Enyedi: You know you can just guess who a person is (from their interviews). I saw hints of a very, very special person who could perhaps connect to the general thoughts behind this film. I needed, for this silent centre of the film, someone with an especially strong and rich presence.

I was hoping so much that Tony would accept the role, because I knew he's versatile, but I also had the strong feeling that there was something else that’s very much (about) him as a person. 

During our first meeting, I asked if it was okay for him to shave his head. It's a sort of monk-like presence – not the seriousness, but the calm and cheerful openness towards the world – that I wanted to have, and not (for the character) to have any “shield” or “defences”. That’s how scientists work. 

On the surface, this can be seen as vulnerability, but (beneath that), there is a very, very strong faith in yourself. It has a certain beauty. That’s why from my teenage years, I've been interested in scientific work – it’s not just useful for us, but it’s the most beautiful side of humanity.

So I needed not just a brilliant actor, but a truthful person who has this very wise and tender (way of seeing) the world.

And Tony, how did you feel when you read the script for Silent Friend? 

Tony Leung: Just imagine first reading a script and it says this is "sci-fi with a sense of humour", and as you read, you realise the protagonist is a tree. What would be your reaction? You'd probably think, “Mmm, quite special." At least that was my feeling.

There was also a quote from neuroscientist Anil Seth in the script: “We are all hallucinating all the time. When we agree with the hallucination, we call it reality.” I thought that was similar to Buddhist philosophy, where nature is a reflection of our mind. 

So I was very curious about the script, as it seemed to have many layers and philosophical thought.

In this stage of your acting career, what would make you agree to a project? 

Tony Leung: To me, what’s most important is the director, no matter how good the script is. I tend to follow my heart in making decisions, so I needed to meet Ildiko first to see if I could work with her.

When we met via Zoom, we didn’t even talk about the script or my character. Instead we discussed philosophies, both Eastern and Western, and this neuroscientist Anil Seth that she had watched on a TED talk. 

I could sense she was an intellectual; humble, easygoing and easy to chat with. She’s also very clear about what she wants to do. I need to know that the director understands their vision, otherwise it’ll be a painful process. 

Plus, I also enjoyed her past works, On Body And Soul and The Story Of My Wife. 

With the many quiet moments in Silent Friend, how did you prepare to play a role without many lines? 

Tony Leung: For this role, I began by studying the character’s educational background. 

I play a neuroscientist who studies babies’ early cognitive development, so when I started to prepare for the role, I read the books that Ildiko gave me about that topic. I also spoke with neuroscientists from universities. 

I even specially hired a coach from the United Kingdom. I imagined my character as someone who’d studied in Cambridge, so I wanted him to have a slight British accent. 

In total, I spent around six months preparing. Not only by reading about early cognitive development, but also about plants. For example, I read Planta Sapiens – a book on plant intelligence and how they communicate with each other.

Each character study helped me further immerse myself into the role, and it gave me more confidence to believe that I indeed was a neuroscientist. 

Ildiko, why did you choose the ginkgo biloba tree as the focus? 

Ildiko Enyedi: Its origins and history were important to me. 

The film is set in a botanical garden, not the wilderness, so all these plants are brought there by humans. They are strangers (to the environment); they are outsiders. 

For our main plant hero, I was looking for one that is a stranger even among those strangers of a botanical garden. (In the film), the ginkgo tree stands among the plants that caused its near extinction. 

Most plants today that cover the whole globe are flowering plants, while the ginkgo is of another system that once covered the globe but nearly went extinct millions of years ago. 

Nowadays, however, you can find a ginkgo plant (almost) everywhere, because it's practically undestroyable. It doesn't care about smog. It is a very resilient tree. It was the ideal stranger.

And if you look at the three human heroes of this film, they are outsiders as well. They (need to) survive in an environment that is not familiar to them. I wanted real outsiders, because I think outsiders see more. They have more chances to discover something, and they are able to think more out of the box. 

Somehow, a scientist is someone outside of a system. With this sort of very genuine, childish curiosity, but a very trained and powerful mindset, they can look at questions with fresh eyes and they have a chance lead us to new paths. 

To be a scientist is very much similar to being a ginkgo.

Like plants surviving in an unfamiliar environment, Tony, what do you think is the best way to thrive in loneliness or a similar circumstance?

Tony Leung: I actually enjoy being alone very much. I can give you one example. When I was working on a movie (Europe Raiders) in the South of Italy near the seaside, it was off-season and there were almost no tourists. I lived on top of a hill and there were only three restaurants. 

So every day, I’d ride my bike to the beach, do some stretching and meditation on the beach, and then ride to those restaurants to have lunch by myself. Then I’d go back, practise some mountain biking techniques, read a book or just sit outside my house. I don't feel lonely.

I love to go to cities where I don’t speak the language. I enjoy that kind of lost-in-translation experience. Nowadays, you have Google Translate. If you want to communicate, you will find a way.

How did this film change your relationship with plants?

Tony Leung: In the past, whenever I went running in nature, I’d look at trees as "just" plants. But after reading books on plants for this role, I realised they have intelligence. They don't have a brain, but they have it in a different form. 

So when I go for a run now, I can sense these trees and plants around me are not just living beings, but sentient beings. It’s like I have company with me. 

Of course, I can’t be certain that every tree has a soul or mind. But I believe some definitely have, especially those that are very old.

Once you develop a sense of respect and awareness towards plants… you stop having the mentality that you’re better than them. You’ll believe every living being is equal, and you’ll start to consider how your actions might affect plants and nature. 

The biggest change to my life from this movie is that it changed my perspective about the world. 

The Singapore International Film Festival is ongoing, and will run until Dec 7. More information can be found on its website.