Diao Yinan is mixing commercial and artistic success with crime drama 'Black Coal, Thin Ice'

Mainland director Diao Yinan appeared determined to enjoy his first trip to Hong Kong when he came to promote his latest film, Black Coal, Thin Ice, which was screened at the Hong Kong International Film Festival (HKIFF). Before our interview began, he pulled his chair close to the window so he could look at the view. He couldn't stop snapping pictures of Victoria Harbour while soliciting shopping tips for his favourite brand of shoes at the same time.

When asked for his impression of the city, he cites Wong Kar-wai's 1990 classic Days of Being Wild, as his earliest reference source for the Fragrant Harbour. The director was still a student at Beijing's Central Academy of Drama back then. "Now it is quite different from what the film portrays, but I still like it here a lot," he says. He even likes the weather: "It's very comfortable and I have some friends in the Hong Kong film industry who will take me out tonight."

He has every reason to be in a good mood these days. At this year's Berlin International Film Festival, Black Coal, Thin Ice won the Golden Bear (for best film) and the Silver Bear (best lead actor) for Liao Fan. It is also proving to be a commercial hit on the mainland.

The crime drama revolves around a cop-turned-security-guard Zhang Zili (played by Liao) investigating a series of grisly murders. All the victims seem to be connected to the charming yet melancholic Wu Zhizhen (played by Taiwanese actress Kwai Lun-mei) and Zhang falls for the femme fatale but is determined to solve the case, leading to an unexpected result.

It is set in the northeastern mainland city of Harbin and one of the questions that Diao is often asked - one which popped up again at a post-screening discussion during the HKIFF - is why did he cast a Taiwanese actress to play a northern native?

Diao responded that Fellini had used actors with Sicilian accents to play Roman characters, and it didn't affect their brilliance.