A couple years ago, Nick Fraser, the Commissioning editor for BBC Storyville attended a film festival in Guangzhou.  During a lavish Chinese banquet, he was amused by the human display of Chinese families in one big space, so he came up with the idea of The Biggest Chinese Restaurant in the World, a different way of looking into the Chinese culture through food, families and celebrations.  The BBC had worked with Weijun Chen on Please Vote for Me and To Live is Better than to Die so Weijun became the natural choice to direct this documentary.

Lawrence Elman, the Producer from Drive Thru Pictures in London called to ask me to edit The Biggest  At first I was not interested at all. A film about Chinese food? And where is the drama? Only when Weijun told me the restaurant is a metaphor for a stage, and Ms. Qin, the owner, is the director, and the army of staff and customers are players in this giant human theater.  It started to click for me.

The director told me there was to be a traditional Chinese wedding, a longevity banquet and a baby banquet, all the major Chinese celebrations to get into the family and traditions. I thought that was interesting. And I felt I had a special qualification to edit this film: I grew up in Chinese restaurants, so I can ?relate? to the subject. I was aware of the possibility that the film would bring back my high school days, memories of long hours of working in my father?s restaurant in the Bronx, handing out menus on the streets, delivering take-outs, peeling frozen shrimp, washing dishes, spying on other Chinese restaurants in the neighborhood to see how they were doing.  Growing up in that environment taught me about endurance, and I learned also that customers are always right.  Very similar to editing actually!  I always equate my job as an editor to my father?s job as a chef.  I have to cook up the best dish with whatever ingredients there are in the kitchen.  Fortunately Weijun has always provided me with enough good ingredients!