Fantasy film 'Measure in Love' explores love across time

"Measure in Love," a new romance fantasy film, was released on the last day of 2025. In an exclusive interview with China.org.cn, the director shared the film's inspiration, while the two lead actors reflected on love.

Directed by Kung Siu-ping, executive produced by Sylvia Chang, and starring Hsu Kuang-han and Angela Yuen, the film centers on two lovers separated by disparate time zones and gravitational environments created by a catastrophic earthquake that splits the world with a sea-based "gravity wall."

In Hsu's character's home of Evergreen Zone, one year equals just one day in Aurora Zone, where Yuen's character — a young intern doctor — resides. After falling in love, the pair faces immense time and geographic barriers as they fight against time to sustain their romance.

Kung shared that the film's concept originated from a viral online video of students walking like movie stars in a school hallway before returning to normal speed. This sparked his curiosity about dual time speeds coexisting in one world, which led him to craft a romance-driven narrative. 

As he expanded the concept, he imagined how such a scenario would work in real life — envisioning moving all his work to Evergreen Zone, where one night's sleep in Aurora Zone would equate to a full year of work completed. This thought became the foundation of the film's fictional world.

In terms of casting, Kung praised Hsu and Yuen as standout talents in Chinese cinema. Yuen was recommended by Chang and immediately impressed the director, while Hsu came via the suggestion of production designer Man Lim-chung. Kung, who admired Hsu's performances in "Marry My Dead Body" and "A Sun," noted that his "bright, uplifting style, and kind quality" aligned perfectly with the male lead.

Hsu recalled being deeply moved by the passion for life of Evergreen Zone's ordinary residents after reading the script. He highlighted the challenge of portraying his character's evolving romantic feelings — from childhood admiration to adult romance — and the struggle of conveying a year's worth of thoughts and emotions in their annual one-day meeting, given their vastly different backgrounds and mindsets.

Yuen described the story as bold and innovative, noting its dual-zone dystopian setting explores a core question: whether love can exist beyond time. She contrasted the tendency of Aurora Zone's residents to take time for granted with that of Evergreen Zone's inhabitants, who cherish time and relationships deeply despite their short, intense lives. 

Yuen added that her character embodies "the cost of love," approaching life with calculated rationality — starkly opposing Hsu's character's pure, unreserved love — a contrast that shaped her performance and left a strong impression.

She hoped this contrast would resonate with audiences and prompt reflections like: "Do you embrace a passionate, intense existence, or do you remain indifferent?"

A still from "Measure in Love." [Photo courtesy of Red on Red]

Director Kung revealed that filming in Hong Kong posed several key challenges, including a tight schedule and the difficulty of creating distinct visual identities for the two zones amid the city's high-rises — which made capturing Evergreen Zone's industrial feel and Aurora Zone's concrete aesthetic particularly tough. He noted the cast and crew worked intensively, with the actors quickly finalizing performance discussions for each scene.

The director shared that the film, developed with Chang, reflects a perspective on love that echoes the essence of classic Hong Kong cinema: "It's not about forever, but about having loved." He explained the English title "Measure in Love" poses the core question of how to quantify love, noting that audiences may react differently based on which character or perspective they focus on.

Quoting the poet William Blake — "Hold infinity in the palm of your hand and eternity in an hour" — Kung encapsulated the film's exploration of "a moment versus a lifetime," questioning if love of different durations can hold an equal weight. Kung also emphasized the film avoids overly romantic scenes, focusing instead on character growth through love that extends beyond romance to include family, friendship and community.