Hengdian, home to world's biggest outdoor film studio, is the new epicentre of award-winning filmmaker Derek Yee's new film, "I Am Somebody." Surprisingly, it is not China's stars who will be taking on the spotlight in the film, but the extras behind China's Hollywood.

Yee is known for films addressing society's cruelty and people in struggle like 2007's "Protégé" and "One Nite in Mongkok" in 2004. But in "I Am Somebody," Yee is taking it down a few notches in terms of the film's tone as China's rapid economic development brings pressure to young people.

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The new film by the Hong Kong filmmaker is a romantic comedy featuring the dreams of young migrants at Hengdian World Studios in China. Also called the Hollywood of the East, Hengdian's film industry has boomed, with its population ballooning to 180,000 over the past decade.

"A bevy of characters and couples are introduced, and the film explores their work attitudes and romantic dilemmas with warmth and credibility," according to Variety.

Yee grew under the influence of parents in the film industry. At 58 years old, the former actor is familiar with China show business, but it was Hengdian extras who have really intrigued the now famous director.

"They are so young, and their backgrounds are so diverse," said Yee.

Yee, who both wrote and directed "I Am Somebody," said on his Weibo account that inspiration for the film struck him in August 2012. At the time, he said he was in Hengdian.

What are the challenges for the director?

One of the challenges in making the film include the extras' different dialects, as they hail from different parts of China. Also, Yee said he had a hard time with the extras' slang.

"When you put scripted words into their month, it just does not sound right," Yee said.

Yee added that he adjusted the language of the film in real time to allow ad lib for the actors.

Yee was also fortunate enough to spend 120 days in shooting the film since he self-financed the 90-minute film, but after one month training, Yee was still concerned that the young people would just "run away in the middle of shooting."

Yee selected 21 hengpiaos or extras out of the hundreds who auditioned.

"One of the main characters broke up with his girlfriend during shooting," said Yee. "So I asked my staff and other actors to keep a close eye on him to make sure he was not going to disappear."

"Most of the young actors have limited education. Some even failed to finish their primary school," he added.

In one scene, an argument in the movie turned into a real one.

Though the film was self-financed, another big challenge for the director is persuading investors, reported China Daily.

Persuading a major film studio to take interest in the project which involved gun battles, bombing and ancient life without a single A-list actor or actress was certainly difficult.

A local report even said that Chinese actor Jackie Chan even tried to persuade Yee to give up self-financing "I Am Somebody."

"I Am Somebody" may feature the fictional lives of China's hengpiao, but Yee also managed to produce a documentary detailing the real lives of Hengdian extras behind the cameras. The 80-minute documentary currently remains under production and is set for release next year, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The premiere of "I Am Somebody" took place at the Shanghai International Film Festival last week. It is set for release in the People's Republic on July 3.

Tagschina extras, china’s extras, china’s Hollywood, I am somebody, I am somebody film, hengdian, Derek Yee, extras, hengdian extras, Hollywood of the east, Hengdian World Studios, hengpiao