The film project "Waiting", which director Peter Chan has been trying to get off the ground for 10 years, was sent to the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (SARFT) for approval on Monday (July 12th). Chinese actor Liu Ye will star in the leading role.

The film is adapted from the novel "Waiting" by contemporary Chinese-American author Ha Jin. The novel is based on a real-life story the author heard about when he came back to China with his wife. During the early 1960's, a young country man by the name of Kong Lin is accepted to the Shenyang military medical college. Under heavy pressure, he obeys his parents and marries Shuyu while at school.

After their marriage they have to live apart because of the school's rules. After he graduates he works for a military hospital in Muji City where he falls in love with a nurse named Manna Wu. However, his wife refuses to sign the divorce agreement. Furthermore, affairs between military personnel are strictly forbidden, and men and women are not even allowed to walk together outside the compound. After waiting for 20 years, they finally get a certificate of marriage. The book was published in 1999, and won the National Book Award the same year.

It sounds like Gabriel García Márquez's classical work "Love in the Time of Cholera," but the difference with Ha Jin's novel is that it depicts a strong but subtle Chinese-style love.

Director Peter Chan originally wanted to bring this story to the big screen in 2001. But due to a variety of reasons, it is still in the preparatory stages.

Liu Ye, Golden Horse Award winner, will play the leading male character Kong Lin. He is a favorite of the director's due to his acting skills and look. His hometown of Jilin province also matches the character's background.

The two leading female roles might be taken by Chinese actresses Zhou Xun and Fan Bingbing.