Chinese films scooped the major awards at the Asian Festival of
First Films last week at a glittering ceremony at Singapore.
Mainland filmmaker Zhang Jiarui's film, The Road, was
nominated for three awards and finally took home three, the Best
Film, the Best Script and a special award given by international
journalists.
Zhang has a philosophy major, which helps him to better
understand human emotions. His concern for the social problems of
humanity particularly relating to dignity, conscience and
redemption is amply displayed in his film making. In The
Road he conveys the life-style of ordinary Chinese over the
past 40 yaears to the world.
The film traces the emotive relationship of a bus driver Lao Cui
and his wife Li Chunfen. Set in picturesque Yunnan Province, the
story unfolds in the first half of the "cultural revolution"
(1966-76).
But scriptwriter Yuan Dajiu said: "What we want people to see is
not a particular time in Chinese history but the people's lives of
that time."
"This is perhaps the best-looking Chinese film I've ever seen in
recent years outside the work of Zhang Yimou," commented James V.
Hart, member of the jury from Hollywood. "The scenery is
breathtaking in scope, with the tone and atmosphere perfectly
conveying the emotional arc of the characters."
Beijing-born director Cheng Gong has also been nominated for the
Best Director for Documentary at the Festival with the documentary
Don't Cry about a cancer patient and his family in the
last three months of his life.
"With the coming of spring, the leaves of Chinese parasol trees
outside the window crumble after a long winter. But like the
patient they still struggle against the winds even though the
inevitable is a foregone conclusion," said the director in his
documentary.
It took Cheng four months to accomplish the work. He witnessed
the 45-year-old cancer patient and his family's suffering. "After
all the shooting part was done, I just put all the materials on my
shelf. I dared not touch them. I didn't even want to make them into
a film," Cheng said. "Death is something everyone has to
experience. The patient was happy because his family was with him.
Death gave him the ultimate relief. That is life."
For the 35-year-old filmmaker, the difficulty of making an
independent film is not all about money. "When I stayed with the
patient, I realized that persistence, determination and confidence
are what every filmmaker needs when creating their first film."
The Beijing director is planning his next project, a documentary
about Beijingers born in 1976, the Year of Dragon. These people
have experienced the changes of the city.
As Hart said, Chinese films in the Festival tell the audience
about China and its people.
The week-long film festival, as its name suggests, serves as a
platform to celebrate the talent of promising filmmakers in Asia.
And the talent pool is getting deeper. The 22 nominees are chosen
from more than 300 candidates. "Everyone remembers their first
film, their first break and the struggles they faced as a new
talent," said Sanjoy Roy, festival director and managing director
of Teamwork Films.
(China Daily December 15, 2006)