Chinese director Gu Changwei's new film "A Tale of Magic" was introduced to journalists at a press conference in Beijing on Tuesday. Actress Zhang Ziyi, who stars in the film, made her first public appearance since a torrent of bad press over her botched donations to victims of the Sichuan earthquake in 2008.

Zhang plays an AIDS patient in "A Tale of Magic", which is a love story about a couple living with AIDS. She co-stars with actor-singer Aaron Kwok. Filming is underway.

Rumors surfaced on the Internet this January, accusing Zhang of giving only a portion of the 1 million yuan (US$146,436) she had promised to aid victims of the Sichuan earthquake.

The actress recently acknowledged that not all of the pledged 1 million yuan was transferred initially. Zhang said the problem was due to her lack of philanthropic experience and said she made up the shortfall in March this year.

Zhang made her film debut in Zhang Yimou's 1999 love story "The Road Home", but her career really took off when Oscar-winning director Ang Lee cast her in his 2000 hit "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon".

Gu Changwei, the director of "A Tale of Magic", gained international fame with his directorial debut "Peacock", winning the Silver Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2005.