Those pursuing dreams of stardom might be wise to think twice about making permanent changes to their appearance after the performance institute of Beijing Film Academy announced that those who have tattoos or have undergone plastic surgery will be disqualified from entrance examinations, which are underway this month.

Students applying for Beijing Film Academy. [Photo: CFP]

"The changes in their faces or other parts of the body, and the tattoos too, might affect their performance when they are trying to depict a figure in a play," said Wang Jinsong, deputy director of the performance institute of the academy.

Many people are in favor of the institute's decision, saying the plastic surgery is like cheating and against the principle of fairness and justice.

"It's too utilitarian for those people to undergo cosmetic surgery," said Wang Yousen, a high school student in North China's Shanxi province, who came all the way to the capital for the enrollment examination.

"That's fraud," he said.

The 20-year-old student said it would make no sense for all actors and actresses to look exactly like each other and fit a certain "aesthetic standard". Having an oval face or double eyelids does not matter. What matters is your performance, he said.

"It's your acting that makes sense, not your face," he said.