I guess I don’t really have an idea what I’m doing. It’s too intuitive, sensitive, ambiguous, transient and indefinable. It comes form nowhere, but it’s everywhere. It’s inside of me, and every part of me. I don’t quite know what it is. People call it art. So I guess I’m an artist then.
I enjoy what I’m doing, whether it’s acting, writing or directing, whether on stage or behind a camera. That’s all that matters. To me, art is simply something people enjoy doing; just like cooks enjoy cooking; runners enjoy running; car racers enjoy the touch of speed; salesmen enjoy the feeling every time they sell their products. It can all be called “Art”. Art is made of pure passion and enthusiasm; it is the first, and the all.
Overall, I enjoy thinking, about myself as an individual, about others as multiple sides of me, about culture as a collective movement, and about the world as a compelling mystery that holds pieces of truth. Then I come to realize that all my weirdest thoughts are condone by art. Then I began art practices.
Art needs no glorification. Everyone needs to find something to do to spend his or her lifetime. I would like to live my life in a happy way, so I want to choose something I think would worth my time. Art is something I want to make a living with. Therefore, my art should not stray away from its social value. I believe expression is essential, but if others do not receive the expression, hence the communication is missing, then it is not art, but self-indulgence. However, I don’t think artists should do art in expectation to shape or reform the society. That is too much to burden, besides changing the society should be the sociologists’ job. What artists can do is to offer the society a variety of ways to see itself, to provoke thinking, and to create resonation. It would be nice if art accidentally arouses some social movement and subconsciously advances some society. But this consequence should not be something taken into consideration in an artist’s creation.
Art is not something I’m married to. It’s just the thing I’m obsessed with right now. I don’t know how long it is going to go along with me in my life. But since art’s been accompanying me long as I could remember, I guess I’ll keep this hobby, forever, maybe.
… I feel like I can write 20 more pages on my attitude towards arts, but here is what’s on my mind now. I don’t know where it will go to in 5, 10, or 20 years; or maybe in 24 hours it’ll change completely. But it is basically my artistic statement at the age of 20. I’m curious to see what it will turn to be like in the future.
- I found a copy of a manifesto I wrote for a class a year ago. It is interesting to see how much I’ve changed, how much remains, and how confused I am, still. I actually find great pleasure in this confusion.
1.What is the current state of society?
On the surface, the society as a whole seems to be looking at a steadier and more developed future. People tend to be more caring about the world and trying to live in harmony with others not only for the good of themselves. Beneath the surface, however, there are still lots of social issues waiting to be resolved. As the world seems to be infinitely developed, competitions and benefits disturb people’s mind that directs the society to be materialized. These issues are sometimes inevitable, but people never stop trying to find a better way to solve these problems.
2.What does society need?Why?
The society needs to stop the fast development. People in the society need to be clearer about what they want to achieve in their lives and know when to stop asking from the world. I think the reason for this chaotic and money driven society is that people do not get enough of what they receive and they are too selfish to share. This is a world for rich people because they have the power to change the world. Sadly, some people are never enough with what they have already had, so they make war and fight to ask for infinite benefit.
3.What is the current state of the arts in society?
We are trying to inherit from the ancient art and to revival their glory, but fail to use the quintessence of classical art and apply it to the post modernist art. Artists today lack knowledge of the classical art. And as the society becomes more material, some artists do not think as deeply as artists used to do. Therefore, their works become shallow and tasteless. Besides, art in the post modern society has lost its sincerity. Some pretentious people study art to be “artsy” or just to “be cool”. It is being forgotten that art is not about showing off, but about expressing one’s most sincere feeling.
4.What does it mean to be human?What makes us human?What binds us together?
To be human means to individually enjoy a journey of a lifetime while contribute to the world in this journey.
I am not sure if it is God that makes us human, binds us together, and gives us this journey. But I believe that there is a higher power that takes control of our lives and fate.
5.Which are more important, social conditions or the state of one’s spirit, soul or psyche. Of if both are important, to what degree, in what relationship?
They are both important. The state of one’s spirit, soul or psyche is formed from social conditions and social conditions change people’s spirit at the same time. But I would rather believe the state of one’s spirit, soul or psyche is more important, because with this belief, something beautiful about human being would happen. If people are all stuck in their social conditions, whether the conditions are good or bad, their minds could be locked and they would only focus on what they have in reality. On the contrary, if they let their spirit and soul take them to wherever they want to go, open their heart and let their spirit communicate with others, they would enjoy a journey of life full of sincerity, surprises, and imagination.
6.What kind of art does society need? Why?
Art of sincerity.
I always think art should be sincere. It is not showing off. It is not a prepared presentation to anyone. It is a condensation of the artist’s most sincere emotions and feelings.
7.What king of art do you feel most passionate about?
Art that conveys great love makes me feel passionate. There are some kind of loves that are greater than others. For instance, although they are both love between men and women, a love tested by war is sometimes greater than a couple’s happiness and sorrow in the era of peace. That is because the pain the couple in war feel is greater than the one the couple in peace era feel. The latter seem to resonate people less only because it is not deep enough. Therefore, I am passionate about some love and human emotions that would touch me, make me think, inspire me, remind me of my existence in the world and keep me motivated.
8.What king of art do you need?
Beside what is described in the previous question, I need the kind of art that is sincere enough to inspire me, direct me to another way of thinking, and lead me to look into a new perspective of life.
9.Where does theatre stand in relation to the other arts? Should it be separate from them, collaborate with them, disappear into them?
Theatre is an art that collaborates with other arts but has its distinguish and indispensable existence.
10.What kind of theatre would you like to see, participate in, and create?
I like all kinds of theatre. I try to see more classical theatrical works in order to experience the time and society that is far from the time and place we are living in. I also like to see, participate in, and create contemporary theatre, because through contemporary theatre I can have a glimpse of the society I am in so I can gain some ideas and perspectives to apply to altering our society and make it better.
11.What forms or media should your art or theatre use? What makes each media different from the other media?How would you use them?
I am still discovering the form of theatre in America. But it is very obvious in China, we have two kinds of theatre forms, the classical and the avant-garde. I prefer the classical theatre form, because its works are all easy to understand (which is important, because the reason we do art is to make the viewers understand) and sincere. The avant-garde form works seem to pretend that they are “artistic”, and they sometimes deliberately make the art very formal and very hard to understand. I think it is showing off; it is not real art.
12.What is goal or purpose of your theatre, of your art?
To make the audiences think. To show them another way of thinking. To help them understand big love and pull them out of their own happy and sorrow which they might think are their everything. To create them a sanctuary to rest their heart and soul.
13.In the age of television, film, internet and ipods, does theatre still have a purpose?What is it? What needs can theatre serve that cannot be served by other media? How can theatre work with or in conjunction with these other media? Or does theatre need to be completely separate?
Yes. Theatre differs other medium in many ways. But the most important part is that it is live. In theatrical arts, actors communicates directly with the audiences without the isolation of a screen. Therefore, theatre can be the most direct way to achieve the exchange between heart and heart. Audiences see the story actors are playing on stage and they give feedback with laughter, sigh and silence. Actors receive them while they are on the stage right in front of the audience. This is the closest distance for artists to communicate with others.
14.Why are you doing what you are doing?What do you want to act, direct, design, produce, etc? Or if these are not you goals, what are?How does theatre training fit into your goals?
I want to do my best to make the world a better place. There are people who are trying to change it through aspects like politics, medications, or educations. I think we cannot change the world materially. I believe in the power of spiritual impact. If we want to change the world, we have to change the people. If we want to change the people, we have to change their brains. Since the world is not in the perfect status (I actually do not believe it could ever achieve to a perfect status. But it is a trend it has to be better, and people are still putting efforts to change it), I am on my life journey, there is nothing more I want to achieve than to leave something for the descendants. I believe it is the only thing that every generation has to accomplish. I want to act and direct simply because I want the audience to see what I see in the world and be inspired. Theatre training can be an self-exploration to me. I can find something I am not aware of in my daily life. Through theatre training I become sensitive to my every feeling and to what happen around the world. This helps me understand life better and live with intelligence and wisdom.
What is a “Wendigo”? A wendigo is a cannibalistic giant transformed from human to monster. And our story starts from here: a wendigo sneaks to a snow resort and attacks the residences. Our group “Wacky Wendigo” explores the pre-production procedure of filmmaking through storyboard and character design, in order to develop visions to be presented in the film. With the belief that pre-production is one essential part in filmmaking that in large degree determines the style of the movie; we want to take this chance to amplify this important process and experiment the possibilities of composition and visual design. The idea is originated from the feature length screenplay Morgen is currently working on. As the author, Morgen choose a scene from her screenplay that she wants to realize, and we sit together to talk about things that first strike us in the scene. Fill to the genre of horror, the story of Wendigo mainly depicts the danger people face. Each of us toss every possible idea on the table and discuss about it; how it illuminates danger and alienation and which would better capture the fear we want to create. Alexis draws some scratches while we talk about images that pop out our mind. To create a more vivid world, Eileen and I search online to find anything that we think would help and watch TV shows like Buffy for inspirations. We discuss about the look of the monster and how it attacks people as Alexis realize it down to the paper. At the end of the discussion, we compile the drawing, images we find, and text from Morgen’s script together to best present the dark, snowy, isolated and dangerous world that exists on our mind to the spectators. I’ve drawn storyboard before for my films. But storyboarding for this project was more challenging than doing it alone because it was such a collaborative work that required input from each of us. In this project we respected Morgen’s idea as her original creation, and we tried to help come up with more creative shots when the shots we already had might not seem to be effective enough. I was surprised to find that how working with others broadened the project and affected so many changes. A lot of the ideas they contributed were something I had never thought of. Also, there was no finalized image for us. We could always look back on the shots we drew and changed some of the elements to make them better. It was really interesting to gather together with artists from different concentration and make one piece of project that each of us contributed to. Artists should never exist only in their own art filed. Art needs collaboration to achieve improvement and realization.
Please check out the Summer Palace trailer by Lou Ye. It shows some fabulous scenes in the movie!!
Censorship in Chinese Cinema has always been an issue under spotlight. Its restriction to artists’ creativity has been criticized by public and has caused many talented Chinese artists to face the dilemma of whether to compromise to meet the official criteria and to have their films approved to be screened, or to freely express themselves but risk censorship and result in possible financial lost. These independent films often contain explicit sexual content, graphic violence or sensitive political issues, and therefore are prohibited from screening, and sometimes distributing in China. In exploring stories behind the blooming Chinese cinema, some interesting findings are revealed in these independent filmmakers’ desire to achieve excellence. As more and more independent filmmakers begin to submit their films to a variety of international film festival and receive acclaims and awards, these film festivals seem to become a sanctuary for those Indies banned by the Chinese government; therefore they lead to a new direction for filmmakers to step out China and to make a stage pose on the international film stage. With this shift, censorship in China may not be playing the same antagonist role for these independent filmmakers. On the contrary, while still criticizing censorship, many filmmakers have found a way to utilize the function of Chinese film censorship and the “banned by the government” issue to promote their films.
To understand film censorship in China, some side notes should be given. The film censorship law was passed in 1931, “mandating all movies receive clearance from the National Board of Film Censors before they could be exhibited in China” (Smoodin 57). There are many historical and cultural factors contributed to the form of this law order. As a major vehicle to transfer thinking, films play an important role to shape ideology in society. For a country like China, which possesses long history of single administration party, whose democratic system is delicate and not yet developed, streams of thoughts are considered striking and provocative as they provide both good and bad impacts on society. When a film is screened, the audiences could be a mass of people who are not socially conscious, than the educated “quality audiences” who have the ability to understand the content and oversee it from comprehensive perspectives. The administrative department feels the obligation to have control over the ideology within society. Therefore, as the Chinese society is currently experiencing the era before the born of a comprehensive film rating system, Chinese administration uses ban as an official exclusion to films that may instablize or harm the society.
Screening system in China is another obstacle. Due to the limited amount of theatres and other business problems, not every film can be screened in theatres. Furthermore, China is a country that implements public ownership; therefore most of the films that can be screened are nation-owned studio productions. Although now China has become more encouraging to independent filmmaking that many region-owned productions or independent films already have more chances to pass the censorship to be screened; there are still some films that fail to fulfill the technical criteria or other requirements (most screened films are large scale productions). For films that cannot make to the theatre, distribution is their one way out, and the other is asking help from the oversea market.
The yearly amount of films submitted to overseas film festivals or distributed abroad is not officially calculated. But there is an adage that public and the media use to describe the phenomenon in recent year that indicates its frequency.“樯内开花樯外香”, literally meaning flowers bloom inside the yard but its aroma is sniffed from outside the yard, is commonly known as a phrase that describes something not welcomed at home but acclaimed by outlanders. In search of this phrase on Internet, many of the results come from titles of articles about those Chinese films sent to the overseas film festivals (Google Search). Of these films, we can find young independent filmmakers who are first introduced, and also world-known directors who participated in festivals earlier in their career that granted them international attention (Digital Museum of Science and Art).
Jia Zhangke is a frequent patron of independent film festivals. As a famous artistic film director heavily influenced by French New Wave, Jia Zhangke usually portray marginalized people and the cruel side of reality in China with a documentary style. Before his fourth feature film the World permitted to be screened in China in 2004, he was an unknown “underground” director to Chinese audience. No one knew his name or his works; or the fact that his first three films Xiao Wu (1997), Platform (2000) and Unknown Pleasure (2002) (see Fig. 1) had won more
Fig. 1. Jia Zhangke, Poster, Platform 2000
than 8 awards in overseas film festivals including Berlin International Film Festival and Cannes Film Festival; simply because these three were not screened in theatres when they came out, yet they were not entertaining enough to have pirated DVD merchants bothered to make copies. In addition, his first two films were banned, because he submitted them to film festivals without obtaining a license from SARFT (the State Administration of Radio Film and Television).
In comparison, Zhang Yimou is now more of a commercial film director than an artistic director he used to be in his early career. He was the first one to explore oversea market through film festivals with his first film Red Sorghum (1988) that won Golden Bear Award in Berlin International Film Festival in 1988. The film, with its provocative sexual insinuation, was controversial but lucky to be screened (see Fig. 2). With the acknowledgment from overseas film critics ever since then, Zhang Yimou gradually took the first director chair in China.
Fig. 2. (Left) Jiang Wen, Still from Film, Red Sorghum 1988
As we can see from experiences of these two directors, international film festival can be a springboard for Chinese filmmakers to launch at a broader market where they harvest both reputation and profits. With repression from film censorship, filmmakers seek for a place where their voice can be heard and their creativity can spread without boundary. Film festivals that favor independent films become just what they look for as a matter of course.
A filmmaker’s enthusiasm to tell a story to the public should be the reason that initials his or her work. However, because filmmaking is such an elaborate and collaborate process that takes labor and expenses, and its payoff is not as stable as any office work, it is hard for a production company to avoid taking the film’s future perspective into consideration before any decision is made. Therefore, making a film is usually not based on a filmmaker’s solely passion and his or her eagerness to express. As a business practice, filmmaking needs to be a combination of artists’ intuitive passion and also the critical thinking about the overall film market.
Let us take a look at Lou Ye’s political epic Summer Palace that was banned in 2006 after the production was complete, as it best presents the conflict of film censorship and filmmakers’ intent. Told through a narrative way as the heroine Yu Hong reads her dairy, the love story depict her entanglement with her college lover Zhou Wei. With no progressive plot, the film portrays people’s emotions underneath the great time period of the late 1980s, especially focusing on the Tian’anmen Squre Event on June 4th, 1989.
It is not hard to understand the reason why the Chinese government is not fond of this film. Summer Palace approaches the two college students’ confusion and fluctuated political belief through massive scenes of explicit sex and nudity, in expression of their anxiety, repression and rebellion in political chaos. Other than this, the love triangle among Yu Hong, Zhou Wei and another girl Li Ti is based on sexual relationship, and it is bold enough to provoke moral judgment. Another factor is that it is the first and only film retrieves the Tian’anmen Squre in a realistic and expressionist style carried out through individual emotion. It takes the audience on a journey so intimate, astonishing and striking (see Fig 3). The purpose for banning this
Fig. 3 (Right). Lou Ye, Still From Film, Summer Palace 2006
film can possibly be preventing the issue of Tian’anmen Square Event to be openly discussed, as it would smear images of the Communist Party.
Having been working in the Chinese film industry, Lou Ye is very familiar with regulations for censorship. He had already known the problem his film would raise as soon as the idea was born. But he and his production team’s determination to carry it out indeed require courage. In the Summer Palace DVD, distributed in America, Lou Ye and Summer Palace’s producer An Nai clearly states her initial reason for producing this film,
“I think filmmaking begins deep within our hearts and dreams, and that’s the most important thing of filmmaking. What happens to the movie afterwards, whether it will rock the box office, win awards at film festivals, or be penalized, is not of primary concern when we first embark on this process. All we can worry about is to present to the audience an entertaining and outstanding film.
“Some things happened in 1989, and they are being slowly forgotten. But some memories will always persist in some people. And these memories will come into play again some day. That’s the way things are. People need to know the history, especially young people. (Summer Palace, Interview)”
From their point of view, all they expect to acquire from the movie they have made is a chance to conceive, and an opportunity to have their perspectives realized by the audience. Lou Ye and his production group retain such passion of filmmaking and primarily aim at the purpose of expressing themselves and transmitting message to the audience. It is indeed encouraging and appraisable to the audience and other fellow filmmakers. Nevertheless, their confession leads to an essential question, if they do care about their audiences that much, how can they present a film to the audience if it is banned? The Tian’anmen Square Event is already controversial in western world; the ones who lack of the historical knowledge are the Chinese people, “especially young people”, as Lou Ye points out. But their intent fails, or could only effect on people other than their target audience, and could raise confusion and misinterpretation for people who are not familiar with the history; if the majority of the audiences are still western moviegoers, or if the Chinese audience cannot see this film.Taking a closer look at this banned film, things may not be as simple as it seem. One significant detail seems to be ignored by the public.
Director Lou Ye submitted his film to Cannes before and without obtaining permit from the State Administration of Radio Film and Television (SARFT), when it is evidently stated in the file “Rule No.1. SARFT the 20th Order” newly issued on December 1, 2003, thatall film production companies attempting to participate in oversea film festivals must have their films censored by the SARFT and to obtain a ‘Film Screening License’ no later than a month before the festival” (SARFT Official Website, par 1). It is also indicated in rule No. 3 that no films will be allowed to participate in any kind of film festival without ‘Film Screening License’ Any violation will receive punishment according to ‘Film Management Order’ (SARFT Official Website, par 1-10). As a matter of fact, while Lou Ye and his cast were walking on the red carpet in Cannes, rumor said that Summer Palace’s film copy at the festival would be withdrawn by the Chinese government due to his violation of submitting it to the festival without a license. He responded to the media, “I’m really happy that the festival has chosen my movie this year. We (are trying) to send it to the Film Bureau as soon as possible” (Landreth, par 4). Lou Ye’s ignorance about the notice of violation was astonishing. The film was eventually screened at the Cannes Film Festival, although unfortunately, it did not receive any award. The violation notice was imposed on director Lou Ye and producer An Nai in September 2006, four months after the Cannes Film Festival. The ban prohibited Summer Palace from screening and distributing in China, and it also prohibited Lou Ye and An Nai from making films in five years (Summer Palace, Interview).
The Chinese government’s punishment for Lou Ye and An Nai seems like disfranchisement indeed. However, censorship in Chinese cinema, being as the way it is, seems difficult to alter due to the peculiar national conditions. Therefore, we may not argue the value of the institutional regulations because of our limited ability to amend these regulations. But, being a citizen in this country represents the obligations to obey institutional regulations. Failed to fulfill the obligation, Lou Ye, as well as the producer An Nai, were punished for a legitimate reason. It may be morally wrong for the SARFT to ban a film that merely contains sensitive political content, but it is legally wrong for a citizen to ignore constitutional principles in such a disregarding manner. Artists are no difference than people of any other occupation in the society. As a matter of fact, they should have a better ability to choose a better way to propose or demonstrate their unsatisfactory to the government rather than directly confronting and defying the law.
Critically speaking, Summer Palace is a remarkable piece. It recreates a period that is so authentic that it resonates with many people who share the memory. Theunspoken, hazy and dazzling feeling of uncertainty and confusion shrouded by the great time period can not be better portrayed through the documented-like colors, handheld camera and the amazing performance given by Hao Lei and Guo Xiaodong. Long tracking shots seem to be Lou Ye’s favorite; and he masters them beautifully. All these cinematic languages capture the extraordinary sensitivity of what it feels like to be young in a time of sexual and political experimentation (see Fig. 4). Yu
Fig. 4 (Right). Lou Ye, Still From Film, Summer Palace 2006
Hong’s dairy is an essential approach to the historical event and it gives direct access to a young mind responding to the breakout of the event. Along with her love life and other trivia, the event walks into her life almost quietly, but life altering at the same time. However, sadly, the worldwide attention of Summer Palace is not attributed to the film’s excellences, but its controversy. There is a lot more to explore in the movie in terms of its theatricality and cinematic techniques. But the spotlight on the fact “it was banned by the Chinese government” dimmed the actual contribution Lou Ye made in this film (see Fig. 5). On the other critical perspective, its congested sex scenes and the heroine’s constant depression throughout the film reject audiences,
Fig. 5 (Top). Lou Ye, Cover of the American Distributed Version, Summer Palace 2006
Fig. 6 (Button). Lou Ye, French Version Poster, Summer Palace, 2006
especially young audiences who are surpassingly the target audience, from relating to the characters and the overall film(see Fig. 6) (About Summer Palace and the Very Subjective Review, par 3).
If take look at Lou Ye’s list of works, we would be surprised to find that he already seems to be on the black list of SARFT.His first film Weekend Lover (1995) was not screened in China due to its disqualification of the small scale of production. After that, in the year of 2000, his second film Suzhou River was sent to the International Film Festival Rotterdam and won the Tiger Award without obtaining license before submission (WIKIPEDIA). Lou Ye has one violation in his record. However, he again challenges the film censorship with great certainty. “Film censorship is not a new problem,” says Lou Ye, “This is the second time I’ve been punished by the film censors. I understand that there could be political problems. It’s not much about the story itself; it’s the timing. The historical background of this story involves certain tensity of time, such as 1989, June 4th event. (Summer Palace, Interview)”It is surprising to see that six years later, Lou Ye tripped at the same place again for Summer Palace. This should be something Lou expected to happen.
Many of Chinese famous directors have been banned to some extend in their careers for submitting their films to foreign film festivals without permission form SARFT. Jiang Wen, one of the most talented and famed Chinese actors and directors, also submitted his allegory about Japanese’s invasion during World War II Enemies At the Doorstep to Cannes Film Festival in 2000. It was not screened for its sensitive political issue and strong violence and gore; and also banned for submitting to Cannes without a permit (see Fig. 7, Fig 8) (XHBY.NET). Jiang Wen
Fig. 7 (Left). Jiang Wen, Still from Film, Enemies At the Doorstep 2002
Fig. 8 (Button). Jiang Wen, Still from Film, Enemies At the Doorstep 2002
was banned for making film for seven years due to this violation. Interestingly enough, Fang Li, one of the co-producers of Summer Palace was again banned for his new film Lost In Beijing in 2007 (XHBY.NET). All these facts happened recently has become a trend that provokes suspicion as the audience cannot help doubting these filmmakers’ primary intent: are they really trying to express themselves through all obstacles from the Chinese government, or are they just trying to success in the film business and being too ignored about the fact that their films don’t have audience?
More people have realized the importance of advertisement. “Banned by the Chinese Government” has now become the best commercial slogan. “Some might say it has even lent them a certain cachet – international art house distribs sometimes joke that nothing sells a Chinese film better overseas than a ‘Banned in China’ sticker on the DVD” (Jones, par 8). Jones seizes the actual problem in Chinese cinema. Chinese cinema censorship has gained a bad reputation around the world; therefore, people would like to see what the government has done to those talented artists. Also with the psychological fact that some moviegoers seek novelty, a lot of films today capture the chance to attract audiences by advertising themselves to be controversial, and to be taboo. Therefore, it does not matter if a film is banned in China, because if Sundance does not favor it, there is always Cannes, Berlin International Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, Montreal World Film Festival, San Sebastian International Film Festivals and a lot of places the film can turn to. Only if it touches on taboo, controversial political issues, or in the case of recent Chinese cinema, portrays the brutality and scandal in the Communist Party. It is the sad fact artists have to face. But what is important to them is to remain the consciousness for filmmaking, that they are making the films to be screened, and if the films do not get to be screened and conceived by audiences, there is no point in making it.
Nevertheless, five years is not a short period of time in a filmmaker’s career. Being prohibited from making films for five years should not be something Lou Ye and other filmmakers is expecting. Five years without hearing from a talented director could also be the lost of moviegoers who favor his films. Their intention for filmmaking indeed involves their passion about the topic. Therefore, in stead of experimenting themselves to push the boundary of censorship as a sacrifice, as artists, they do need to consider more about the audience, the way we approach this topic, and the market of whether audience will be able to see it before they make the film; because essentially, artists make films to be seen by spectators, not the films that go to their own collection. In addition, as another question could be raised, can these ‘underground filmmakers’ and their works still be appreciated if they are not constrained? Some of their works are indeed remarkable pieces, but they are normally decadent, narrow and dispirited like the heroine in Summer Palace, which may seem to be compelling to a minority of the people, not the majority of the audiences, because of a lack of greatness in humanity. That makes them the “underground filmmakers”, who are controversial, but can never be well acclaimed by the public. In this increasingly competitive era in film industry, they need to work hard to a point where their eagerness of expression and the audiences’ reception meet, to upgrade their works. It does not mean that they to become the mainstream, but they need to have more listeners when they speak.
It is definitely possible that there are more political schemes and plots behind the curtain other than the ones suggested in this essay. However, whatever the censorship may turn to be like, if the essential motivations for a filmmaker to make a film is to convey a message to a wide range of audience (assuming the filmmaker’s desire is to target as many audiences as possible, because it would benefit the filmmakers both in fame and in financial success), the smart way to a filmmaker to success should be finding a point to approach the issue that can pass the censorship following legal procedure. It is not a matter of compromising to the administration. Nevertheless, regulation does require filmmakers to excel beyond solely their personal need to express, and also to fulfill both aesthetic and commercial functions of a film.
Works Cited
Smoodin, Eric Loren. Regarding Frank Capra. Duke University Press, 2004.
Summer Palace. Dir. Lou Ye. Perf. Hao Lei, Guo Xiaodong. 2006. DVD. Laurel Films, Dream Factory, Rosem Films, Fantasy Pictures, 2006.
The State Administration of Radio Film and Television Official Website. “Notice About Mainland China Films Participating in Overseas Film Festivals (Including Hong Kong and Taiwan District).” Trans. http://www.chinasarft.gov.cn/articles/2007/09/08/20070908142934840921.html Apr 4, 2009. Sep 8, 2007, 14:42.
Jones, Arthur. “’Banned Filmmaker’ Is A Relative Term.” Variety. Feb 8, 2007: Paragraph 8.
It is a long, narrow, rutted road; lined with trees, whose branches stretching out and interlacing with one another, revealing the sky in a mosaic of black and white. Actually, the sky is grey, a very stifling grey, heavy, deep, with a sense of oppression. It somehow matches the color of the brick houses, and the crimson roofs. Smoke comes from kitchen chimneys, forming a vertical line and disappearing in the endless, expansive grey. There is always white snow, quietly falling down from the sky, decorating the tedious view with a bit of vitality. It is a picture of a typical winter day in Beijing, the city where I grew up. The grating noise of a teakettle boiling dragged me back to reality. Knowing that I had been staring into space in front of my laptop for quite a long time and only a blank page in sight, I put on my flip-flops and ran into the kitchen. A note on my refrigerator caught my eye, saying, “To Do List: Bring rough draft to writing class.” It was not until then did I realize my feet were set on another continent thousands of miles away from home. And it felt like summer, in California. At times like these, I asked myself: Why am I here? Art works all comes from an intertwined emotion that tangles the heart. And art is the best way to soothe the soul. At the time when I was struggling with myself, I created a 10-min short film called “Another World”, as my little way out. I was extremely homesick, because I could not seem to involve in the new environment, and I had been living in a contradiction. I came to the States voluntarily. I was studying things I was most interested in with strong support from my family. There was nowhere else on earth I would rather be. But I longed for other places; another world where I could escape from the one I have, a place like a sanctuary where I was always under the sweetest protection, a place like… home. How many people are indulging in their own world, so absorbed in avoiding true connection with the people around them? We want to break free, but we find ourselves blocked by emotions like we are stuck in a spider net. Is this feeling reminiscence, or just a beautiful excuse for weakness? Whatever it was, it was indeed something I could not run away from at that time. With all these questions rushed into my mind, I felt an urgent need to make a film. I turned my homesickness to a process of filmmaking, during which I was allowed to immerse myself in nostalgia; and out of the deliberation came my strength to face the reality. The film was not for a class or under demand. I made it simply because inspirations overwhelmed me. Visions are important to films; one successful vision may speak more than words. My film idea started with a vision in my head, and then my burning desire was to make this vision visible to everyone else. I created a world in which my characters are besieged within their invisible walls. In my mind, nothing could illustrate and reflect the force of resistance inside a person’s complex mindset better than a grey, dry, cold winter dusk in Beijing. To capture the vision and prevent it from slipping away, I drew it down to paper. It was a powerful force. I saw the picture and I heard the voice within myself, then I brought them from my imagination to reality as if God was holding my hand, and leading the way. On the other hand, a film with solely beautiful images does not satisfy the audience. I needed to come up with a compelling story. A question triggered me, “What would happen on a long, rutted road in suburban Beijing?” There are bikes, definitely. It was once reported that there are ten million bikes in the city of Beijing. A lot of people, mostly students, use bikes as daily transportation. I used bikes in my film, in memory of my high school life when I used to bike to school everyday. The time I spent on the road was most enjoyable. Like the “Bed, Bath, and Bus” adage screenwriters usually talk about, it was true that those were times I could be completely alone with myself. I used the time to dream. Feeling the wind on my face and riding the bike without holding the handle bar, it was the moments I felt so close to the word “freedom.” Once I decided to incorporate this scene, the figure of my main character appeared in front of me. Duan Ning, a pathetic kid in high school, introvert, confused and uncommunicative, struggling just like my counterpart. Poor guy, he has just ended a meteoric love to which he was devoted, with a girl who left him to pursue a different future. No one alienates him more than himself. The girl used to be his friend and now he has none. He is lonely inside and out. Memory is his only companion, which revives at the sight of every familiar place he used to go with the girl. Italian poet Cesare Pavese speaks my favorite quote, “We don’t remember days; we remember moments.” Duan Ning is drowned into his episodic memory. I chose to demonstrate them in flashbacks in color of vintage gold, because they were the closest visions I had when talking about memory. Memories are always fragmented, and they flood in people’s mind in possible moment. With pieces of memories, Duan Ning’s delusions distort his reality. He is trapped in his own world. As life goes on after love, he encounters the crossroad where he needs to choose between departing for a new life and continuing rotten in vanity. We always want to be understood, or to simply have someone to witness the process of agony we go through. It is a comfort to the lonely hearts. To offer Duan Ning a comfort, to me, as well, I want his inner struggle observed by a third person. Ai, a girl in his class, notices him in school and shares the same road with him everyday after school, because they live close to each other. Too absorbed in his thinking, Duan Ning never notices Ai while she sees him lingers the road, walking alone on campus, and looks into his mailbox, anticipating letters from his ex-girlfriend. I looked for a point where Duan Ning’s constantly constrained emotion bursts out, where my movie comes to a turning point. When I could not think of anything to forward the story, I related the character to myself, and looked into my personal experience for the tiny little moment that might be ignored in life. I found an interesting trivia of mine, which would be great to give Duan Ning an opportunity to change. There was one traffic light at an intersection I passed by everyday in high school. Seeing it from far away, I used to set up a challenge for myself. “If I can ride pass the traffic light before it turns red, I will…” It could be “I will pass the exam tomorrow”, or “I will tell the boy I like him.” It was an interesting battle between me, myself and I. I would pedal at a fast speed, and use all my strength to ride past the traffic light before it turned red. It was like handing my destiny to an invisible power, letting it take control and help me make my decision. I was never too serious about this game. The results did not change my actual decisions. But, in “Another World”, Duan Ning needs a force to change his life. It is not an outside force; it comes from within. Only he can help himself pull him out of this unrealistic life before he loses more of his reality. A letter from his ex-girlfriend, which he has been expecting, triggers the action. In the letter, she informs him of her new life with her new companion. At the climax of the film, when Duan Ning goes home from school as usual, he gazes at the green light, speeds up from yards away. He gets faster and faster. His mouth is murmuring; his eyes seem to be blazing with determination. He is betting his life on this light, whether or not he could regain his normal life. In his own battle, he makes choice. He wants to break free; he is saying goodbye to his world, out of which he could not break. There are many possibilities in life. One single choice may be powerful enough to change a life. The important part is that we all have the mobility to choose. Are we going to mark time or move on, to stay the same or to break through? Now Duan Ning needs a resolution. At the time, I also needed to make decision of my own. However, the movie speaks from Ai’s perspective, so she cannot know what Duan Ning is thinking when he rushes pass the traffic light. Besides, I do not want to explicate whatever Duan Ning ends up with, because it is a person’s process of psychological struggle that really fascinates me; the result is not my concern. I would rather preserve the decision Duan Ning makes at the end, and leave the audience to fill in their belief. With a grating sound of the brake, Duan Nings stops right before the line at the intersection when the traffic light just turns red. His bike is thrown away by inertia. He falls and rolls to the ground, stumbles and gets on his knees. He cries silently, in depression, and in relief. For the very last time, I would like to put him in plague again. No matter what demand he gives himself, the audiences witness he falls the challenge. This may sub-consciously reveal my point of view on the impossibility of life. However, having been through the thinking process, there is a point I try to make as my decision for myself. Indeed, I want to light up the ending, with a hope frail, but better than nothing. While he is on his knees, hands hold the crying one from behind. It is Ai, connecting Duan Ning to reality. She witnesses everything, and she holds Duan Ning when he is in need of love. The love does not happen in his memory; it is as real as Ai is. If Ai represents reality, then Duan Ning has reached on a safe base of reality. I decided to make Duan Ning disappear, and let Ai took the memory relay. He may be gone to win his former love back, or transferring to another school to start a new life, or defeated by his cowardice and lives in pain forever. But Ai demonstrates another way to face memory, and the besieged self. She possesses the ambiguous love she has for him with satisfaction. In the last scene, as she bikes on the road alone where she used to bike with Duan Ning, she narrates in a positive tone, “I tried every way to figure out what he was thinking when he rushed passed the traffic light. But where can I find the answer? What I have now is this long, rutted road, painted with memory.” There is a positive way to look at reminiscence. It is not something to escape to, nor is it a reason to hide from reality. The past is the elements that contribute to who we are today, and it is the motivation to take ourselves to the future. Thoughts kept flooding in my head that were so strong I could not resist. It was like the moment when you find a piece of puzzle that fits, and then every other piece fills in one after another immediately. The script was completed in a short period of time, and then I turned to the filming process, which happened during the winter break of my freshman year. I went back home and found the road in my memory. The initial idea coming from my depression turned out to be a real film, which I ended up spending four weeks preparing, three days shooting, and two months editing and color correcting to match the vision with the one in my head. Indeed, compared to my previous works, I managed to upgrade the quality of visions. The film looked good, because I did my best capturing the essence of winter in Beijing. But I am not nearly satisfied. Critically speaking, “Another World” was still a failure, a total experimental piece. I shot it in such a short period of time with my amateur friends and it put almost everything in a rush. And there was compromise, and a constant battle between the intuitive brain and the critical brain. Technical problems and other issues limited the realization of my intuitive ideas, and I could not achieve directing my amateur actors to infiltrate the emotions through their acting. There were a lot of things I wished I could have amended. It was not better or worse than works I did afterwards, but what seems more important to me in this little piece of garbage was something that led me to a process of self-realization; something that led me out of desperation. Home is indeed the sweetest place on earth, but homesickness should never be the reason of running away from reality. Everyone has the strength to break away from their little corner, from the comfortable bed upon which they dream, and to stand up to face the truth, to fight, if they desire to do so. “Another World” resembles a meditation to me, out of which I regain my strength to face my reality, and the will to welcome the world around me. No one can lie in front of art. Looking back, I am convinced that I would not have come up with anything else than this piece at that time. I wanted to be cool and be strong but I was unable to. It was where I trapped myself. And the only way to get up on my feet again was to make this film. “Another World” was my salvation, and an opportunity for me to take time to think. I have always believed in art as a way to heal. My wish is that this piece of art brought hope to its audience the same way it comforted me.
Everything else... :) My uncle helped me rent the equipment, and he drove. Basically the whole crew... ... Setting up. Fan is my best friend! We grew up together. :) I had to switch shoes with Fan because he forgot to wear the boots he wore the day before in the same scene... And we didn't forget to play basketball after a day's shooting. The background is the teaching building in my high school! :)
I watched Stephen Daldry’s the Hours recently, and finally. This movie was always referred to in my film classes, but I had never got to watch the entire movie. I once bought the DVD when it was just released. I let it run for 30 minutes before I stopped it because I could not bear the depression. Almost six years later, I sat through the movie. I enjoyed it, felt the atmosphere of it lingered around me a long time after it ended, and then I rated five stars on my Netflix account.
It was hard to say that I liked the story. The movie includes three stories in different time periods and different locations. Although the stories seem irrelevant, they all depict women’s desperate mental condition. In 1923, England, Virginia Woolf’s husband took her from London to a small village, where he thought would be good for her writing. It was a good intention of his but Virginia suffocated in her lonesome country life. In 1951, Los Angeles, Laura Brown could not bear the daily routines a housewife had to do so she left her family and ran away in pain. It was a similar depression for Clarissa, who took good care of her former lover Richard, but watched him commit suicide.
It was so desperate that it took almost the most negative look on life and especially lives of women. Female was pictured fragile and lost. Their feelings were hard for me to relate to, because they all seemed to be troubled in their own fairs and ignoring the bright side of life. However, I could understand their feelings as a different view point towards life. I believed it was the sentiment inherited from works of Virginia Woolf, and especially her novel Mrs. Dalloway, which was referred to throughout the movie.
For a movie like this, which I cannot quite appreciate the story but can’t help falling in love with, I think I would give the credits to the directors. I have to admit the Hours is a good movie, an unique and unforgettable piece, only because it achieves an extraordinary narrative that takes me along with it in every minute, gives me surprises and keeps me wondering what is going to happen in the next scene.
In films, there are some parts that seem to be the indirect approach of the filmmakers’ that the filmmakers may not be aware of the impression it gives the audience by making it intentionally. They may realize that after the parts are done, or even later when they realize from reviews. But everything in the Hours is strictly precise and coherent that it must had been extremely well planned before even a small scene was shot. Objects like flowers and cake, simple movements like opening a door, and lines like “I’ll be the flower myself” connect three different stories in three periods. The movie is shot in such a delicate way that accurately captures the complex psychological states of women. The style matches the content perfectly, and the combination of the two creates a tone of the movie that narrates the story smooth like stream flowing, tender like women themselves.
The dispute scenes were most enjoyable to me, including the one with Virginia and her husband at the train station, and the one with Clarissa and Richard’s friend in the kitchen. The scene where Laura sits in the bathroom and her devoted husband waits in the bed calling her name was also a highlighted moment in the movie. They presented the tremendous confrontation in the characters’ inner life, and how they struggle with it, and with the burden of obligation and their own salvation.
The movie would not make to its point without the amazing performance by three marvelous actresses, Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore, and Nicole Kidman. The scoring by Philip Glass is also a remarkable aspect that contributes to the success of the movie.
I'm obsessed with cities. The most recent obsession is Hong Kong. I've been there so many times that I have always felt that Hong Kong is my second home. And the love I feel about HK sometimes makes me believe that I had lived there all my life before I was born. Knowing this crazy obsession of mine, my friend showed me a picture shot in HK. I was fascinated, by how such a picture, small as it is, strikes me almost like a blast of smell of the city and drastically surrounds me with its noise bustling and hustling. The busyness of the city is in front of my eyes.
HK is maybe too colorful to be described by any camera. The black and white color choice seems like a slowed time, playing every movement in slow motion, gracefully corresponding to the body posture of the model. She is in the center of the picture, stretching herself in a grotesque but elegant way, generously absorbing everyone's attention. She and her couture fit in the space quite oddly, but with unruly allure. Great contrast is created in the picture as it is so hard to define if it is new or old, just like the city itself.
Barani has been taking photos for fashion magazines like Vogue. He enjoys playing with colors. His fashion work contains a lot of stunning visual contrast, refined composition, models with an attitude casual, natural and unrestrained. He is good at setting an environment that is magical, abundant, delicate and colorful. Of course, clothes is the important part. It always stand out in his pictures in bright colors, distinctive and unique.
But this Hong Kong series taken for Prive Asia magazine named "the Evangelist" is something richer than just a contrast of colors, a feast of vision, or simply anything like luxury. He is not satisfied with simply what viewers see, but how they feel. There is something transpired from within the composition, lighting, color, emotion of the model, and the stories told in the pictures that convey an unspoken attitude of the city Hong Kong: a place where the old meets the new, eastern collides with western, the couture goes on the street and the tattered proposes its glamor.
pile the drawing, images we find, and text from Morgen’s script together to best present the dark, snowy, isolated and dangerous world that exists on our mind to the spectators.
ing to gather together with artists from different concentration and make one piece of project that each of us contributed to. Artists should never exist only in their own art filed. Art needs collaboration to achieve improvement and realization.
