Renowned for his contributions to art-house cinema, Phuttiphong Aroonpheng has garnered acclaim as a screenwriter and cinematographer. Additionally, its directorial efforts, such as the short film “Ferris Wheel” (2015), which received Special Mention at Sgiff, and “Manta Ray” (2018), which earned the prestigious Best Film Award in the Orizzonti section at Venice, are celebrated for their profound depth and intricate layers. “Morrison” is no exception. With echoes of David Lynch's aesthetics, it takes viewers on an enigmatic journey through the trauma of war from a unique perspective.
Jimmy, the son of a Thai singer and an unknown American soldier, returns to the hotel where his parents first met. Nestled in the forest, the once-flamboyant establishment has fallen into disrepair, its narrow corridors now host spectral figures, remnants of its glory days. All characters intersect and interact, seemingly imprisoned in this timeless liminal space. Who are they? What is this place? As...
Jimmy, the son of a Thai singer and an unknown American soldier, returns to the hotel where his parents first met. Nestled in the forest, the once-flamboyant establishment has fallen into disrepair, its narrow corridors now host spectral figures, remnants of its glory days. All characters intersect and interact, seemingly imprisoned in this timeless liminal space. Who are they? What is this place? As...
- 3/29/2024
- by Hugo Hamon
- AsianMoviePulse
Oscar winner Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s formalist arthouse drama Evil Does Not Exist won the best film prize Sunday night at the Asia Film Awards in Hong Kong.
The Japanese film industry had a big night overall at the 17th edition of the awards ceremony, which was hosted this year in Hong Kong’s gleaming new Xiqu Centre, part of the city’s $2.7 billion West Kowloon Cultural District development. Japanese festival favorite Hirokazu Kore-eda won best director for his mystery drama Monster, while the great Koji Yakusho took best actor for Wim Wender’s moving minimalist drama Perfect Days. Hamaguchi’s chief collaborator on Evil Does Not Exist, Eiko Ishibashi, won best music and the Kaiju critical and commercial sensation Godzilla Minus One claimed both best visual effects and best sound.
In many ways, it was Zhang Yimou’s night, however. The venerated Chinese director took the stage twice, once to...
The Japanese film industry had a big night overall at the 17th edition of the awards ceremony, which was hosted this year in Hong Kong’s gleaming new Xiqu Centre, part of the city’s $2.7 billion West Kowloon Cultural District development. Japanese festival favorite Hirokazu Kore-eda won best director for his mystery drama Monster, while the great Koji Yakusho took best actor for Wim Wender’s moving minimalist drama Perfect Days. Hamaguchi’s chief collaborator on Evil Does Not Exist, Eiko Ishibashi, won best music and the Kaiju critical and commercial sensation Godzilla Minus One claimed both best visual effects and best sound.
In many ways, it was Zhang Yimou’s night, however. The venerated Chinese director took the stage twice, once to...
- 3/10/2024
- by Patrick Brzeski
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Hamaguchi Ryusuke’s “Evil Does Not Exist,” was Sunday evening named as the best picture at the Asian Film Awards.
The 17th edition of the prizes was held at the Xiqu Centre, part of the West Kowloon Cultural District in Hong Kong.
While “Evil Does Not Exist” and Korean blockbuster “12.12: The Day” had dominated the nominations with six each, including those in the best film category, the prizes on Sunday were much more evenly distributed. No title collected more than two prizes.
Outside, crowds failed to be muted by the March drizzle, though VIP guests were given escorts with purple umbrellas.
Filmmaker and industry attendance was also robust. Those spotted on the red carpet and pre-event cocktails included: Lee Yong Kwan (former chair of the Busan film festival), Tom Yoda, Udine festival heads Sabrina Baracetti and Thomas Bertacche, Anthony Chen, Stanley Kwan, Rina Damayanti, Hong Kong distributor Winnie Tsang,...
The 17th edition of the prizes was held at the Xiqu Centre, part of the West Kowloon Cultural District in Hong Kong.
While “Evil Does Not Exist” and Korean blockbuster “12.12: The Day” had dominated the nominations with six each, including those in the best film category, the prizes on Sunday were much more evenly distributed. No title collected more than two prizes.
Outside, crowds failed to be muted by the March drizzle, though VIP guests were given escorts with purple umbrellas.
Filmmaker and industry attendance was also robust. Those spotted on the red carpet and pre-event cocktails included: Lee Yong Kwan (former chair of the Busan film festival), Tom Yoda, Udine festival heads Sabrina Baracetti and Thomas Bertacche, Anthony Chen, Stanley Kwan, Rina Damayanti, Hong Kong distributor Winnie Tsang,...
- 3/10/2024
- by Patrick Frater and Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Awards Jamboree
The Asian Film Awards Academy has revealed several events around the annual Asian Film Awards in Hong Kong. Veteran filmmakers, jury president of this year’s awards, Japan’s Kurosawa Kiyoshi and Hong Kong’s Fruit Chan, will share their filmmaking experiences and artistic concepts in a joint masterclass. Thai star Metawin Opas-Iamkajorn (“2gether” series and film) known as Win, will be honored with the Afa Rising Star Award and the event will host the world premiere of his new film “Under Parallel Skies.”
There will also be six themed panel discussions featuring actors Wan Fang (Taiwan), Rachel Leung and Yoyo Tse (both Hong Kong), Tergel Bold-Erdene (Mongolia), Awat Ratanapintha (Thailand) and Shirata Mihaya (Japan). The discussions will also include filmmakers Nick Cheuk, Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir, Dominic Sangma, Oscar-winning production designer Tim Yip, production and costume designers Eric Lam, Man Lim Chung, Mitsumatsu Keiko, Elaine Ng, Zhang Menglun, editors Keith Chan Hiu Chun,...
The Asian Film Awards Academy has revealed several events around the annual Asian Film Awards in Hong Kong. Veteran filmmakers, jury president of this year’s awards, Japan’s Kurosawa Kiyoshi and Hong Kong’s Fruit Chan, will share their filmmaking experiences and artistic concepts in a joint masterclass. Thai star Metawin Opas-Iamkajorn (“2gether” series and film) known as Win, will be honored with the Afa Rising Star Award and the event will host the world premiere of his new film “Under Parallel Skies.”
There will also be six themed panel discussions featuring actors Wan Fang (Taiwan), Rachel Leung and Yoyo Tse (both Hong Kong), Tergel Bold-Erdene (Mongolia), Awat Ratanapintha (Thailand) and Shirata Mihaya (Japan). The discussions will also include filmmakers Nick Cheuk, Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir, Dominic Sangma, Oscar-winning production designer Tim Yip, production and costume designers Eric Lam, Man Lim Chung, Mitsumatsu Keiko, Elaine Ng, Zhang Menglun, editors Keith Chan Hiu Chun,...
- 2/28/2024
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
A total of 35 films from 24 countries and regions have been shortlisted to compete for 16 awards at this year's Asian Film Awards.
Renowned Japanese director Kurosawa Kiyoshi will serve as the Jury President for this year's Awards. As the first Japanese director to hold this position, Kurosawa Kiyoshi is deeply honored. He will lead the Jury and over 200 Voting Members in selecting the winners for this year's Asian Film Awards.
The winners of other Afa awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, Excellence in Asian Cinema Award, Afa Next Generation Award, and Rising Star Award, will be announced later.
The 17th Asian Film Awards Nomination List
Best Film
12.12: The Day (South Korea)
Evil Does Not Exist (Japan)
Paradise
Perfect Days (Japan)
Snow Leopard (Mainland China)
Best Director
Kim Sung-soo | 12.12: The Day (South Korea)
Gu Xiaogang | Dwelling by the West Lake (Mainland China)
Hamaguchi Ryusuke | Evil Does Not Exist (Japan)
Kore-eda Hirokazu...
Renowned Japanese director Kurosawa Kiyoshi will serve as the Jury President for this year's Awards. As the first Japanese director to hold this position, Kurosawa Kiyoshi is deeply honored. He will lead the Jury and over 200 Voting Members in selecting the winners for this year's Asian Film Awards.
The winners of other Afa awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, Excellence in Asian Cinema Award, Afa Next Generation Award, and Rising Star Award, will be announced later.
The 17th Asian Film Awards Nomination List
Best Film
12.12: The Day (South Korea)
Evil Does Not Exist (Japan)
Paradise
Perfect Days (Japan)
Snow Leopard (Mainland China)
Best Director
Kim Sung-soo | 12.12: The Day (South Korea)
Gu Xiaogang | Dwelling by the West Lake (Mainland China)
Hamaguchi Ryusuke | Evil Does Not Exist (Japan)
Kore-eda Hirokazu...
- 1/12/2024
- by Adriana Rosati
- AsianMoviePulse
‘Snow Leopard’, ‘Paradise’, ‘The Goldfinger’ and ‘Godzilla Minus One’ also land multiple nods.
South Korean box office hit 12.12: The Day and Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Evil Does Not Exist lead the nominations for the 17th Asian Film Awards, with six nods each including best film.
Also up for best film is Prasanna Vithanage’s Paradise from Sri Lanka-India, Wim Wenders Perfect Days from Japan and Chinese feature Snow Leopard by the late Pema Tseden.
Scroll down for full list of nominations
The winners will be announced at a ceremony in Hong Kong on March 10 and will be decided by a...
South Korean box office hit 12.12: The Day and Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s Evil Does Not Exist lead the nominations for the 17th Asian Film Awards, with six nods each including best film.
Also up for best film is Prasanna Vithanage’s Paradise from Sri Lanka-India, Wim Wenders Perfect Days from Japan and Chinese feature Snow Leopard by the late Pema Tseden.
Scroll down for full list of nominations
The winners will be announced at a ceremony in Hong Kong on March 10 and will be decided by a...
- 1/12/2024
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Japanese filmmaker Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s latest feature, Evil Does Not Exist, and the period action pic 12.12: The Day, from Korea, lead the nominations at this year’s Asian Film Awards.
Both films received six nominations, including Best Film and Best Director. Directed by Kim Sung-soo, whose credits include Asura: The City Of Madness and The Flu, 12.12: The Day is set against the backdrop of the real-life military coup of 1979, which resulted in an eight-year military junta in South Korea. The cast includes Hwang Jung-min (The Wailing), Jung Woo-sung (Asura: The City Of Madness), and Lee Sung-min (The Spy Gone North). Released on November 22, the film sailed past the 12 million admissions mark at the Korean box office over the Christmas holiday period, becoming the highest-grossing film of 2023 in the market.
Hamaguchi’s Evil Does Not Exist — which debuted out of Venice — follows Takumi and his daughter Hana, who live...
Both films received six nominations, including Best Film and Best Director. Directed by Kim Sung-soo, whose credits include Asura: The City Of Madness and The Flu, 12.12: The Day is set against the backdrop of the real-life military coup of 1979, which resulted in an eight-year military junta in South Korea. The cast includes Hwang Jung-min (The Wailing), Jung Woo-sung (Asura: The City Of Madness), and Lee Sung-min (The Spy Gone North). Released on November 22, the film sailed past the 12 million admissions mark at the Korean box office over the Christmas holiday period, becoming the highest-grossing film of 2023 in the market.
Hamaguchi’s Evil Does Not Exist — which debuted out of Venice — follows Takumi and his daughter Hana, who live...
- 1/12/2024
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
Taiwan’s government has suspended its Taiwan International Co-funding Program (Ticp) in a move that appears to signal a change in direction towards more mainstream projects.
The decision has prompted concern among Taiwan’s production community, as the fund was being accessed to set up a wide range of international co-production projects, many of which have secured slots at top international film festivals including Berlin, Venice and Cannes.
When contacted by Deadline, Taiwan Creative Content Agency (Taicca), which manages the fund, offered the following statement:
“To enhance international joint funding and co-production opportunities and to meet the demands of international investments, Taicca has undertaken discussions to revise and optimize the investment initiatives based on the experience of Taiwan’s International Co-funding Program (Ticp). This strategic move aims to attract a broader spectrum of large-scale investment projects, fostering more collaborations between Taiwan and the global community.”
Launched in January 2021, Ticp provides...
The decision has prompted concern among Taiwan’s production community, as the fund was being accessed to set up a wide range of international co-production projects, many of which have secured slots at top international film festivals including Berlin, Venice and Cannes.
When contacted by Deadline, Taiwan Creative Content Agency (Taicca), which manages the fund, offered the following statement:
“To enhance international joint funding and co-production opportunities and to meet the demands of international investments, Taicca has undertaken discussions to revise and optimize the investment initiatives based on the experience of Taiwan’s International Co-funding Program (Ticp). This strategic move aims to attract a broader spectrum of large-scale investment projects, fostering more collaborations between Taiwan and the global community.”
Launched in January 2021, Ticp provides...
- 1/5/2024
- by Liz Shackleton
- Deadline Film + TV
Geng Zihan has just won Best Director in the Fei Mu Awards of Pingyao International Film Festival for her debut feature, A Song Sung Blue, a coming-of-age tale set in Harbin in northeast China.
The film, which premiered in Directors Fortnight at this year’s Cannes film festival, is produced by Jane Zheng with backing from Liang Jing and Guan Hu’s Seventh Art Pictures. Zheng’s producing credits include Lulu Wang’s The Farewell, starring Awkwafina, and Cathy Yan’s Dead Pigs.
Written by Liu Yining, the story revolves around a teenage girl, Liu Xian, who is left with her father for the summer when her mother gets a job in Africa. While her father is more interested in his relationship with the receptionist at his photography studio, Liu Xian strikes up a friendship with the receptionist’s daughter, Mingmei – a glamorous older girl who is training to be...
The film, which premiered in Directors Fortnight at this year’s Cannes film festival, is produced by Jane Zheng with backing from Liang Jing and Guan Hu’s Seventh Art Pictures. Zheng’s producing credits include Lulu Wang’s The Farewell, starring Awkwafina, and Cathy Yan’s Dead Pigs.
Written by Liu Yining, the story revolves around a teenage girl, Liu Xian, who is left with her father for the summer when her mother gets a job in Africa. While her father is more interested in his relationship with the receptionist at his photography studio, Liu Xian strikes up a friendship with the receptionist’s daughter, Mingmei – a glamorous older girl who is training to be...
- 10/18/2023
- by Liz Shackleton
- Deadline Film + TV
The “Best is Yet to Come” is based on the life of Han Fudong, a young journalist who exposed the fact that the social stigma against people suffering from hepatitis B in China was actually indoctrinated in the system. Considering that the sickness is endemic in China, and that in 2003 around 100 million people had it, the story resulted in a scandal which also made its author a kind of a star reporter in the country. The movie however, focuses more on his story up to that point.
“The Best is Yet to Come” is screening at Asian Pop Up Cinema
In that fashion, it begins by showing Han Dong, the protagonist, a high school dropout, trying to get an interview at a newspaper in a job fair, but being completely neglected due to his lack of credentials and experience. The life of both him and his girlfriend, Xiao Zhu, is...
“The Best is Yet to Come” is screening at Asian Pop Up Cinema
In that fashion, it begins by showing Han Dong, the protagonist, a high school dropout, trying to get an interview at a newspaper in a job fair, but being completely neglected due to his lack of credentials and experience. The life of both him and his girlfriend, Xiao Zhu, is...
- 9/29/2023
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
As we have mentioned in the past, Chinese cinema has a knack of producing crime films that unfold in a distinct art house style, with titles like “Black Coal, Thin Ice”, “Mr Six”, and “Long Day's Journey into the Night” being among the first that come to mind. Cannes-favorite (all four of his movies have screened there) Wei Shujun returned in 2023 in the festival with, “Only the River Flows”, a movie that follows a similar approach.
“Only the River Flows” screened at Cannes Official poster – 76th edition © Photo © Jack Garofalo/Paris Match/Scoop – Création graphique © Hartland Villa
Adapted from the novella “Mistakes by the River” by the famous Chinese novelist Yu Hua, the almost entirely shot on 16mm film takes place in the small city of Banpo in China during the 90s. It is there that police detective Ma Zhe is tasked with finding the culprit of the murder of Granny Four,...
“Only the River Flows” screened at Cannes Official poster – 76th edition © Photo © Jack Garofalo/Paris Match/Scoop – Création graphique © Hartland Villa
Adapted from the novella “Mistakes by the River” by the famous Chinese novelist Yu Hua, the almost entirely shot on 16mm film takes place in the small city of Banpo in China during the 90s. It is there that police detective Ma Zhe is tasked with finding the culprit of the murder of Granny Four,...
- 7/4/2023
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Six upcoming projects selected for development platform.
Upcoming projects from Golden Bear-winning producer Celine Loiseau and Charlotte de la Gournerie of Oscar-nominated Flee are among six titles selected for the Full Circle Lab Nouvelle-Aquitaine workshop programme.
The third edition of the lab, organised by France’s Tatino Films, will host four projects at script stage and two in the editing stage, offering support through the development phase, as well as during the post-production and promotion of their features.
Scroll down for full list
Projects include documentary La Détention by Guillaume Massart, produced by Loiseau of France’s Ts Production, who...
Upcoming projects from Golden Bear-winning producer Celine Loiseau and Charlotte de la Gournerie of Oscar-nominated Flee are among six titles selected for the Full Circle Lab Nouvelle-Aquitaine workshop programme.
The third edition of the lab, organised by France’s Tatino Films, will host four projects at script stage and two in the editing stage, offering support through the development phase, as well as during the post-production and promotion of their features.
Scroll down for full list
Projects include documentary La Détention by Guillaume Massart, produced by Loiseau of France’s Ts Production, who...
- 5/21/2023
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Las Vegas and Reno and midterm-election cliffhanger headlines — that’s more or less the sum of what many Americans know about Nevada. In The Great Basin, New York-based filmmaker Chivas DeVinck (The Poets) zeroes in on a section of the state’s vast rural stretches and a few of the hardy locals. With their connection to the land and their never-ending contest with the elements, these are people who are often romanticized as salt-of-the-earth emblems and, at least as often, excluded from the larger social conversation.
Anyone who’s driven Nevada’s so-called Loneliest Road in America or some other soul-testing stretch of asphalt through the unincorporated West has likely spotted an isolated house or two in the wide, wide landscape and wondered who lives there. The Great Basin offers intimate glimpses of those lives — more than an overarching argument, DeVinck’s film is a collection of vivid postcards. Working with cinematographer Yoshio Kitagawa,...
Anyone who’s driven Nevada’s so-called Loneliest Road in America or some other soul-testing stretch of asphalt through the unincorporated West has likely spotted an isolated house or two in the wide, wide landscape and wondered who lives there. The Great Basin offers intimate glimpses of those lives — more than an overarching argument, DeVinck’s film is a collection of vivid postcards. Working with cinematographer Yoshio Kitagawa,...
- 11/15/2022
- by Sheri Linden
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
DialogueTalk and Circle Collective have partnered for the U.S. release of acclaimed documentary “The Great Basin.”
The documentary feature builds a complex panorama of rural Nevada through a tapestry of characters who work, live, and play there. The titular Great Basin is the location of the so-called “Loneliest Road in America” and can be seen as a microcosm of the economic, social, and ecological marginalization of 21st-century rural communities.
The film will have its U.S. premiere at the Santa Fe Film Festival this month and screen at Denver Film Festival in November, ahead of a theatrical screening Q&a tour kicking off on Nov. 14 in Las Vegas, and a week-long run in Los Angeles and New York from Nov. 17. The platform theatrical release tour is being spearheaded by boutique distributor Circle Collective.
“The Great Basin” is a DialogueTalk production directed and produced by Chivas DeVinck (“The Poets”), with cinematography by Yoshio Kitagawa,...
The documentary feature builds a complex panorama of rural Nevada through a tapestry of characters who work, live, and play there. The titular Great Basin is the location of the so-called “Loneliest Road in America” and can be seen as a microcosm of the economic, social, and ecological marginalization of 21st-century rural communities.
The film will have its U.S. premiere at the Santa Fe Film Festival this month and screen at Denver Film Festival in November, ahead of a theatrical screening Q&a tour kicking off on Nov. 14 in Las Vegas, and a week-long run in Los Angeles and New York from Nov. 17. The platform theatrical release tour is being spearheaded by boutique distributor Circle Collective.
“The Great Basin” is a DialogueTalk production directed and produced by Chivas DeVinck (“The Poets”), with cinematography by Yoshio Kitagawa,...
- 10/21/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
As our tribute to the industry comes to an end, we have collected all the interviews that took place during its run, in a series of discussions we feel shed a rather interesting light to what happens behind and around the cameras of Asian cinema. In that fashion, we interviewed Ed Lejano, Earl Jackson, Matthieu Laclau and Yov Moor, Adam Torel, Kazutaka Watanabe, Amir Muhammad, Samuel Jamier, Joey Leung, Mark Schilling, Chiaki Yanagimoto, Tsogtbayar Namsrai, Wafa Ghermani and Huang Juxiang.
1. Ed Lejano – Director, producer, actor and QCinema artistic director 2. Earl Jackson – Asian cinema academic, writer and teacher 3. Matthieu Laclau – Editor 4. Adam Torel – Owner of Third Window Films 5. Kazutaka Watanabe – Producer 6. Amir Muhammad – Filmmaker, publisher, producer and owner of Kuman Pictures 7. Samuel Jamier – Executive producer of New York Asian Film Festival 8. Joey Leung – Owner of Terracotta Distribution 9. Mark Schilling – Film critic for the Tokyo Times, Variety, journalist, translator, and author 10. Chiaki...
1. Ed Lejano – Director, producer, actor and QCinema artistic director 2. Earl Jackson – Asian cinema academic, writer and teacher 3. Matthieu Laclau – Editor 4. Adam Torel – Owner of Third Window Films 5. Kazutaka Watanabe – Producer 6. Amir Muhammad – Filmmaker, publisher, producer and owner of Kuman Pictures 7. Samuel Jamier – Executive producer of New York Asian Film Festival 8. Joey Leung – Owner of Terracotta Distribution 9. Mark Schilling – Film critic for the Tokyo Times, Variety, journalist, translator, and author 10. Chiaki...
- 7/1/2022
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Matthieu Laclau is a French editor who has been working in China since 2008. He studied Film Theory in Paris 3 Sorbonne Nouvelle and received his Master’s degree in 2008. He’s currently living in Taipei. In 2013, he won the Golden Horse Best Editing for ‘A Touch Of Sin’ directed by Jia Zhang-ke and in 2017, the American Chlotrudis Awards Best Editing for ‘Mountains May Depart’ directed by Jia Zhang-ke. Both films were selected in Cannes Film Festival (Competition) and ‘A Touch Of Sin’ won the Best Screenplay.
Since then, he edited ‘Ash Is Purest White’ by Jia Zhang-ke (Cannes Film Festival / Competition), “The Wild Goose Lake” directed by Diao Yinan (Cannes Film Festival / Competition), “Nina Wu” directed by Midi Z (Cannes Film Festival / Un Certain Regard), “The Best Is Yet to Come” directed by Wang Jing (Venice Film Festival / Orrizonti).
We speak with him about the path that led him to edit film in China,...
Since then, he edited ‘Ash Is Purest White’ by Jia Zhang-ke (Cannes Film Festival / Competition), “The Wild Goose Lake” directed by Diao Yinan (Cannes Film Festival / Competition), “Nina Wu” directed by Midi Z (Cannes Film Festival / Un Certain Regard), “The Best Is Yet to Come” directed by Wang Jing (Venice Film Festival / Orrizonti).
We speak with him about the path that led him to edit film in China,...
- 5/12/2022
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
(February 9th, 2021, New York, NY) New York-based distributor Cheng Cheng releases new US poster and trailer for A First Farewell by Wang Lina. The winner of the Best Film award at Berlinale’s Generation Kplus will start playing in virtual cinemas in select cities on February 19th and roll to more locations in the following weeks. The filmmaker Wnag Lina spent four years documenting the protagonist’s life in her hometown Xinjiang, delivering an awe-inspiring debut about the joys of growing up as Uyghurs on the picturesque land and the emotional costs of assimilating into the prosperous mainstream.
Aside from newcomer Wang Lina’s true-to-life writing and direction, top-notch technical works from cinematographer Li Yong, editor Matthieu Laclau (A Touch of Sin), and sound designer Li Danfeng (Long Day’s Journey into Night) solidify the gem praised by press as “another sign of independent cinema revival in China”. Since premiering at Berlinale,...
Aside from newcomer Wang Lina’s true-to-life writing and direction, top-notch technical works from cinematographer Li Yong, editor Matthieu Laclau (A Touch of Sin), and sound designer Li Danfeng (Long Day’s Journey into Night) solidify the gem praised by press as “another sign of independent cinema revival in China”. Since premiering at Berlinale,...
- 2/11/2021
- by Adam Symchuk
- AsianMoviePulse
From “All the President’s Men” to “Spotlight,” American films that valorize those ethically uncompromising reporters who have gone above and beyond, often at significant personal cost, in pursuit of stories of intense public interest, are not uncommon. So it’s more than a little ironic that in 2020, when the fourth estate’s influence is under greater attack, and its trustworthiness under greater suspicion, than ever in the U.S., the most impassioned and urgent drama in its defense should come from China, not a country traditionally known for its press freedoms.
But while it may feel dubious to be celebrating even a historical achievement in Beijing journalism in an era when so many journalists languish in the nation’s prisons, the message of admiration for professional perseverance and integrity delivered by director Wang Jing’s debut is acutely valuable at this moment, wherever in the world you are. Beggars for...
But while it may feel dubious to be celebrating even a historical achievement in Beijing journalism in an era when so many journalists languish in the nation’s prisons, the message of admiration for professional perseverance and integrity delivered by director Wang Jing’s debut is acutely valuable at this moment, wherever in the world you are. Beggars for...
- 9/15/2020
- by Jessica Kiang
- Variety Film + TV
Produced by Jia Zhangke, the film follows an aspiring journalist facing a moral dilemma while investigating a story.
Beijing-based sales agent Rediance has picked up international rights to Wang Jing’s debut feature, The Best Is Yet To Come, which has been selected for the Orizzonti Competition of Venice Film Festival as well as Toronto International Film Festival.
Produced by Jia Zhangke, the film is set in Beijing 17 years ago and tells the story of an aspiring journalist who faces a huge career dilemma while investigating a story about carriers of Hepatitis B.
Wang was born in Taiyuan, capital of Shanxi Province,...
Beijing-based sales agent Rediance has picked up international rights to Wang Jing’s debut feature, The Best Is Yet To Come, which has been selected for the Orizzonti Competition of Venice Film Festival as well as Toronto International Film Festival.
Produced by Jia Zhangke, the film is set in Beijing 17 years ago and tells the story of an aspiring journalist who faces a huge career dilemma while investigating a story about carriers of Hepatitis B.
Wang was born in Taiyuan, capital of Shanxi Province,...
- 8/7/2020
- by 89¦Liz Shackleton¦0¦
- ScreenDaily
Ash Is Purest White movie review is here: The 2018 Chinese drama film directed by master filmmaker Jia Zhangke was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival. Starring Zhao Tao and Liao Fan, the movie is releasing in India on August 2, 2019 through PVR cinemas in association with In2Infotainment, Kahwa films and Vkaao. Here is the review of the internationally acclaimed art house that created a wave in Asia and other parts as well.
Immediate reaction when the end credits roll
The modern day Chinese master Jia Zhangke once again proves his supremacy in telling coming of age stories about a nation like China and its people running amazingly parallel with each other. Powered by Zhao Tao?s unbeatable performance Ash Is Purest White is pure gold cinema that ?documents? the reality hidden in the modernity in an exceptionally divine tale of love and survival.
Also read:?...
Immediate reaction when the end credits roll
The modern day Chinese master Jia Zhangke once again proves his supremacy in telling coming of age stories about a nation like China and its people running amazingly parallel with each other. Powered by Zhao Tao?s unbeatable performance Ash Is Purest White is pure gold cinema that ?documents? the reality hidden in the modernity in an exceptionally divine tale of love and survival.
Also read:?...
- 7/31/2019
- GlamSham
“They don’t just want to take my body, they want to take my soul!” So runs the overripe line of dialogue that actress Nina Wu (Wu Kexi) has to repeat again and again in “Nina Wu,” the fascinating, glitchy, stylish, and troublesome new film from Taiwanese director Midi Z (“The Road to Mandalay”). Nina practices the line in the mirror, rehashes it in auditions (and “auditions”) and then in take after take until it becomes a kind of mantra that threads through the film, or less poetically, the line of gibberish that a doll might parrot when you pull its string. Each time, Nina cries. And each time, the words seem to get rawer, a little of their clichéd glibness scuffing off, as we discover that the film is very much about how the taking of a body can cue the taking of a soul, and furthermore, how insidiously...
- 5/27/2019
- by Jessica Kiang
- Variety Film + TV
An outstanding debut feature by Chinese writer-director Wang Lina, “A First Farewell” centers on three Uighur children and their farming families whose lives are upended by regulations demanding increased levels of Mandarin language-based teaching in schools. Beautifully photographed and performed by amazingly talented non-professional child actors, Wang’s film is an emotionally rewarding glimpse into challenges faced by this Muslim minority. Having already won the Crystal Bear of the Generation Kplus section at Berlin and the Asian Future best film award at Tokyo, “Farewell” is certain to attract further commercial interest and film festival invitations following exposure at Hong Kong FilMart.
Avoiding commentary on headline-grabbing issues relating to the Uighur that surely would have seen her work fall foul of Chinese censors, Wang opts for storytelling reminiscent of many fine Iranian films such as Majid Majidi’s “The Color of Paradise” (1999). Told mostly through the eyes of primary school-aged characters,...
Avoiding commentary on headline-grabbing issues relating to the Uighur that surely would have seen her work fall foul of Chinese censors, Wang opts for storytelling reminiscent of many fine Iranian films such as Majid Majidi’s “The Color of Paradise” (1999). Told mostly through the eyes of primary school-aged characters,...
- 3/17/2019
- by Richard Kuipers
- Variety Film + TV
It has been more than two decades since Hong Kong has rejoined the People’s Republic of China, while maintaining its own political system, autonomy, currency and, generally speaking, way of life. The neighbouring Guangdong province has seen a huge economic developed since then, but another phenomenon is on the rise. There is a large number of people who commute on daily basis and therefore have double identity of sorts. That topic needs to be addressed also in cinema and the mainland Chinese first-time filmmaker Bai Xue does it in a stunning fashion and with a lot of style in her feature debut “The Crossing” (“Guo Chun Tian” in original).
The film premiered at the last year’s edition of Tiff to a warm critical reception and was shown on home turf at Pingyao International Film Festival, where it scooped a couple of awards before heading to its European premiere at Generation 14plus sidebar of Berlinale.
The film premiered at the last year’s edition of Tiff to a warm critical reception and was shown on home turf at Pingyao International Film Festival, where it scooped a couple of awards before heading to its European premiere at Generation 14plus sidebar of Berlinale.
- 2/16/2019
- by Marko Stojiljković
- AsianMoviePulse
Jia Zhangke embarks once again on a triptych that highlights the changes China has experienced in the 21st century, through a long drama revolving around a gangster’s girlfriend and her life during three different decades.
“Ash Is Purest White” is screening at Toronto International Film Festival
The story begins in Shanxi, a dying coal town, where Qiao, a modern, feisty local beauty spends her time with her boyfriend, Guo Bin, a local gang boss and taking care of her father, who insists on fighting for the coal workers’ rights, although in an embarrassing fashion. Qiao is not Bin’s woman, as she carries herself as an equal among gangsters. When a group of young thugs starts making noise in the town, the clash with Bin’s gang is inevitable, and in the film’s most violent scene, Qiao ends up saving her boyfriend by shooting a gun, in a...
“Ash Is Purest White” is screening at Toronto International Film Festival
The story begins in Shanxi, a dying coal town, where Qiao, a modern, feisty local beauty spends her time with her boyfriend, Guo Bin, a local gang boss and taking care of her father, who insists on fighting for the coal workers’ rights, although in an embarrassing fashion. Qiao is not Bin’s woman, as she carries herself as an equal among gangsters. When a group of young thugs starts making noise in the town, the clash with Bin’s gang is inevitable, and in the film’s most violent scene, Qiao ends up saving her boyfriend by shooting a gun, in a...
- 9/8/2018
- by Panos Kotzathanasis
- AsianMoviePulse
Cannes ’18 Review by Peter BelsitoZhao Tao and Liao Fan star in Jia Zhang-ke’s chronicle of the relationship between a low-level Chinese crook and the woman who goes to prison for him.Liao Fan, center, and cast in ‘Ash Is Purest White’
This long Chinese drama of a decidedly minor crook and his long suffering girlfriend was one of the better films I saw at Cannes.
Qiao is a local beauty who takes no crap from the men that frequent the gambling den in the back of a nightclub dominated by the presence of her low level mobster boyfriend Guo Bin.
While everyone else is busy sucking up to Bin, Qiao is a woman who refuses to be intimidated by the macho environment; she greets Bin with a sharp but affectionate bite on the shoulder and gives playful thumps to the regulars in a scene that instantly establishes the character as no mere decorative prop.
This long Chinese drama of a decidedly minor crook and his long suffering girlfriend was one of the better films I saw at Cannes.
Qiao is a local beauty who takes no crap from the men that frequent the gambling den in the back of a nightclub dominated by the presence of her low level mobster boyfriend Guo Bin.
While everyone else is busy sucking up to Bin, Qiao is a woman who refuses to be intimidated by the macho environment; she greets Bin with a sharp but affectionate bite on the shoulder and gives playful thumps to the regulars in a scene that instantly establishes the character as no mere decorative prop.
- 5/29/2018
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Death is literally the beginning in the cross-generational relationship drama Love Education, which closes the 2017 Busan International Film Festival today. In depicting a quintessentially Chinese family dispute about burial sites that sets free unspoken sorrows building across half a century, it reveals how the idea and expression of love have evolved in a vastly changed Middle Kingdom.
The movie opens with an aged lady on her dying bed. As per the long-standing tradition of cinematic romanticism, the last flashes of consciousness play out in a dreamy, amorous sequence of remembered bliss with her white-haired beau. Somewhat more surprisingly, no profound parting words seem to come out of her trembling mouth when daughter Huiying (Sylvia Chang), son-in-law Xiaoping (Zhuangzhuang Tian) and granddaughter Weiwei (Yueting Lang) gather around to send grandma off in a moment of heightened sentimentality.
This initially insignificant detail proves to be a source of intrigue later on. Because,...
The movie opens with an aged lady on her dying bed. As per the long-standing tradition of cinematic romanticism, the last flashes of consciousness play out in a dreamy, amorous sequence of remembered bliss with her white-haired beau. Somewhat more surprisingly, no profound parting words seem to come out of her trembling mouth when daughter Huiying (Sylvia Chang), son-in-law Xiaoping (Zhuangzhuang Tian) and granddaughter Weiwei (Yueting Lang) gather around to send grandma off in a moment of heightened sentimentality.
This initially insignificant detail proves to be a source of intrigue later on. Because,...
- 10/21/2017
- by Zhuo-Ning Su
- The Film Stage
Director Midi Z went to unusual lengths on his love story about Burmese immigrants in Thailand, the first co-production between Taiwan, France, Germany and Myanmar.
The Road To Mandalay marks the first outing at the Venice Film Festival (Aug 31 - Sept 10) for Myanmar-born, Taiwan-based director Midi Z, whose reputation is fast on the rise. His last two films, Ice Poison (2014) and documentary City Of Jade (2016), premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival.
The Road To Mandalay is the sole Chinese-language narrative film playing at Venice this year. The main characters are Burmese-Chinese who speak the Chinese Yunnan dialect, like Midi Z himself.
According to the director, the Burmese believe there are three ways to escape poverty, “One is to become a drug smuggler, one is to work in the jade mines and the third is to smuggle yourself into another country.”
While his previous films have addressed the above issues in one way or another, The Road To Mandalay features...
The Road To Mandalay marks the first outing at the Venice Film Festival (Aug 31 - Sept 10) for Myanmar-born, Taiwan-based director Midi Z, whose reputation is fast on the rise. His last two films, Ice Poison (2014) and documentary City Of Jade (2016), premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival.
The Road To Mandalay is the sole Chinese-language narrative film playing at Venice this year. The main characters are Burmese-Chinese who speak the Chinese Yunnan dialect, like Midi Z himself.
According to the director, the Burmese believe there are three ways to escape poverty, “One is to become a drug smuggler, one is to work in the jade mines and the third is to smuggle yourself into another country.”
While his previous films have addressed the above issues in one way or another, The Road To Mandalay features...
- 8/31/2016
- ScreenDaily
The Grandmaster wins six awards in Taipei.Scroll down for full list of winners
Celebrating the 50th Taipei Golden Horse Awards, the Chinese-speaking film industry was out in full force Saturday night (Nov 23) at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall in Taipei.
Anthony Chen’s debut film Ilo Ilo took Best Feature with a cash prize of $16,900 (Nt$500,000).
“Singapore is a very little country and we did this on a very little budget and never had we thought of winning Best Feature Film,” said Chen, who thanked jury president Ang Lee and the other nominees in the category, whose works he said he had all studied in film school.
About a Singaporean family and their newly arrived Filipino maid around the time of the Asian Financial Crisis, Ilo Ilo also won Best Original Screenplay, Best New Director, and Best Supporting Actress for Yeo Yann-Yann.
Yeo, who played a beleaguered working mother, thanked the director...
Celebrating the 50th Taipei Golden Horse Awards, the Chinese-speaking film industry was out in full force Saturday night (Nov 23) at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall in Taipei.
Anthony Chen’s debut film Ilo Ilo took Best Feature with a cash prize of $16,900 (Nt$500,000).
“Singapore is a very little country and we did this on a very little budget and never had we thought of winning Best Feature Film,” said Chen, who thanked jury president Ang Lee and the other nominees in the category, whose works he said he had all studied in film school.
About a Singaporean family and their newly arrived Filipino maid around the time of the Asian Financial Crisis, Ilo Ilo also won Best Original Screenplay, Best New Director, and Best Supporting Actress for Yeo Yann-Yann.
Yeo, who played a beleaguered working mother, thanked the director...
- 11/24/2013
- by hjnoh2007@gmail.com (Jean Noh)
- ScreenDaily
The Grandmaster wins six awards in Taipei.
Celebrating the 50th Taipei Golden Horse Awards, the Chinese-speaking film industry was out in full force Saturday night (Nov 23) at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall in Taipei.
Anthony Chen’s debut film Ilo Ilo took Best Feature with a cash prize of $16,900 (Nt$500,000).
“Singapore is a very little country and we did this on a very little budget and never had we thought of winning Best Feature Film,” said Chen, who thanked jury president Ang Lee and the other nominees in the category, whose works he said he had all studied in film school.
About a Singaporean family and their newly arrived Filipino maid around the time of the Asian Financial Crisis, Ilo Ilo also won Best Original Screenplay, Best New Director, and Best Supporting Actress for Yeo Yann-Yann.
Yeo, who played a beleaguered working mother, thanked the director who is said to have altered the story to reflect her actual...
Celebrating the 50th Taipei Golden Horse Awards, the Chinese-speaking film industry was out in full force Saturday night (Nov 23) at the Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall in Taipei.
Anthony Chen’s debut film Ilo Ilo took Best Feature with a cash prize of $16,900 (Nt$500,000).
“Singapore is a very little country and we did this on a very little budget and never had we thought of winning Best Feature Film,” said Chen, who thanked jury president Ang Lee and the other nominees in the category, whose works he said he had all studied in film school.
About a Singaporean family and their newly arrived Filipino maid around the time of the Asian Financial Crisis, Ilo Ilo also won Best Original Screenplay, Best New Director, and Best Supporting Actress for Yeo Yann-Yann.
Yeo, who played a beleaguered working mother, thanked the director who is said to have altered the story to reflect her actual...
- 11/24/2013
- by hjnoh2007@gmail.com (Jean Noh)
- ScreenDaily
The Golden Horse Awards , this year celebrating its 50th anniversary is one of Asians most precious movie awards ceremonies. This year saw some of the biggest names in Asian Cinema attend ; including Ang Lee, Jonnnie To and Peter Chan.
This year saw Jackie Chan win his third Golden Horse Award (previous wins included back to back best actor wins for Crime Story and Police Story 3) for Action Choreography in Chinese Zodiac
Jackie Chan Wins at the Golden Horse Awards
Here’s a clip from the Chinese Zodiac
Other big winners on the night
In a major surprise, Singapore’s Ilo Ilo won Best Film, beating favourites (The GrandMaster and Johnnie Tos ‘Drug War‘), this was only the second time a debut director as taken the award.
The Grandmaster despite missing out on the big prize still walked away with 5 awards in total including Best Actress for star ‘ Zhang Ziyi...
This year saw Jackie Chan win his third Golden Horse Award (previous wins included back to back best actor wins for Crime Story and Police Story 3) for Action Choreography in Chinese Zodiac
Jackie Chan Wins at the Golden Horse Awards
Here’s a clip from the Chinese Zodiac
Other big winners on the night
In a major surprise, Singapore’s Ilo Ilo won Best Film, beating favourites (The GrandMaster and Johnnie Tos ‘Drug War‘), this was only the second time a debut director as taken the award.
The Grandmaster despite missing out on the big prize still walked away with 5 awards in total including Best Actress for star ‘ Zhang Ziyi...
- 11/24/2013
- by Brian Stewart
- AsianMoviePulse
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