FUTURE DIRECTION

With China’s fifth and sixth generations of filmmakers still active, young creators are drawing attention with low- and mid-budget productions. But as these directors, most born after 1980, have diverse styles and backgrounds, there has been debate over calling them the “seventh generation” of China’s filmmakers.　

“Reform and opening-up was a collective memory that deeply imprinted the works of sixth generation filmmakers. Since it profoundly impacted every individual in Chinese society, consequently there is a certain continuity in subject, style and aesthetics in the works of my peers,” Jia Zhangke, an important sixth generation filmmaker, said at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival in February. “For younger filmmakers, personally I hope they are not labeled collectively as the seventh generation. I hope we can embrace a free and individualized era where public social changes do not tremendously affect the individual.”　

The fifth generation, for instance, includes Chen Kaige (Yellow Earth, 1984; Farewell My Concubine, 1994), Zhang Yimou (Red Sorghum, 1987, Raise the Red Lantern, 1991; To Live, 1994) and Tian Zhuangzhuang (The Blue Kite, 1993). Educated after the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), these directors witnessed tumultuous social changes. 　

Also called the “urban generation,” the sixth generation groups directors who favor independent and arthouse filmmaking, such as Jia Zhangke (Still Life, 2006; A Touch of Sin, 2013), Lou Ye (Suzhou River, 2000; Summer Palace, 2006), Wang Xiaoshuai (Beijing Bicycle, 2001; Shanghai Dreams, 2005) and Zhang Yuan (Beijing Bastards, 1993; East Palace, West Palace, 1997). Having grown up as the country deepened reform and opening-up, the sixth generation turns to the margins of modern Chinese society, focusing on themes of loss, anxiety and frustration in China’s rapidly changing cityspace.　

Film scholars and critics regard Ning Hao as marking the boundary between the sixth generation and new filmmakers. 　

In 2006, the then 29-year-old Ning surprised the industry with his black comedy Crazy Stone, which took in 23 million yuan (US$3.36m). Four years later, Ning released another black comedy called Crazy Racer. In 2010, with only two films, Ning became the fourth highest-grossing director after Zhang Yimou, Chen Kaige and Feng Xiaogang. 　

Ning called the sixth generation “idealists” and does not support using a collective label for younger directors. 　

“Starting with Ning Hao’s Crazy Stone, young directors gradually diverged from the sixth generation. The most conspicuous change is the younger creators care more about the viewing experience of regular people. Their works are more accessible and more appreciated by the general public,” Chen Shan, professor at the Beijing Film Academy’s Department of Literature, told NewsChina. 　

In 2014, 35-year-old Lu Yang captivated audiences with the first film of his Brotherhood of Blades franchise, an entertaining martial arts series that combines sword fighting, period costumes and dramatic doses of suspense. 　

In 2015, 36-year-old actor Chen Sicheng’s directorial debut Detective Chinatown was a box office smash. With a sequel in 2018, the franchise raked in 4.2 billion yuan (US$613m) and garnered acclaim for opening a new chapter in Chinese suspense comedies. 　

In the following years, more young directors achieved huge box office success. 　

Three of the top 10 highest-grossing films in China are from young filmmakers. Nezha (2019), an animated feature by 39-year-old Jiaozi, ranks second with 5 billion yuan (US$730m). Sci-fi blockbuster The Wandering Earth (2019) from 39-year-old Guo Fan ranks third at 4.68 billion yuan (US$684m). At ninth is 35-year-old newcomer Wen Muye’s comedy-drama Dying to Survive (2018), which grossed 3.1 billion yuan (US$453m). 　

These three box-office hits have had tremendous influence on their genres. Both Nezha and Dying to Survive are directorial debuts.　

“These young directors have accurately found a stretch of land of their own, have clearly oriented their own audiences and are consciously maturing a particular genre. With a flood of works distinctive in style, narrative and theme, Chinese cinema has finally embraced a boom in genre films,” Zuo Heng, the deputy director of the Film Art Research Center of the China Film Archive, told NewsChina. 　

For a long time, storytelling was not encouraged at the Beijing Film Academy (BFA). As the cradle of Chinese film talent, BFA almuni include Zhang Yimou, Chen Kaige, Tian Zhuangzhuang, Jia Zhangke and Gu Changwei. 　

Chen Shan said in the 1980s when the fifth generation of directors studied at the BFA, the school emphasized visual subjectivity over storytelling.　

“At the time, we believed that film was a work of art, and it was necessary to de-emphasize the film’s narrative. We thought that good movies should never be ones that merely tell stories. I remember after Zhang Yimou finished Red Sorghum, he came back to school and nervously apologized that he was telling too much story,” Chen told NewsChina. 　

“After the Cultural Revolution in the 1980s, film scholars, teachers and students had the same goal - to improve the artistic quality of films and make Chinese films more influential in international cinema. From creative ideas to techniques, the fifth generation took on this mission. 　

“The sixth generation was still following in the footsteps of the fifth generation in making art films, but they were more individualistic in cinematic expression. They actually wanted to make something similar to French new wave films,” Chen told NewsChina. 　

The sixth generation entered the industry in the 1990s to a prospering market economy. It was hard to get funding for art films, which led directors to make low-budget, underground films. Their works have been cut, banned or relegated to limited release domestically. But many won awards on the international film festival circuit. 　

The new generation of filmmakers are neither burdened with having to retell history nor a focus on individualized and marginalized living experiences. Instead, young creators tell good stories and embrace their markets. 　

In 2011, Wen Muye joined BFA’s post-graduate directing program. His supervisor was fifth generation director Tian Zhuangzhuang. 　

Chen said students like Lu Yang and Wen Muye are very open-minded and broad in vision. “In the 1980s, fifth generation directors mainly took professional film courses such as cinematography or art design. Nowadays, young students are interested in everything. Besides European art films, they also draw inspiration from Hollywood, Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong,” Chen said. 　

Wen’s directorial debut Dying to Survive tells a fact-based story of a small drugstore owner whose smuggling of affordable generic drugs from India vastly improves the lives of many leukemia patients. With 60 million yuan (US$8.7m) in funding, the mid-budget production eventually took in 3.1 billion yuan (US$452m) at the box office, far beyond the director’s expectations. 　

“All I wanted to do was to use the way that I felt most comfortable to make a film that could thoroughly convey the powerful energy in both the subject and characters,” Wen told NewsChina. “As a professional director, I hoped I wouldn’t lose my investors’ money. These were my expectations for my feature debut.”　

The majority of Dying to Survive was filmed with hand-held video cameras in medium and close-up shots. The shakiness of handheld cams is a form of stylistic expression in art film preferred by many sixth generation creators, particularly Lou Ye. 　

Unlike his predecessors, Wen used handheld cameras not to emulate a certain style but to allow the technique to serve the story, helping audiences feel the power of the characters. Though the entire film has shaky shots that serve the mood and pace of the story, audiences are unconscious of them. 　

“In the course of filming I kept asking myself - if I were in the audience, would this film have done well enough in both moving me and expressing the creator’s message?” Wen told NewsChina. “Like a cook, you need to taste before you serve the dish,�� he added.　

The young director has broad tastes. He loves Sydney Pollack’s Out of Africa (1985) and Hou Hsiao-hsien’s A Summer at Grandpa’s (1984), and also enjoys South Korean TV dramas My Love From the Star (2013) and Reply 1988 (2015). 　

“For me, a good movie is one that can touch me. It doesn’t matter if it’s a commercial blockbuster or an independent art film. Good storytelling and pursuit of artistic expression never conflict,” Wen said. 　

Chen Shan prefers to call young directors “fifth generation plus,” because they not only pursue art and self-expression like the fifth generation, but also use technique to serve the story to make their works more accessible to the general public. 　

“Both Dying to Survive and The Wandering Earth have depth and profundity, and they beautifully deliver their messages to the general public. For creators, the most difficult and marvelous thing is to create works that appeal to both refined and popular tastes. They have successfully made professors and fish vendors get what they want from the films.　

“Essentially speaking, if a film can enable everyone to get something different from it, then it’s actually providing a liberating space for people from all walks of life,” Chen said.　

Ning Hao’s Crazy Stone was sponsored by Focus First Cuts, a project spearheaded by Hong Kong actor Andy Lau. A decade later in 2016, Ning’s Dirty Monkeys Studio launched its 72 Transformation Film Plan, which advised the work of 10 young directors, including Wen Muye and Lu Yang. 　

Started in 2006, the FIRST International Film Festival (FIRST) has become an increasingly significant platform in China to discover and promote young filmmakers and their early works. Many critically acclaimed films by young filmmakers such as Xin Yukun’s Deep in the Heart (2014) and Bi Gan’s Kaili Blues (2015) debuted at FIRST. FIRST Training Camp, the festival’s education program launched in 2012, invites internationally recognized filmmakers to tutor young directors in directing skills and broaden their visions.　

Arthouse movies are getting funded more easily than before and are marketed in interesting ways. 　

Born in 1989, Bi Gan is a poet-turned-filmmaker of the Hmong ethnicty. He won Best New Director at the Golden Horse Awards in Taiwan and Best Emerging Director at Locarno Festival with his 2016 debut, Kaili Blues.　

His second film Long Day’s Journey Into Night (2018), released in China on December 31, took in a whopping 264 million yuan (US$38.8m) on its opening day, breaking box-office records for arthouse movies. Its success is partially due to its clever marketing campaign - billing it as the “last film of 2018” got young cinemagoers discussing the film online. Its promotion team also took to video-sharing platforms like Douyin to attract young audiences. 　

“Young arthouse filmmakers today are in a better environment than what sixth generation creators had to struggle through. In recent years, more than 70 percent of films that screen at film festivals - including low-budget independent works - have producers, which means that these films will hit the market and reap maximum profits in a commercial way,” Sha Dan said.

　

“Directors of my generation have more opportunities than ever to stand out as long as they are willing to work hard in writing good screenplays and filming. No matter what forms they choose, be it documentaries, short movies or experimental films, these are just ways directors express their love and values. As long as they take this job seriously, young directors can find an audience,” Wen told NewsChina.