1. Friday May 25, 2018
      Home
      Text:| Print|

      Sharing stories

      2012-03-20 14:06 Global Times     Web Editor: Xu Rui comment
      Chinese documentaries have developed rapidly in recent years, but still need support from audiences. [Photos: CFP]

      Chinese documentaries have developed rapidly in recent years, but still need support from audiences. [Photos: CFP]

      With 5,000 years of history, 1.4 billion people, diverse cultural appeal and unrivaled economic development, China has never lacked stories for eager documentary makers to tell. Since influential 1990 documentary Bumming in Beijing: The Last Dreamers about a group of artists in the capital was shot by then amateur filmmaker Wu Wenguang, independent Chinese documentary makers have had more freedom thanks to the use of small, digital video cameras and lower dependency on government financing.

      Progress in leaps and bounds

      China is developing so quickly that it's "easy to find a story to tell," according to Oscar Award-winning Chinese-American filmmaker Ruby Yang at one of the classes held during the four-day Sundance/CNEX Documentary Workshop that concluded in Beijing on Sunday.

      "There are always alternative ways to find good stories and inspirational figures," said Yang, co-founder of the Chang Ai Media Project, which raises awareness about HIV/AIDS in China. "One way is to work with non-government organizations, many of whom also aspire to team up with filmmakers."

      Jointly hosted by the Sundance Film Festival, the largest independent film festival in the US, and non-profit organization CNEX, a group dedicated to the production and promotion of Chinese documentaries, the workshops provide a platform for aspiring documentary makers and offers technical and financial support to some of the films, most of which are in pre-production or currently being shot. The 10 entries at this year's workshop vary in the themes they tackle, ranging from youth problems, animal rights protection and sky-rocketing housing prices.

      Stealing the global spotlight

      Guest speakers at this year's event, such as American filmmakers Robb Moss, Arthur Dong and Ruby Yang, covered a range of topics from storytelling techniques and editing. In recent years, independent Chinese documentaries have enjoyed a stronger presence on the international stage, such as at the Venice Film Festival and France's documentary festival Cinema of the Real.

      "To appeal to international audiences, it's important to find a human thread," suggested Dong, a Chinese-American producer, director and self-distributor of independent social issue documentaries for over 30 years.

      "Regardless of our origin, the human thread is universal, which is what I have sought to bring out in my stories," he noted. Many of his documentaries deal with the gay community in the US, such as Stories from the War on Homosexuality. Others involve Chinese-American subjects, such as Sewing Woman, and Forbidden City, U.S.A.

      Challenges hindering growth

      Despite a lack of support in documentary production compared to many other countries, the number of independent Chinese documentary makers has grown to about 100 over the past few years, according to veteran documentary producer Zhu Rikun. Although there are few film festivals and venues in China that screen documentaries, audience numbers have surged in recent years thanks to sales of pirated DVDs and the popularity of movie sharing websites, such as PPTV and Qiyi.

      "Regardless of which country you are from, storytelling is not an easy task. This is especially true when dealing with filmmakers who are concerned about larger issues that affect this country," explained Dong. "Translating these concerns through films that move audiences isn't an easy task."

      While it's the filmmaker's objective to tell a good story, the audience must also accept that not all films are going to cater to their tastes, he noted. "A lot of viewers don't challenge themselves," Dong said, adding that most people want to be entertained and not think. "The most important aspect for audiences is to be open-minded."

       

      Comments (0)

      Copyright ©1999-2011 Chinanews.com. All rights reserved.
      Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.

      主站蜘蛛池模板: 麻豆亚洲av熟女国产一区二| 亚洲精品你懂的在线观看| 亚洲AV无码AV日韩AV网站| 久久国产精品成人片免费| 亚洲视频2020| 13一14周岁毛片免费| 亚洲欧洲高清有无| 国国内清清草原免费视频99| 亚洲av永久无码精品三区在线4| 67194国产精品免费观看| 亚洲一区中文字幕在线观看| 成人最新午夜免费视频| 亚洲大尺度无码无码专线一区| 爽爽日本在线视频免费| 一级女性全黄久久生活片免费| 亚洲日韩中文字幕日韩在线| 亚洲国产成人久久精品app| 妻子5免费完整高清电视| 亚洲免费网站观看视频| www.亚洲精品| 免费看一区二区三区四区| 久久久亚洲AV波多野结衣| 成熟女人牲交片免费观看视频| 在线观看亚洲电影| 亚洲美女又黄又爽在线观看| 黄色一级视频免费观看| 亚洲中文久久精品无码ww16| 99免费在线观看视频| 亚洲精品久久久久无码AV片软件| 青青青国产色视频在线观看国产亚洲欧洲国产综合 | 99爱在线精品视频免费观看9| 亚洲一线产区二线产区精华| 国产精品高清全国免费观看| 中出五十路免费视频| 亚洲欧洲国产成人精品| 免费一看一级毛片人| 最近中文字幕免费2019| 老司机午夜精品视频在线观看免费 | 国产片AV片永久免费观看| 日韩色日韩视频亚洲网站| 亚洲第一福利视频|