Thursday, 27 July 2017

A Brief Biography: Yimou Zhang




How Much Does An Eye Compare to 10 Million Fireflies?



Meme to meet you,


Yimou Zhang or, Zhang Yimou is a Chinese film director, producer, writer and actor, and former cinematographer. He was born in 2 April 1950, China. He is counted amongst the Fifth Generation of Chinese filmmakers, having made his directorial debut in 1987 with Red Sorghum.

Among family and friends, he was nicknamed Lao MouZi, which loosely means ‘old schemer’ or ‘strategist’.
Zhang has won numerous awards and recognitions, with Best Foreign Film nominations for Ju Dou in 1990, Raise the Red Lantern in 1991, and Hero in 2003, Silver Lion and Golden Lion prizes at the Venice Film FestivalGrand Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival, and the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival

In 1993, he was a member of the jury at the 43rd Berlin International Film Festival. Zhang directed the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games, which received considerable international acclaim.

One of Zhang's recurrent themes is the resilience of Chinese people in the face of hardship and adversity, a theme which has been explored in such films as To Live (1994) and Not One Less (1999). His films are particularly noted for their rich use of colour, as can be seen in some of his early films, like Raise the Red Lantern, and in his wuxia films like Hero and House of Flying Daggers. His highest budgeted film to date is the 2016 monster film titled The Great Wall, set in Imperial China and starring Matt Damon.

A few of his quotes motivates other aspiring directors, artists and helps them understand better how to bring the audience to enjoy watching art of motion pictures. It also describes the person Yimou Zhang is, in how he observes the situation in China having a big influence in his movie techniques.




The objective of any form of art is not political. I had no political intentions. I am not interested in politics.


The Cultural Revolution was a very special period of Chinese history, unique in the world. It was part of my youth. It happened between when I was 16 and when I was 26. During those 10 years, I witnessed so many terrible and tragic things. For many years, I have wanted to make movies about that period - to discuss the suffering and to talk about fate and human relationships in a world which people couldn't control and which was very hostile. I would like to make not just one but many movies, both autobiographical and drawing on other people's stories. I'll just have to wait.




Sources:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0955443/bio


 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhang_Yimou

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