Director helps make a difference

Despite the pandemic, over the past three years Jia Zhangke, one of China's most internationally recognized directors, has endeavored to keep contact with the world.

Recently in the UCCA Center for Contemporary Art in Beijing, Jia held a talk with young Filipino filmmaker Rafael Manuel after the screening of Manuel's two short movies; respectively the 17-minute Dogeater, about a Filipino maid in London, and the 24-minute Filipinana.

A native of Manila, the London Film School-educated Manuel won the Silver Bear Jury Prize for short films at the 2020 Berlin International Film Festival for Filipinana, which explores golf and country clubs as a microcosm of society in the Philippines.

The event is part of the Rolex Mentor and Protege Arts Initiative, a program established in 2002, which has gathered 63 pairs of prestigious artists and young talent from a variety of fields, including architecture, dance, film, literature, music, theater and visual arts. The pairs work together for at least six weeks.

Known for his thought-provoking observation of Chinese society's transformation with award-winning movies like Still Life, the Golden Lion winner at the 63rd Venice Film Festival, Jia is the second Chinese filmmaker after director Zhang Yimou to join the program.

"It started simply. One of my colleagues received an email that asked if I would like to join the program. As I haven't had much work to do during the pandemic, I decided to take it," recalls Jia.

Depicting the following procedure as somewhat "complex", Jia recalls a team of international selectors was established, with the members being industry veterans from Germany, Japan, France, Malaysia, and the Netherlands.

Manuel was selected from three finalists — the other two being directors from India and Greece — due to Jia's admiration for Filipinana and his wish to provide help to Manuel, who was then preparing to shoot his feature-length movies.

Describing it as a valuable and stimulating experience to become Jia's "protege", Manuel recalls that he originally watched Jia's directorial effort Ash Is Purest White during a flight from London to Manila. He met Jia for the first time at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival in early 2020.

The mentor-protege interaction not only provides Manuel with access to how Jia handles his daily work and obtains his inspiration, but also gives Jia an unexpected chance to examine his initial enthusiasm about cinematic art.

"In the past, I had got used to traveling the world with my movies. However, in the past few years, my identity has turned into 'a resident of Beijing's Chaoyang district'. I have rarely met fellow (foreign) filmmakers," says Jia.

"I think it's important to keep communicating with the world, whether it's for individuals or countries," says the director, adding that he appreciated the two months he spent with Manuel.

One of Jia's favorite moments was when he was editing a movie at the studio, Manuel suddenly quoted Italian filmmaker Michelangelo Antonioni and French film critic Andre Bazin.

"I felt touched by the moment, as I have not heard anyone else mention those two names for around five or six years. All that I have heard about is the box office or if a project will get approved. I really want to talk about cinematic art," Jia says.

With more than 40 percent of Chinese cinemas still closed due to the pandemic, the sluggish domestic movie market is facing a chilly winter, struggling with shrinking audience numbers and a shortage of blockbusters — as many industry insiders have discussed for a long time.

"I haven't shot a feature film for four years. I wish I could shoot a new movie," says Jia, adding that he hopes Chinese filmmakers can maintain their enthusiasm to survive the winter.