Zhang Yimou

Film director Zhang Yimou said yesterday he was very confident of a successful opening ceremony for the Beijing Olympics in August.

 

"The mass rehearsals for the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games, with more than 10,000 people involved, are going well," Zhang said before attending the First Session of the 11th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), which started yesterday in the capital.

 

Zhang has been tasked with designing the opening and closing ceremonies for the Games.

 

He said he felt "regret" over Hollywood director Steven Spielberg's recent withdrawal from the Olympics as its artistic advisor.

 

But Spielberg's decision will not have any influence on the ceremonies, Zhang said.

 

The American movie director was appointed artistic advisor by the Beijing Organizing Committee for the 2008 Olympics in April 2006, and became involved with the opening and closing ceremonies of the event, together with Zhang and Ric Rirch, the Australian director behind ceremonies at the Sydney Games in 2000.

 

Spielberg quit last month, citing concerns over the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, which he linked to the Chinese government.

 

Zhang Yimou's Profile

Film director Zhang Yimou, who is also director of the opening and closing ceremonies for the Beijing Olympic Games, is a member of the First Session of the 11th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

On November 14, 1950, Zhang Yimou was born in Shaanxi province of China. His childhood was a difficult one. After the Cultural Revolution, he became a photographer, buying his first camera in 1974. Many of his photos were published in local periodicals, including the Shaanxi Daily.

In 1979, he entered the Beijing Central Film Academy after a long struggle to be admitted. He studied at the school until 1982, focusing on cinematography. In 1982, he graduated as a member of China's Fifth Generation of filmmakers.

After graduation, Zhang was assigned to the Guangxi Film Studio in Southern China where he worked as a cameraman and a cinematographer. While there, he made contact with fellow fifth generation filmmakers Chen Kaige and Zhang Junzhao who later became his collaborators and supporters.

Filmography:

Director

Red Sorghum (紅高粱 1987)

Codename Cougar (代號美洲豹 1989)

Ju Dou (菊豆 1991)

Raise the Red Lantern (大紅燈籠高高掛 1992)

The Story of Qiu Ju (秋菊打官司 1992)

To Live (活著 1994)

Shanghai Triad (搖啊搖，搖到外婆橋 1995)

Lumière and Company (1995) - segment of a short film anthology

Keep Cool (有話好好說 1997)

Not One Less (一個都不能少 1999)

The Road Home (我的父親母親 1999)

Happy Times (幸福時光 2000)

Hero (英雄 2002)

House of Flying Daggers (十面埋伏 2004)

Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles (千里走單騎 2005)

Curse of the Golden Flower (滿城盡帶黃金甲 2006)

 

Cinematographer

One and Eight (一個和八個 1982)

Yellow Earth (黃土地 1984)

Old Well (老井 1986)

The Big Parade (大閱兵 1986)

(Source:chinadaily.com.cn)