Hong Shen facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Hong Shen
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| Born | December 31, 1894 Wujin, Jiangsu, Qing Empire
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| Died | August 29, 1955 (aged 60) |
| Occupation | playwright, screenwriter, director, film theorist |
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Notable work
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Yama Zhao (1923) The Young Mistress's Fan Mrs. Shentu (1925) Wukui Bridge (1931) |
| Style | Chinese spoken drama |
Hong Shen (Chinese: 洪深; Wade–Giles: Hung Shen; born December 31, 1894 – died August 29, 1955) was a very important Chinese writer, movie director, and teacher. He helped create modern Chinese plays, known as "spoken drama." People see him as one of the three main founders of this art form. He also wrote the very first movie script in China, called Mrs. Shentu.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Hong Shen was born in Wujin, Jiangsu Province, China, on December 31, 1894. He went to high school in Shanghai and Tianjin. In 1912, he joined the new Tsinghua School (now Tsinghua University). He graduated in 1916.
After that, he went to the United States. He studied ceramic engineering at Ohio State University. While there, he wrote and put on two plays in English. One play, The Wedded Husband, was performed by Chinese students in 1919. It was likely the first play by a Chinese person performed in the U.S. In 1919, he moved to Harvard University. There, he studied drama with a famous professor, George Pierce Baker.
Career in Drama and Film
Hong Shen came back to China in 1922. He wanted to become a great playwright, like Henrik Ibsen. He taught Western Literature at Fudan University in Shanghai and other schools.
Famous Plays
In 1923, he wrote and acted in the play Yama Zhao. This play spoke out against the many wars happening in China at that time. People really liked the play, and it made him a well-known playwright. He joined the Shanghai Association for Dramatists. He wrote several plays, including The Young Mistress's Fan. This play was based on Lady Windermere's Fan by Oscar Wilde. It became very popular and helped shape modern drama in China.
Pioneering Chinese Cinema
In 1925, Hong Shen published the movie script Mrs. Shentu. It was never made into a film. However, it is important because it was the first movie script ever published in China.
He directed his first movie, Young Master Feng, in 1925. This was at the Mingxing Film Company. He also helped direct Love and Gold (1926) and The Young Mistress's Fan (1928). He wrote the script for Sing-Song Girl Red Peony (1931). This was the first Chinese movie with sound! In 1928, he became the director of the China Film School.
Later Years and Influence
In the 1930s, Hong Shen wrote many movie scripts. He also wrote three plays known as the Trilogy of the Countryside. Wukui Bridge is thought to be the best of these. It was first performed in 1931. Hong Shen also wrote many books and articles about how movies and plays work.
After the Japanese invasion in 1937, Hong Shen left Shanghai. He traveled to parts of China that were not controlled by Japan. He put on many plays to encourage people to fight against Japan.
After World War II ended in 1945, he returned to teach at Fudan University. However, he had to leave because he supported the Communist Party. He taught for a short time at Xiamen University. Then, in 1948, he went to Northeast China, which was under Communist control.
When the Communists won the Chinese Civil War in 1949, Hong Shen was given important jobs. He became the Director of External Cultural Relations and Vice-President of the China Theatre Association. He passed away from lung cancer in Beijing on August 29, 1955.
