Jia Zhangke facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jia Zhangke
贾樟柯
Jia in 2008
Born	(1970-05-24) 24 May 1970 (age 55) Fenyang, Shanxi, China
Citizenship	China
Education	Beijing Film Academy
Occupation	Film director, screenwriter, film producer
Years active	1995–present
Notable work	A Touch of Sin Ash Is Purest White Still Life Platform
Style	Minimalism postmodernism surrealism social realism avant-garde
Movement	Sixth Generation
Spouse(s)	Zhu Jiong ​ ​ (m. 1999; div. 2006)​ Zhao Tao ​ (m. 2012)​
Awards	Venice Film Festival – Golden Lion 2006 Still Life Asian Film Awards – Best Director 2006 Still Life Asian Film Awards – Best Screenplay 2015 Mountains May Depart Golden Horse Awards – Best Original Screenplay 2015 Mountains May Depart

Jia Zhangke (born on May 24, 1970) is a famous Chinese film director, writer, and producer. He is known for making movies that show real life in China. He also helped start the Pingyao International Film Festival.

Jia is seen as a leader of the "Sixth Generation" of Chinese filmmakers. This group includes directors like Wang Xiaoshuai and Lou Ye. His early movies were made without government approval, so they were called "underground" films. Later, he started making movies with official permission.

His films have won many awards around the world. One of his most famous films, Still Life, won the top prize, the Golden Lion, at the Venice Film Festival. He also received a special lifetime achievement award at the Cannes Film Festival in 2015.

Early Life and Film Dreams

Jia Zhangke grew up in Fenyang, a city in Shanxi, China. He became interested in movies in the early 1990s. At that time, he was studying art at Shanxi University.

One day, he watched a film called Yellow Earth. Jia said this movie changed his life. It made him want to become a film director. In 1993, he went to the famous Beijing Film Academy. There, he studied film theory and learned about movies from all over the world.

Making Movies

Starting Out as a Filmmaker

Jia in 2005

While he was a student, Jia made three short films. His first was a 10-minute documentary in 1994 called One Day in Beijing. He filmed it in Tiananmen Square. He paid for it himself.

His second short film, Xiao Shan Going Home (1995), got him noticed. This film helped him find his unique style. It also showed the kinds of stories he wanted to tell. This short film won an award in Hong Kong. It also helped him meet important people like cinematographer Yu Lik-wai and producer Li Kit Ming. These people became part of his main film team.

Before he finished school, Jia made another short film called Du Du (1996). This film was an experiment because he made it without a script.

Making Independent Films

After graduating, Jia made his first full-length movie, Xiao Wu (1997). It was about a pickpocket in his hometown of Fenyang. Jia wanted to show the big changes happening in China. He also wanted to make films that felt more real than some older Chinese movies.

Xiao Wu was made with a small budget of about US$50,000. It became a big hit at film festivals around the world. This success helped him get a deal with a production company owned by the famous director Takeshi Kitano.

Jia then made two more successful independent films. One was Platform, which got some funding from the Busan International Film Festival. This movie is about a music group in China from the 1970s to the 1990s. Many people call it a masterpiece of the "Sixth Generation" film movement.

Platform was the first of Jia's films to star actress Zhao Tao. She was a dance teacher before becoming an actress. Zhao Tao became a very important actress in many of Jia's later films.

In 2002, Jia started using digital video for his film Unknown Pleasures. This movie, along with Xiao Wu and Platform, is sometimes seen as a group of films showing China's journey into modern times. Unknown Pleasures explored the lives of young people affected by China's one-child policy. Even though these early films were not widely shown in mainland China, they made Jia a very important voice in Chinese cinema.

Gaining Wider Recognition

Jia Zhangke at the 2008 Venice Film Festival

The actress Zhao Tao and her husband Jia Zhangke at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival.

In 2004, Jia's film The World was made with official approval from the Chinese government. This was a big change for him. Many other "underground" directors also started getting official approval around this time. Critics felt that even with government approval, Jia's films still showed his honest view of China. The World was set in Beijing World Park, a place with miniature versions of famous landmarks. It was his first film not set in his home province of Shanxi.

In 2006, Jia made Still Life using digital film again. This movie won the top award, the Golden Lion, at the Venice Film Festival. This made him even more famous both in China and internationally. The film tells the story of two people looking for their spouses near the Three Gorges Dam. He also made a documentary called Dong at the same time, about an artist.

Jia has been very busy making films since the 2000s. He made another documentary called Useless (2007), which was about China's clothing factories. This film also won an award at the Venice Film Festival. He then made 24 City (2008), which looked at the history of China through the story of one factory and its workers.

His documentary I Wish I Knew (2010) explored the changing city of Shanghai. It was shown at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival.

In 2013, Jia's film A Touch of Sin was nominated for the top award at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. He won the award for Best Screenplay. In 2014, he was a judge at the Cannes Film Festival.

His 2015 film Mountains May Depart also competed for the top award at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival.

In October 2017, Jia started the Pingyao International Film Festival in Shanxi.

His newest film, Caught by the Tides, was selected to compete at the Cannes Film Festival in April 2024.

Film Style and Influences

Jia Zhangke's films are often experimental. They use long shots and show themes of young people feeling lost, modern Chinese history, and how globalization affects China. He often uses digital video and has a simple, realistic style. For example, The World shows a theme park with fake foreign landmarks. This film is often seen as a way to criticize how China is becoming more globalized.

Jia's movies try to show "real" Chinese life. He often returns to themes of people feeling alone or confused. He believes that long shots are "democratic" because they let the viewer look around the screen freely. His films often have slow, long takes and a camera that doesn't move much.

Critics often compare Jia's work to Italian neorealism, a style of filmmaking that shows real life. Jia has said that filmmakers like Hou Hsiao-hsien and Yasujirō Ozu have influenced him. He was also inspired by Robert Bresson's use of actors who are not professionals.

Personal Views

Jia Zhangke has spoken out about important issues. In 2011, he criticized film censorship in China. He called it "cultural over-cleanliness." In 2021, when China made rules about actors' politics and morals, Jia said that art should be "eclectic," meaning it should include many different ideas.

In December 2023, Jia Zhangke and 50 other filmmakers signed a letter. This letter asked for a ceasefire and an end to the killing of people in the 2023 Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip. It also asked for help to reach people in Gaza and for hostages to be released.

Filmography

Feature Films

Documentaries

Short Films

As an Actor

As a Producer

(This list does not include films Jia directed himself.)

See also

In Spanish: Jia Zhangke para niños

• Xstream Pictures – Jia Zhangke's film production company.

Works

• Jia Zhangke Speaks Out: The Chinese Film Director's Texts on Film. Piscataway, NJ: Transaction Publishers, 2014.