Pearls of the East: Contemporary Chinese Cinema

Pearls of the East: Contemporary Chinese Cinema

In the post-1990 era, Chinese cinema has seen a return of the amateur filmmaker. Restrictions after the Tiananmen square demonstrations have produced an edgy underground film movement loosely referred to as the Sixth Generation. Lacking in state funding and backing, these films were shot often quickly and inexpensively, using materials like 16mm film and or digital video with mostly non-professional actors and actresses. Set broadly across genres, these offerings are representative of both urban and rural life, vividly depicting the diversity of perspectives that comprise contemporary Chinese society. These selected films deal with an array of political, social, economic, and historical issues that are extremely important in China today.

Street Life (Nanjing Lu)
dir. Zhao Dayong, China, 2006, video, 98 mins, color, Mandarin w/ English subtitles
Street Life explores the hidden lives of homeless migrants who survive in the shadows of one of Shanghai’s most historic and affluent streets. Every year, hundreds of thousands of Chinese migrants are drawn to the allure of Shanghai, one of the world’s most vibrant cities, with hopes of earning a decent living. Some end up in the dark alleys of Nanjing Road, Shanghai’s largest shopping street, where they learn to hustle and scrape together any kind of living they can.

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