Official poster of the 5th Pingyao International Film Festival 2021
On October 11, 1905, the Fifth Pingyao International Film Festival announced the list of films screened, and 46 films from 32 countries and regions will be screened in Pingyao. Among them, the global premiere rate of the official unit shortlisted films is 32%, the Asian premiere rate is 71%, and the Chinese premiere rate is 100%. Starring Ni Ni, Zhang Luyi and Xin Baiqing, director Zhang Lu's first Chinese-language film "The Long Confession" in ten years will be premiered worldwide as the opening film; the short film "The Last Director of the Earth", co-starring Ning Hao and Jia Zhangke and directed by young director Xu Lei, will be the first to be screened for the industry on Pingyao Night.
The film list of this year's film festival includes the new work "Yong'an Town Story Collection" by director Wei Shujun, which has attracted international attention and praise, and the feature film debut of director Nagazo, "Street Baby", which is also widely praised by the international film industry, as well as the work "Feathers" by director Omar El Zohaili, who has been widely praised by the international film industry, and "A World of Children" by Director Laura Wandel, who has won many awards in major film festivals around the world.
Discover the new power of young directors at home and abroad
The shortlisted films in the "Hidden Dragon" unit dedicated to discovering new works by Chinese newcomers are all potential newcomer directors' works. In addition to "Yong'an Town Story Collection" and "Street Baby", the shortlisted films also include "Little Sonata" directed by Yan Hai, which uses children's on-set stories to heal young filmmakers in distress; the road love light comedy that discusses the choice of contemporary youth, "Blue Sky white clouds floating in the blue sky" directed by Dong Chunze; Wang Lin's "Venus by the Water" with a unique perspective on women; "Thank You for Warming My World" produced by Ren Zhonglun and directed by Jia Suo; and the comedy short film "When the Legal System Comes to the Future" Director Kong Dashan's new work "Cosmic Exploration Editorial Department", which has aroused wide resonance among audiences; Zheng Peike's crew story "Day and Night River"; and director Sun Liang's "Summer Time", which was nominated for best new director at the 69th San Sebastian International Film Festival. In addition, the action film "Heavenly Unforgivable" directed by well-known actor Tu Le was also shortlisted for this unit.
2021 5th Pingyao International Film Festival Theme: "Gathering"
Among the films shortlisted for the "Crouching Tiger" section focusing on new international directors, many of the films screened have been recognized at major film festivals around the world, such as "What Do We See When We Look Up at the Sky?" "White Mansion" was shortlisted for the main competition unit of the 71st Berlin International Film Festival, "White Mansion" was shortlisted for the horizon unit of the 78th Venice Film Festival and won the Best Actor Award, "Pedro" was nominated for the New Wave Award at the 26th Busan International Film Festival, "Night of Fire" won the Horizon Grand Prix at the 69th San Sebastian International Film Festival, "Amparo" was nominated for the Horizon Award at the 69th San Sebastian International Film Festival, and "Typhoon Escape Project" won the Youth Jury Award in the Contemporary Filmmakers Unit of the Locarno International Film Festival 2021. Wait a minute. In addition, films with rich themes and unique temperaments such as "Rihanna's Struggle", "Mom, I'm Back", "If You Can Walk", and "The Legend of the Crab King" will also meet with the audience.
Screening of the annual multi-faceted outstanding works
Among the "Premiere" sections focusing on the major directorial works of the year, the shortlisted films include the Berlin International Film Festival Golden Bear winner Semich Kaplanolu's new work "Hassan's Obligation", the Thai adventure film "Rescue the Wild Boar Team", the Philippine crime film "Eight Missing People", the Jordanian thriller "Streets and Alleys" and so on.
It is worth noting that many creators have focused on telling the life experience of their own national subjectivity from a non-Western perspective, such as "Animism" co-directed by Meng Xiaoqing and Xie Yong, which focuses on the tribal culture of the Brown Mountains for generations; the Indian film "River of Blood" is the feature film debut of director Nisin Lukos based on the family strife and hometown characteristics told by his grandmother; the Serbian historical film "Bullets Over Marseille" is created from the real assassination in Marseille in 1934. In addition, the Georgian film Brighton 4 focuses on illegal immigration, "Shara" features a wandering singer, and "House Arrest" depicts the persistence of intellectuals, all of which explore the realities of the society from a diverse creative perspective.
The "Starting from Shanxi" section of this year's film exhibition will continue to pay attention to the creation of Shanxi filmmakers and local films, and the shortlisted films include "Beyond the GreenEry", directed by Shanxi director Guo Zhirong, which depicts the stories of ordinary people's family life and struggle, "Who Says I'm Unreliable" directed by Shanxi director Li Bin, and two films produced by Shanxi Company, "Tranquility in the Mountains and Countryside" and "Youth just right".
Tribute to famous guides
The "Tribute" section of the 5th Pingyao International Film Festival will screen five representative works by director Ding Yinnan, such as "Backlight", focusing on the authors in the main theme films. Since the "National Conference on Feature Film Creation" put forward the film development direction of "highlighting the main theme and adhering to diversification" in early 1987, China's filmmakers have filmed a large number of works that praise the main theme and the spirit of the times under the inspiration of mainstream values. As a pioneer of such films, director Ding Yinnan has been focusing on the shining figures in Chinese history since the 1980s. Through the portrayal of a personal character, his films allow the audience to perceive the great men of history and the mainstream spirit transmitted by these great men, which eventually converge into a huge torrent of national rejuvenation.
In addition, this year's Pingyao Film Festival will show director Xie Fei's unique philosophical Tibetan song " Yeshe Dolma" In the "Fan Carnival" unit, the annual hit films "Chosin Lake" and "My Father and Me" will meet the audience at the Pingyao Film Palace.
The 5th Pingyao International Film Festival will be held from October 12 to October 19, 2021 at the Pingyao Film Palace in the ancient city of Pingyao, Shanxi. The film exhibition consists of four major sections of film screening, industry, academia and education, of which the film exhibition section includes five major units: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Premiere, Review/Tribute and Departure from Shanxi. Every year, on the basis of the screening of non-Western excellent films, the Pingyao Film Festival pays special attention to discovering and actively promoting the excellent works of young directors in emerging and developing countries, providing a platform for these films to speak out. The 8 program planners will set their sights on fresh, unique and moving films around the world, so that good movies can meet good audiences in Pingyao, and promote exchanges and cooperation between filmmakers to activate film creation.