The Fragility of Authorship for Film Directors in Contemporary China

Despite its progressive liberalisation and development, the Chinese film industry is still subject to strict control from the China Film Administration (CFA). Laws and regulations evolved since the 1990s, but they leave large space to interpretation, opening the door to a long process of negotiat...

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Main Author: Ceccarelli, Giorgio
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Fondazione Università Ca’ Foscari 2023-12-01
Series:Annali di Ca’ Foscari: Serie Orientale
Subjects:
Online Access:http://doi.org/10.30687/AnnOr/2385-3042/2023/02/003
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author Ceccarelli, Giorgio
author_facet Ceccarelli, Giorgio
author_sort Ceccarelli, Giorgio
collection DOAJ
description Despite its progressive liberalisation and development, the Chinese film industry is still subject to strict control from the China Film Administration (CFA). Laws and regulations evolved since the 1990s, but they leave large space to interpretation, opening the door to a long process of negotiation that can alter the vision of the directors. In the early 1990s, the Sixth Generation of directors changed the canons of Chinese art-house cinema, adopting a gritty neo-realist style, investigating the darker sides of Chinese society, and working outside the official studio system. Despite recognition in the international festival circuit, which deprived them of national distribution, they decided to return to the fold. The negotiation process with the CFA makes their authorship fragile, and the necessity to continue to be present in the festival circuit risk to put them in a double occupancy position. This article will analyse what are the factors that fragilise the authorship of contemporary Chinese art-house directors and what are the countermeasures adopted by some of them to preserve their authorship.
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spelling doaj.art-3d1d1badb1f445a6987576ef0e969a202023-12-01T15:28:31ZengFondazione Università Ca’ FoscariAnnali di Ca’ Foscari: Serie Orientale2385-30422023-12-0159210.30687/AnnOr/2385-3042/2023/02/003journal_article_11214The Fragility of Authorship for Film Directors in Contemporary ChinaCeccarelli, Giorgio0Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3, France; Università Ca’ Foscari Venezia, Italia Despite its progressive liberalisation and development, the Chinese film industry is still subject to strict control from the China Film Administration (CFA). Laws and regulations evolved since the 1990s, but they leave large space to interpretation, opening the door to a long process of negotiation that can alter the vision of the directors. In the early 1990s, the Sixth Generation of directors changed the canons of Chinese art-house cinema, adopting a gritty neo-realist style, investigating the darker sides of Chinese society, and working outside the official studio system. Despite recognition in the international festival circuit, which deprived them of national distribution, they decided to return to the fold. The negotiation process with the CFA makes their authorship fragile, and the necessity to continue to be present in the festival circuit risk to put them in a double occupancy position. This article will analyse what are the factors that fragilise the authorship of contemporary Chinese art-house directors and what are the countermeasures adopted by some of them to preserve their authorship. http://doi.org/10.30687/AnnOr/2385-3042/2023/02/003Art-house cinema. Authorship. Censorship. Fragility. Marginalisation. Marketisation. Negotiation
spellingShingle Ceccarelli, Giorgio
The Fragility of Authorship for Film Directors in Contemporary China
Annali di Ca’ Foscari: Serie Orientale
Art-house cinema. Authorship. Censorship. Fragility. Marginalisation. Marketisation. Negotiation
title The Fragility of Authorship for Film Directors in Contemporary China
title_full The Fragility of Authorship for Film Directors in Contemporary China
title_fullStr The Fragility of Authorship for Film Directors in Contemporary China
title_full_unstemmed The Fragility of Authorship for Film Directors in Contemporary China
title_short The Fragility of Authorship for Film Directors in Contemporary China
title_sort fragility of authorship for film directors in contemporary china
topic Art-house cinema. Authorship. Censorship. Fragility. Marginalisation. Marketisation. Negotiation
url http://doi.org/10.30687/AnnOr/2385-3042/2023/02/003
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