A Century of Chinese Cinema. 1977-2005

Author: Sun Xiantao
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: What the centennial of Chinese cinema lacks is not a history textbook, but the courage to relive the early innocence of childhood, the passionate dreams of youth, and the tumultuous years of adulthood alongside it. If one must give this book a year, I would like to consider it as a long reunion, a deep companionship, and a reflective look forward. Amidst the flow of time, The Beijing News, fortunately, represents advanced culture as a newspaper. On one side, it is a news vanguard that upholds responsibility and boundless sentiment; on the other, a knowledgeable hero who is gentle and wise, governing the times; and on the other, a cultural pioneer who preserves history and dwells poetically. The Beijing News Series, a collection of the essence of The Beijing News's humanistic spirit. Cultivating the present, harvesting the future. Since last April, I have always had a copy of The Beijing News by my side. Every day, after work, I would open it and turn to the familiar page featuring retrospectives on the centennial of Chinese cinema, to see what joy and delight it would bring me today.
—Wu Yiyong (Vice President of the Chinese Literature and Art Federation, Chairman of the China Film Directors' Guild)
The "Centennial of Chinese Cinema" series has been published in many issues. I think it is done very well, very detailed, and rare. It takes this heart to review the centennial history of Chinese cinema for China. I am grateful to The Beijing News, a media with a conscience, for this. Now that the report collection has been published, I wish it will also be loved by the readers.
—Zhang Yimou (Film Director)
The hundred years of Chinese cinema, full of joy and sorrow, are themselves like a film with a dramatic plot. Due to having endured too much suffering, we cannot talk about it with complete ease. I am grateful to "The Centennial of Chinese Cinema" for leaving a rare documentary on the hundred years of Chinese cinema in writing.
—Tian Zhuangzhuang (Film Director)
"The Centennial of Chinese Cinema" is a grand topic. The editors and reporters of The Beijing News, with the enthusiasm of enthusiasts, have compiled over 200 beautiful essays, recording the people and events of Chinese cinema over the past century, bringing stories that had already been submerged in the shadows of history to the surface. It can be called a bold undertaking.
—Zhang Kege (Film Director)
The previous generation of Chinese filmmakers brought us much joy and thought through their works. Now, they are no longer as capable, and the baton has been passed to us, the directors of this generation. We still have the strength to continue passing on joy and dreams, while also giving joy back to Chinese cinema.
—Feng Xiaogang (Film Director)
"The Centennial of Chinese Cinema" records a hundred years of the Chinese people and a hundred years of the spirit of the Chinese people. This book has given me great inspiration to become a better recorder for the Chinese people.
—Lu Chuan (Film Director)
The "Centennial of Chinese Cinema" report, "Film Legends" on TV, did the best job, and the print media, The Beijing News, did the best job.
—Cui Yongyuan (Host, Producer of "Film Legends")
Chinese cinema has been born for a full hundred years. A hundred years ago, the Chinese people, with their wisdom and ingenuity, produced the first Chinese film, "Dingjun Mountain." From then to now, China has produced nearly 7,000 films. When we carefully look back at every heartbeat in the hundred-year journey of Chinese cinema, we can truly feel the passion and belief passed down from generation to generation of Chinese filmmakers. It is their sincerity, wisdom, and creativity that have allowed Chinese cinema to proudly merge into the surging river of the resilient and striving Chinese nation, painting a magnificent and moving epic that gives every Chinese person ample reason to be proud and take pride in!
This book collects every trace of the development of Chinese cinema, making it a valuable classic worth preserving. It allows more film enthusiasts to appreciate the many wonders of the hundred years of Chinese cinema.