Set against the backdrop of the contemporary black market for pirated DVDs in Beijing, Pirated Copy is a character-driven drama about the passion two couples have for each other and for film. It “demonstrates that [He is] one of the most interesting and versatile directors among China’s ‘Sixth Generation’”
Directed by Jianjun He | Starring : Bo Yu, Yamei Wang, Xiaoguang Hu, Narenqimuge, Yong Zhang | Presented at Vienna Film Festival, Singapore Film Festival
Xiao Bo lives in a world where the lines defining men from women are constantly dissolving. He kneels at the deathbed of his father who has become a woman, and whose dying wish is to have oral sex with his/her son. His boyfriend “Nana” has also undergone a sex change, but Xiao Bo no longer finds her attractive as a woman. A sexual chain reaction ensues that wreaks havoc on traditional Chinese roles that govern male and female, parent and child. Filmmaker, novelist and queer activist Cui Zi’en caused an international sensation with his shockingly transgressive debut. Inspired by the likes of Andy Warhol and Rainer Werner Fassbinder, but set within a specifically Chinese context, Enter the Clowns is “a movie that says everything you know about sexual identity and gender orientation is wrong” (Tony Rayns, Time Out). “Cui may be unique as China’s first gay filmmaker, but it is… in the international pantheon of queer filmmakers that we must ultimately locate him” (Chris Berry).
Directed by Zi’en Cui | Starring : Bo Yu, Bing Chen, Narenqimuge, Xiaoyu Yu, Ge Jia | Presented at Jeonju Film Festival, Rotterdam Film Festival, Vancouver Film Festival, Ghent Film Festival, Flanders Film Festival, San Sebastian Film Festival
Chinese Cinema 