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According to director Louisa Wei, a lot has changed in the last 18 years. In 2001, realizing that the pioneers of Chinese cinema repeatedly missed in history books, she took the initiative to rewrite the story. "There was very little about women directors. I knew they existed, but when you come to study and read about them, they were practically not there, "she says.
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In 2009, Wei published a book featuring interviews with 27 Chinese and Japanese filmmakers, as well as several specialized magazines on the subject of Chinese women in films. She documented the work of women directors such as Tazuko Sakane, born in Japan in 1904, who wrote in 1936: "I want to portray the true figure of women, to see the world of women." She also wrote about Chen Bo & er, the actress and perhaps the only Chinese woman working as a producer-director in the 1940s; Tanaka Kinuyo, who made her directorial debut in 1953; as well as Dong Kena and Wang Shaoyan, both prolific in the 1960s and 1970s. "[I had] to rewrite the entire story of the film, "she says.
There was only one major problem: the audience was not interested in Wei's research. "The book has basically had no impact, no one was reading this kind of book yet," she told BBC Culture.
Despite a slow initial adoption, it turned out that his efforts were not in vain. While teaching film lessons as an associate professor at the City University of Hong Kong, Wei began to notice more and more female students in her audience each year and wanted to know more about the women who had them. preceded. Young filmmakers began to read and share their work.
Momentum has rallied more widely, with Wei being invited to speak publicly about his research. "Last year I had [gave] a conversation, there were 300 people in the room, she was full, and the title was "Chinese Women Directors Since 1916". You can hardly imagine it! She said, laughing and shaking her head in disbelief.
They discovered that Eng had traveled the world and explored taboo topics
Film experts began using Wei's work to update their knowledge of film history globally. One of her most important works as a director is a documentary called Golden Gate Girls, which celebrates the work of Esther Eng, the first female Chinese director, who played a leading role in the 1930s and 1940s, both in China and Hollywood. "I showed [Golden Gate Girls] in Paris in december [2018]a film scholar who covered this story all his life came to me and said he was so touched to watch her – he did not know her, "she says.
Eng has not only missed history in the West. At the beginning of his research, Wei said, "I have been browsing the Hong Kong film archives and I came across the name of Esther Eng. [was named] National heroine in 1937 – I found an article saying that. But that was the only thing I could find! It took years of working with researchers, historians and journalists to discover his extraordinary career in documentary. At one point, the team even had to retrieve hundreds of photographs of Eng's life in a garbage bin in San Francisco. Together, they discovered that Eng had traveled the world and explored taboo topics at a time when many women did not have jobs. He has directed nine feature films in the United States and Hong Kong, including National Heroine, a film about a pilot fighting for his country.
At present, Wei is proud to present the Life magazine of March 2019, which presents a great deal of success on Wei and his work celebrating Esther Eng. This is particularly exciting for Wei, not only because the filmmakers' work is finally covered, but also because the magazine is Chinese and the news is extremely censored in the country, which makes the story of Eng particularly difficult.
"Me too" really focused people … Women's issues are circulating on WeChat – Louisa Wei
According to Wei, there seems to have been a major shift in mentality. On March 8, 2019 – International Women's Day – articles were broadcast around the largest Chinese social network WeChat entitled "Chinese cinema is complete only for these 100 female directors", "60 independent directors from China" ( in which figure Wei), and "100 greatest women's movies in history." It's a new phenomenon: "It's unheard of! [International Women’s Day] It would usually be a matter of thanking women for doing their work at home, but nothing like celebrating women leaders, "says Wei.
All of these events – the WeChat conversations, the growing number of female students in movie school classes, the media interest for Esther Eng – indicate a clear trend, an appetite for more information about women in the film and a growing acceptance of women as filmmakers.
Pay tribute
What motivates the sudden interest of the world for the talent of Chinese cinema? Wei believes that part of the solution lies in the feminist initiatives that have swept the world in recent years, such as #MeToo. "#MeToo really focused people … now if I say" I'm a feminist ", people have a better understanding [of what that means]. Women's issues are circulating on WeChat, "she says.
Across China, a growing number of film festivals honoring female directors are also changing the conversation. The China Women's Film Festival, an event held every two years in Beijing and Hong Kong, was launched in 2013. Its goal is to showcase the work of filmmakers around the world and to inspire discussions in China and Hong Kong. Kong on women's rights. The Hong Kong 2019 edition took place in March and included films including Ava, a film by Iranian-Canadian director Sadaf Foroughi, about a girl in Iran, and #FemalePleasure, a documentary about five women from patriarchal communities. who break the silence. on their mistreatment.
It's always been Batman, Superman: man, man, man – Nicola Fan
Festivals like this are particularly exciting for young filmmakers like Nicola Fan. The art cinemas are practically non-existent in Hong Kong and without the festival, it is difficult to access this type of content. Speaking after the China Women's Film Festival in Hong Kong in March, she said:[The] The China Women's Film Festival is interesting because it brings a wealth [female-made] documentaries in Hong Kong and China. It exposes the public to movies like Ava, which is quite unusual – you can not see this type of movie at the box office. Hong Kong is attracted by big Avengers or superhero movies. I would not know [films like Ava] without the festival. "
Yet, despite the significant progress made by women filmmakers in China and Hong Kong, big challenges remain. Technology may have made filmmaking cheaper and easier, but without art cinema and a lot of public funding, it's still hard for emerging filmmakers to make themselves known. Young filmmaker Sharon Yeung said, "Many of us wave cameras and shoot anything, but it surprises me [we] win … newcomers have difficulties. The movies are still coming from veterans. Marvel, superhero, big budget, that's what people are looking for. "
The film is a good way to integrate social issues – Li Dan
And the #MeToo movement may be raising awareness, but there is still a long way to go in China and Hong Kong. One of the first victims to speak after #MeToo's viral shift, Vera Lui, a 23-year-old athlete, was pilloried by the public and the media in 2018 for revealing sexual violence. by his former coach. Many women were frightened in silence.
Li Dan, founder of the China Women's Film Festival, believes the film is a crucial way to reach the Chinese and encourages public debate on such issues. "[In China] we can not disseminate any information through mainstream media or major new media, all of which are controlled or censored by the government, "he said. "But the movie … is a good way to [make] social issues mainstream. "
Despite the challenges that remain, Ms. Fan believes that cinema is an exciting time for women, citing the rise of director-produced and director-run blockbuster films: "It's always been Batman, Superman: man, man, man. It's encouraging to see movies like Wonder Woman from Hollywood, it helps the audience to ask for a wider variety of stories, "she says.
Indeed, three of the top 10 films in 2018 in China have been made by women, and women are changing things. Director Angie Chen has personally challenged the stigma of women in the movies that she directs. "When I started working [in film] Production women were told that they were not allowed to sit on a camera holster because they would bring bad luck to the movie. When I [directed] my first film, I would deliberately sit on the cases. Nobody dared to say anything – I was the director! "Chen said.
Regarding the future, the only thing that does not change radically is the dream of young Chinese and Hong Kong directors, echoing that of the women of the 1930s. Like the Japanese director Tazuko Sakane in 1936 Sharon Yeung also wants to use her look at the world to make movies: "I'd like to make movies about the female experience," she says. "It 's so exciting that there are more and more movies about it, and I look forward to doing more, especially from the point of view of the world. ;Is. It's so unexplored that we've watched movies made by men all these years and we're about to discover all these new perspectives. "
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