| isolated freak |
Posted
on 25-Apr-03 10:41 AM
The Asian Film Industry is one of the fastest growing industries-both regionally and globally. The movies produced by some of the Asian directors are instant hits in the West and their countries/regions of origin. It will take some time for the Asian movies to compete with the Hollywood movies in terms of investment and a global market. The wests fascination with the Asian movies was due to the tireless efforts of directors, who made movies despite the limited resources and hostile conditions. Its due to these directors' tireless efforts in making good movies that made the world believe that the Asians too can make good movies. And its them who became the inspiration for the new World Class Asian Directors.
The forefathers of Asian Cinema due to the lack of money (and technology) couldnt compete with the Hollywoods actions and thrillers, so they focused more on the problems of the societies they belonged to. Akira Kurasawa and Satyajit Ray emerged as the first Asian directors who were more interested in exposing the realities of their respective societies to the world. Akira Kurasawas The Roshomon and Satyajit Rays Pather Panchali were first in the series of this reality-based-Asian movies . Kurasawas movies was so liked by the world that it won the Academy Awards for the best foreign movie in the early 50s. Satyajit Rays movie, which came soon after Kurasawas movie too won various awards at various Film Festivals. Soon, others followed the suite: Ozu in Japan and Bimal Roy and Guru Dutt in India made movies that depicted the transition that the Japanese and the Indian societies were going through. The pain of having to live under the American occupation following Japans humiliating defeat in the second world war became the focus of the Japanese directors, where as the Indian directors coming mostly from Bengal focused more on the post-Colonial Capitalist Indian society. Japanese moviemakers, because of the censorship issues relied came up with a wonderful concept in movies, i.e, symbolism and recreating the past to depict the present realities. The Indians on the other hand didnt have to rely on symbolism and were more direct in their presentation/depiction of the society. Bimal Roys Bandini and Do Bigah Jamin, Guru Dutts Pyasa and Saheb Bibi Aur Gulam, Raj Kapoors Shri Char-Sau-Beesh, Jagate Raho and Anadi, were critiques of the post-Colonial Indian society. Likewise, The Seven Samurai, Harakiri, Geisha, Shanjuro were the symbolic depiction of the changing Japanese society.
Fast forward to the 70s: A group of young Chinese graduates of the Beijing Film Institute started to make movies that astonished the world. They like their Japanese predecessors made movies that were symbolic representation of the Chinese society of the 70s and the 80s. Chen Kai Ges Yellow Earth and Zhang Yi Mous Red Shorghum followed by the movies of Tian ZhuangZhuang and Hong Xiaowen represented a new school of Chinese Cinema, also known as the Fifth Generation Chinese Movies.
Fast forward to the 90s:The Japanese and the Indians, the Chiense and the Vietnamese and the Hongkongese movies now had more talented directors who had enough money or source(s) of funding their movies and made movies that were at par technologically with the Hollywood movies. Directors such as Wang Kar Wai, John Woo, Mira Nayar, Tony Biu and Ang Li made movies in Cantonese, Hindi/English, Vietnamese and Chinese that represented the contemporary Asian societies in transition. Salaryman (Japanese), Three Seasons and The Scent of a Green Papaya (Vietnamese), Salam Bombay and Fire (India), Eat Drink Man Woman and Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (ROC), Shower and Not One Less (PRC) are just a few examples of the movies by the talented young directors, who have continued with the depiction of societies in transition like their predecessors. Furthermore, its the movies of this period that revived the market of the Asian movies in the west. Shall We Dance, a Japanese movie was one of the biggest money earning movies in the US. Regardless of their US market performance, Asian and Asian-American directors kept on making movies, which were and still are, received warmly by the critics.
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| isolated freak |
Posted
on 25-Apr-03 11:00 AM
In the summer/fall of 2000, Kathmandu Film Archive was established to bring these world class movies to the movie lovers of Kathmandu. In a short span of time, the KFA has successfully organized shows of these world class movies in Kathmandu. The team, with the help of other organizations and diplomatic missons in Nepal has organized among many one day shows, Chinese and French film festivals. And if things go alright, i.e, if the students go back to their classes, KFA will collaborate with the Alliance Francaise to orgnaize a festival ofAnimated French Movies.
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