China filmmakers still lack creativity — Jia Zhangke
That (box office figures) was an indicator that a very small number of films are gaining the recognition from audiences.
BEIJING: Award-winning director Jia Zhangke has commented that despite a flourishing film market, filmmakers in China still lack creativity.
He is worried that only a small number of blockbusters had dominated the box office last year.
Last year, box office takings in China exceeded 60 billion yuan (RM36.6 billion), with about two dozen films earning more than half of that total.
“That was an indicator that a very small number of films are gaining the recognition from audiences,” Jia figured.
It also implied that, he said, there are flaws with the creativity and techniques of movie production and the market.
Jia has been analysing box office trends in his new role as a deputy to the National People’s Congress.
Jia’s views are much respected among directors in both China and overseas.
He has garnered numerous international awards and critical acclaim for a number of his films over the past 10 years with works including Mountains May Depart, Still Life, and A Touch Of Sin.
“As an NPC deputy, you should also focus on the public livelihood, stay in close touch with the people in the grassroots and make their voices heard,” he said.
“I once joked that I have never been on such a macroperspective as right now.”
The role of a lawmaker, he said, is not only about the annual NPC session held in March each year.
“It lies more in your research trips during your daily jobs and about the industry as a whole. You also assume your duty in your everyday life,” he said.
Last year, Jia, 49, was elected as an NPC deputy representing his home province of Shanxi, where
Jia Zhangke, award-winning director
he found the inspiration and shot his first films, including Xiao Wu, his award-winning student feature about a pickpocket.
Jia’s latest enthralling feature, Ash Is Purest White, is also set in the coal city of Datong in Shanxi province.
The film grossed box-office takings of about 70 million yuan (RM43.7 million), a record for his movies.
He owed the success of the film, he said, to an increasingly diversified film market and a phenomenal increase in the number of screens.
“I think a film market that is more sensible and diversified is taking shape, which is what we have been longing for,” he said.
On how to overcoming the shortfall in creativity, Jia said: “It is important that everyone who takes part in the process of movie production tries their best to be on par with world-class standards. That is the only way that China can improve its level of filmmaking.”