Karlovy Vary International Film Festival

July 4 - 12, 2008

The Red Awn
Hong se kang bai yln

Colour, 35 mm
China, 2007, 101 min
Section: Another View

Film screenings:
135 - 4.7., 16:00, Congress Hall - Thermal
434 - 7.7., 13:00, Congress Hall - Thermal
5R4 - 8.7., 19:00, Richmond Cinema

Director: Cai Shangjun
Screenplay: Gu Xiaobai, Cai Shangjun, Feng Rui
Dir. of Photography: Li Chengyu, Chen Hao
Music: Huang Zhenyu, Dong Wei
Designer: Zhang Dajun
Editor: Zhou Ying
Producer: Li Xudong
Production: XiuDong Hao Ye Investment & Consulting Ltd.
Contact: Wan Ji Communications & Productions Co., Ltd.

Cast

Yao Anlian, Lu Yulai, Shi Junhui, Huang Lu, Wang Hong

Synopsis

The premise of a father’s return to his family after five years of wandering in search of work develops into an exposition of his onerous attempts to bond with his son from whom he has been separated for the key years of the youth’s adolescence. Although the personal gulf between the two men seems insurmountable, they set out to work together on harvesting the wheat fields. This debut, garlanded in prestigious awards, is impressive primarily for its renunciation of the blatantly melodramatic affectation of films about fathers bonding with their offspring. Likewise it also leaves aside the social context that plays an important role in the vast majority of Chinese festival films, focusing instead on the personal level of the central conflict and on a thorough portrayal of the characters and their desperate situation. The film is also captivating for its poetic cinematography, which plays up the sharp colour contrast between the golden fields, the open sky and the red harvester that earns the protagonists their living.

About the director

Cai Shangjun made his directorial debut with the film The Red Awn, but he’s no novice. He has worked as a screenwriter for many years, particularly on the films of director Zhang Yang. Cai has known the world-renowned director since his studies at the Chinese Central Academy of Drama, from which they both graduated in 1992. The most famous product of the screenwriter/director duo’s collaboration thus far has been the film Shower (Xiao, 1999), which was also released in the Czech Republic. Cai also wrote the screenplays for Zhang’s Spicy Love Soup (Aiqing mala tang, 1997) and Sunflower (Xiang ri kui, 2005). The Red Awn won the FIPRESCI Prize at the Pusan Festival and the main prize at the festival in Thessaloniki in 2007.

Contacts

Wan Ji Communications & Productions Co., Ltd.
1A Suite 19D, Tech-Exhibit Center Building, Bei San Huan Xi Lu 48, HaiDian District , 100086 Beijing
China
Tel: +86 10 621 613 07-603
Fax: +86 10 621 626 57
E-mail: caishangjun@yahoo.com.cn
www: www.xdfilm.com

Main navigation

Logginig-in

New registration

Send password

KV IFF Partners

Play video

Press conference - Terribly Happy / Frygtelig Lykkelig

Hot tips

Karlovy Vary IFF 2009

The 44th Karlovy Vary IFF will be held from July 3 – 11, 2009.

Call for Entries

The application deadline for the 44th Karlovy Vary IFF is April 17, 2009 ...

Festival Daily

Festival guests

Stars and filmmakers (film directors, actors) are again coming to Karlovy Vary to introduce their films personally ...

Statistics KV IFF 2008

Up-to-date information about the issued accreditations and festival passes and issued and sold tickets is available here ...

Newsletters

Are you planning to attend the Karlovy Vary IFF? Do not miss any news at our website ...

RSS