
Directing
Apr 25, 1952
Beijing, China
Tian Zhuangzhuang
Directing
Biography
Tian Zhuangzhuang (simplified Chinese: 田壮壮; traditional Chinese: 田壯壯; pinyin: Tián Zhuàngzhuàng, Mandarin pronunciation: [tʰi̯ɛ̌n ʈʂu̯ɑ̂ŋʈʂu̯ɑ̂ŋ]; born April 1952 in Beijing, China) is a Chinese film director, producer and actor. Tian was born to an influential actor and actress in China. Following a short stint in the military, Tian began his artistic career first as an amateur photographer and then as an assistant cinematographer at the Beijing Agricultural Film Studio. In 1978 he was admitted to the Beijing Film Academy, where he formed the so-called Fifth Generation with Chen Kaige, Zhang Yimou, Peng Xiaolan and Wu Ziniu. His films The Horse Thief and The Blue Kite brought him international fame, but also problems with the Chinese censors that kept him from working in China. Lately, Tian is again active as director; his remake of Springtime in a Small Town was shown in Rotterdam in 2003.
Feature Films (21)

Gu Wentong learns the whereabouts of his father, who lost contact with him more than 40 years ago. Encouraged by new friend, photographer Ouyang Wenhui, Gu Wentong decides to face his father and rebuild the long-lost father-son relationship.
The Shadowless Tower

A talented trainee pilot is given the opportunity to virtually test the latest fighter jet, which pushes him to his limits.
Born to Fly

Xu Daqin, a retired Chinese factory worker, returns to the remote Yunnan province, where he hopes to reconcile himself with the life and opportunity he passed up in this place 40 years ago.
South of the Clouds

With Taiwan remaining in the grip of martial law in 1982, a group of filmmakers from that country set out to establish a cultural identity through cinema and to share it with the world. This engaging documentary looks at the movement's legacy.
Flowers of Taipei: Taiwan New Cinema

Inspector Lam investigates the brutal murder of Tsui, a famous musician. Wong, the designated suspect, just spent 20 years in jail for the murder of Tsui's daughter but has always claimed his innocence.
Nightfall

A monk leaves his monastery and ventures out into the real world for the first time in his life, and ends up in an adventure with a kung-fu master who is guarding a special artifact.
Monk Comes Down the Mountain

When Huiying hears that her mother's dying wish is to be buried next to her husband, she discovers that his remains are in the countryside and cared for by his first wife. A conflict ensues, and Huiying's daughter, an intrepid reporter, breaks the story as the three women search for proof of love.
Love Education

Ten years ago, on a train home during the busy Spring Festival travel period, fate brings Xiaoxiao and Jianqing together. Like many young couples, they meet, fall in love, and strive to make it work, but eventually, the harsh realities of life make them drift apart. Ten years later, they run into each other again. Will they make the most of this second chance and rekindle what they once lost?
Us and Them

Tony Rayns presents the work of the 'Fifth Generation' and other innovative filmmakers who emerged during the 1980s in China.
New Chinese Cinema
Television & Series (5)

A worldwide guided tour of the greatest movies ever made and the story of international cinema through the history of cinematic innovation.
The Story of Film: An Odyssey

Documentary about China's film industry and the monumental changes in the past 40 years from beginning with propaganda films to the "5th generation" filmmakers and beyond, who embraced art and commercial films to make China the second largest box office market in the world after Hollywood.
The 40th Anniversary of Chinese Film Since China's Reform and Opening-Up

This Chinese period drama series follows the fortunes of a prominent merchant family engaged in Traditional Chinese Medicine during the waning years of the Ching dynasty. The affairs of this family of doctors/pharmacists (which in those days were one and the same) are intimately linked with social upheavals of the time such as the encroachment of Christian missionaries and foreign imperialism as well as conflicts that inevitably emerge in a large upper class family. Comparable in scope and production value to such recent titles as "Downton Abbey", the lives and character of both masters and servants intertwine in plot lines that spans more than a generation.
The Grand Mansion Gate

Liu Yan, a retired boxer, refuses to back down as she fights to succeed in the male-dominated worlds of boxing and culinary arts. With unwavering determination and Lu Tianchi’s support, she overcomes obstacles to transform her life.




