This book examines Chinese film in the twenty-first century. Organised around the themes ‘movements’, ‘genres’, and ‘intermedia’, it reflects on how Chinese cinema has changed, adapted, and evolved over past decades, and prognosticates as to its future trajectories. It considers how established film genres in China have adapted and transformed themselves, and discusses current shifts in documentary filmmaking, the ethos and practices of ‘grassroots intellectual’ independent filmmakers, and the adaption of foreign film genres to serve the ideological and political needs of the present. It also explores how film is drawing upon the socio-historical and political contexts of the past to create new cinematic discourses, and the ways film is providing a voice to previously marginalised ethnic groups. In addition, the book analyses the influences of past aesthetic traditions on the creative and artistic expressions of twenty-first century films, and cinema’s relation to other media forms, including folktales, moving image installations, architecture and painting. Throughout, the book assesses how Chinese films have been conceptualised, examined, and communicated domestically and abroad, and emphasises the importance of new directions in Chinese film, thus highlighting the plurality, vitality, and hybridity of Chinese cinema in the twenty-first century.

Shorlisted for the BAFTSS 2020 Award for Best Monograph Starting out as an independent filmmaker, and despite his films being subjected to censorship in his native China, Jia Zhangke has become the country’s leading film director internationally. Seen as one of world cinema’s foremost auteurs, he has played a crucial role in documenting and reflecting upon China’s era of intense transformations since the 1990s.. Cecília Mello provides in-depth analysis of Jia’s unique body of work, from his early films Xiao Wu and Platform, to experimental quasi-documentary 24 City and the audacious Mountains May Depart. Mello suggests that Jia’s particular expression of the realist mode is shaped by the aesthetics of other Chinese artistic traditions, allowing Jia to unearth memories both personal and collective, still lingering within the ever-changing landscapes of contemporary China. Mello’s groundbreaking study opens a door into Chinese cinema and culture, addressing the nature of the so-called ‘impure’ cinematographic art and the complex representation of China through the ages. Foreword by Walter Salles and with a new preface by the author.