A timely celebration for the Chinese movie industry, the Oscar nominations came at a time when the industry is booming. (Photo : Reuters)
Three Chinese directors made it to the Academy Awards' Short List for Short Films category. The three directors--Li Yatao, Mu Zijian and Hu Wei--were all born in China but trained in cinema arts in the West.
Li Yatao's "Carry On" and Hu Wei's "Butter Lamp" beat 141 contenders for the Live Action Short Film category and made it to the top 10. Mu Zijian's "One Child" beat 58 contenders for the Documentary Short Subject category.
The Oscar nominations will be on Jan. 15 and winners will be announced and awarded at the 87th Academy Awards event on Feb. 22 in Hollywood, California.
A timely celebration for the Chinese movie industry, the nominations were given during a period when China's movie business is booming. Last year, Chinese box office revealed a sales of $4.8 billion, an increase of 36 percent from last year's earnings. The increase in box-office sales is growing rapidly annually, even faster than the global 4-percent average increase.
Vice president of Drama Fever David Hou said that "we have seen more and more new Chinese filmmakers winning awards outside China." He added that film festivals across the world are now noticing China and its talented filmmakers. Drama Fever is a major distribution company that distributes international TV shows and movies in the United States.
"Carry On" director Li Yatao said in an interview that "to win an international audience, you have to tell the story of your own country in a global way, otherwise you wouldn't be understood." Li's movie is about two people escaping the Anti-Japanese War where millions of Chinese citizens were butchered. This they were able to do with the help of a sympathetic Japanese soldier.
Li said: "I got the idea from one of Michel de Montaigne's essays, in which the author talked about a story in ancient Rome." He added that he "learned that enemies wouldn't spare you because you are pathetic, but they will probably do so because you are brave."
"Carry On" has already won several awards, including last year's Best Movie by Palm Springs Short Fest, the largest short-film festival in North America.
Mu Zijian's "One Child" is a short documentary about parents who lost their children and striving to have other children after the Wenchuan earthquake in 2008.
Hu's "Butter Lamp" is about a Tibetan photographer in remote areas in which locals pose for portrait photos in different backgrounds. The film follows the minimalist discipline and of having only one fixed shot. Hu said that the film is all about faith.
To date, only one Chinese film has won an Oscar. The movie was a short film titled "The Blood of Yingzhou District." The movie was about orphans whose parents were AIDS victims. It won in 2006.
