The New York Times, December 1, 2004
China Hurries to Animate Its Film Industry
By HOWARD W. FRENCH

[image] Institute of Digital Media Technology (Shenzhen) Ltd.: A still from "Through the Moebius Strip," an animated movie to open next year that was produced in Shenzhen as part of China's attempt to become a major center of film animation

SHENZHEN, China - Seen from outside, there is nary a hint of the Magic Kingdom about this ambitious young animation studio nestled amid magnolias and palms on the campus of Shenzhen University.

A glimpse inside one specially secured building, accessible only with a smart ID card that one swipes through a reader to gain entry and move about inside, soon gives up the game. The first clues are the Hollywood posters that hang from nearly every wall: "Star Wars," "Godzilla," "The Lost World," "The Matrix," "End of Days." Down one hallway, heavily air-conditioned computer rooms hum with the kind of processing power one might find in a high-tech laboratory. The giveaway is the army of artist-students slouched over their flat-screen monitors in one dimly lighted production room after another, drawing thousands of pictures for feature-length films.

Early next year, Global Digital Creations Holdings, a fledgling animation studio that has mostly labored in anonymity, is aiming for the big time with the worldwide release of its first 3-D feature film, "Thru the Moebius Strip," a science-fiction adventure about a determined boy's time travel to another galaxy to rescue his stranded father.

France's most famous comics artist, Jean Giraud, whose nom de plume is Moebius, came up with the story, which draws on elements of Jack and the Beanstalk and the breadth of science-fiction history from Jules Verne to "The Matrix," and joined with G.D.C. to develop it. Moebius, who broke new ground in comics art in the 70's with his magazine Métal Hurlant, the precursor to the American publication Heavy Metal, had worked on effects-heavy films like "Tron," "Alien," "The Abyss" and "The Fifth Element." Frank Foster, former vice president for multimedia at Sony Pictures Imageworks, is also on board as one of the producers, and Glenn Chaika, who was an effects animator on "The Little Mermaid" and directed "Tom Thumb and Thumbelina," is the director. Dazzling color, three-dimensional imagery and fast-paced drama were on display during a recent screening of several minutes of film at the studio here in what was a mere fishing village on the edge of Hong Kong as recently as 1979. It has since grown into one of China's biggest, richest and most modern cities, the hottest hot spot of Chinese capitalism.

In manufacturing, this country already rules the textile world, the production of computer parts and countless other items that Americans all but take for granted. Now, with the sophisticated images coming out of this studio, China seems to be serving notice to the Disneys and Pixars of the world that its day is arriving in the lucrative business of 3-D computer animation.

But G.D.C. executives, who have invested heavily in computer animation, a business notoriously difficult to crack, say that no matter how the global market treats their first feature-length foray into 3-D computer animation, commercial success is not the most important thing.

"This film is more of a calling card for us," said Anthony Neoh, the Hong Kong-based chairman of the company. "Our goal, within 5 to 10 years, is to be much less involved in the production side, and much more on the creative side, in order to really get this industry off the ground in China."

Low costs almost guarantee the Chinese a major impact. "Thru the Moebius Strip," for example, required a mere $20 million to make, according to Ellen Xu, a studio manager, and much of that cost included the creation of a studio from scratch. By comparison, she said, Pixar's films cost an average of $80 million to make, while "Final Fantasy," which was a major disappointment at the box office, cost a reported $120 million.

China is far from alone among fast-developing nations eager to pursue a piece of the lucrative animated film business by marrying their mastery of advanced computer technology with low labor costs. Taiwan, South Korea and the Philippines have been ramping up animation production for several years, while many experts consider India to be the biggest recent comer in the field.

"I have no doubt that the technical skills in China are beginning to rival those of Hollywood or Europe," said John Lent, a professor of communications at Temple University, the editor of the International Journal of Comic Art and the author of "Animation in Asia and the Pacific." But he added: "One of the problems I hear coming out of China and many other places in the Far East is the storytelling. Zhang Yimou, the director of "Hero" said himself that when they have a good story they want to make a motion picture out of it, not an animated film.

Chinese investors in the new movie studios exude confidence about their chances, as the animation industry braces for its global takeoff.

"India has had continuous cultural development, while we, because of the Cultural Revolution, have had interrupted development, and are therefore much more open to what is happening in the world," said Mr. Neoh, who shares senior managerial duties of G.D.C. with his brother, Raymond.

"If a film doesn't have song and dance, it isn't an Indian film," he said. "We are making films with international appeal. They may not have been very good so far, but very soon you'll be surprised."

Yet for all of the disruption of the Cultural Revolution, which plunged this country into severe political turmoil and international isolation from 1966 to 1976, China is not so much coming from way behind in the animation business as it is reviving a long vibrant tradition.

Since the 1920's Shanghai has been the center of the country's animation business, and in a nod to that tradition, even G.D.C. is planning to relocate there. The industry was pioneered by the Wan brothers (Laiming and Guchan), followers of the Disney school, whose 1941 film, "Tie Shan Gong Zhu" ("Princess Iron Fan" ) was reputedly the first feature-length animated movie made in Asia.

The business industrialized in the 1950's, centered around the state-owned Shanghai Animation Film Studio, which became renowned for its artists, but suffered badly along with the rest of the sector during the Cultural Revolution. "Before 1993, whatever you made was decided by Beijing," said Jin Guoping, the Shanghai studio's director. "The government decided how much product you would make and how much income you would have. They didn't involve themselves too much in content, though, because animation was basically for children then and the government didn't feel so concerned." By the late 1980's perhaps as much as 90 percent of America's Saturday morning cartoon fare came from Asia, with China capturing a sizable piece of that technologically rudimentary market.

Today, like its private competitor, G.D.C., the Shanghai Animation Film Studio has moved considerably upscale from simple cartoons, and is developing full-length features that its leaders hopes will travel and sell well overseas.

A brochure for one such film due out next year, "Pursuit," an adventure set in the grasslands of Mongolia, reads: "Think 'Braveheart,' 'High Noon,' 'Crouching Tiger.' "

Mr. Jin, the studio's director, speaks not of conquering the American market but of first building strong franchises in Asia and then Europe. "Chinese animation has not become strong enough to block out foreign competition yet, but in the future it will basically be the consumer who decides," he said. "I am very confident that at the level of art and design quality, our films have reached the international level. Time will tell whether our storytelling will appeal to a Western audience."

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/01/movies/01anim.html?oref=login

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[29.11.2004]
Camera obscura / Independent film directors receive support in Osaka
Yomiuri Shimbun

When director Masafumi Yamada shouts "Action!" the camera rolls and an unusual scene begins: A man in white overalls wearing white makeup and a mask and holding electric drills runs through an unmanned road in an industrial district to meet his girlfriend on the other side of a river bank.

The movie, "Teibo wa Kozui o Matteiru" (A River Bank Is Bracing for a Flood), starring Teruhiko Nobukuni, depicts the fragile relationship between a man and a woman and uses a river bank to symbolically divide the relationship into light and dark sides.

The atmospheric, avant-garde short film was being shot in an industrial district near the Yodogawa river in Nishiyodogawa Ward, Osaka, in mid-November.

Yamada, a 28-year-old independent film director, spent about a week shooting the movie for the Cineastes Organization Osaka Exhibition (CO2), an event launched by the Osaka municipal government this year to develop young film directors.

The municipal government allocated a budget of 4.4 million yen for this year's two-competition event, according to Akira Nakagawa, who is in charge of CO2 at the municipal government's cultural promotion division.

The winners of the two competitions receive 300,000 yen and are provided with support, such as volunteer cameramen, sound engineers and assistant directors, as well as cameras and other necessary materials. A public screening of the films will be held in February.

Winners of the invitational competition for films made before November will be chosen by a selection committee in December and will be shown along with winners of the planning and production competition. There were 71 entries for the invitational competition.

Forty-one people, 15 from Osaka Prefecture, participated in the planning and production competition in mid-September, the organizer said.

According to Hiroo Ko, executive producer of the program and representative of an Osaka-based film and video content production firm, there was some concern initially that there might not be enough interest. However, participation was greater than expected and the quality of work was better than expected, too, he said.

"There are many universities and vocational schools, such as Osaka University of Arts, related to the film and television industry, and a lot of students graduate from the schools every year," Ko said. "However, there are only a handful of film-related jobs available in Osaka because the center of the industry is Tokyo. So we also want to give these young filmmakers an opportunity in the industry."

Earlier this month, the selection committee chose five winners, including Seiji Imura of Otsu, with "Shinrei Tour" (Psychic Tour); Masaki Karatsu of Kyoto, with "Never Land;" and Kazuyoshi Uchimura of Kawasaki, with "Kajiba Fusai" (A Couple at a Fire).

Another winning film, "Ochon-chan no Ai to Boken to Kakumei" (Ochon's Love, Adventure and Revolution), directed by Hiroshi Nishio of Osaka, depicts a woman troubled by memories of sexual abuse, and her process of healing through communication.

The directors received 300,000 yen to cover part of the production costs of their movies.

The volunteer staff was sought over the Internet, and 60 people had signed up for the program as of mid-November. They joined the productions of the films after interviews with the directors.

Two digital video cameras have been loaned by Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. to the directors free of charge. A workshop on how to operate the cameras was held for volunteer cameramen in early November.

Nishio plans to employ seven volunteers, including two cameramen, one sound engineer and one assistant director. The 29-year-old director said: "This is the first time I have used so many people to make a film. For my last film, I only used two friends, and I operated a camera myself."

Yamada said: "The money is very helpful for a cash-strapped, independent film director like me. I have to make money to produce my movies and it's impossible to get sponsors for a small independent film." Thanks to the funding, the director did not use any of his own money to make his film.

Mahiro Hattori, an actress in a small independent theater troupe in Osaka who plays the girlfriend in Yamada's movie, is envious of CO2 as her troupe faces similar financial difficulties. "It costs a lot of money to produce a movie or a theatrical performance," she said.

She said the program was also helpful for independent film directors as it provided public screenings of their work. She said it was often difficult to find a venue and attract an audience for independent films and other theatrical performances.

Yuki Kanatani, a volunteer makeup artist on Yamada's film, said: "I've been interested in media-related jobs, such as movie production and magazine publishing, but I had no idea what the job entailed. So this is a very good opportunity to get practical experience and establish contacts in the industry."

Nakagawa linked the program with Osaka's film industry history.

"The first commercially screened movie in Japan was shown in Osaka." he said, referring to a film screened at Osaka Nanchi Enbujo theater in the Minami entertainment district on Feb. 15, 1897.

Before World War II, there were several film companies in the city. Most of them were small or medium-sized firms, but Teikoku Kinema, a major commercial filmmaker, was active between 1920 and 1931 and was based in current Chuo Ward, Osaka. The firm had a huge studio in Higashi-Osaka, Osaka Prefecture, which was dubbed the "Hollywood of the East."

More than 600 films using Osaka as their main setting have been filmed since the 1890s.

However, Ko said, compared to Tokyo, Osaka has virtually no film industry.

"Unfortunately, filmmakers and national TV networks are now based in Tokyo, and young people in Osaka who are interested in the film and television industries inevitably head there to find work," Ko said.

"Turning the tide won't be easy, but we want to change it even if we can only do it slightly. We hope the program becomes the vanguard of the movement," he said.

For that purpose, Nakagawa added that the municipal government believed it was necessary to find promising young filmmakers and to support them by providing opportunities to make films.

Nishio believes the CO2 program can motivate independent film directors to continue their activities. "I want to use the program to realize my dream of becoming a film director who can make commercially popular movies," he said. "I admit I feel a little pressure being the first to be chosen in the program."

The five films created under the CO2 program and works that win in the invitational competition will be screened Feb. 14 and 15 at Hep Hall in Kita Ward, Osaka. According to Ko, one or two of the best films will be aired on a television station in Osaka.

http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/newse/20041129wo64.htm

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International Herald Tribune, Tuesday, November 30, 2004
Traveling for the sake of Asian art
By Claire Hsu

HONG KONG When we first started the Asia Art Archive at the end of 2000, we would send out letters to artists, organizations and art professionals every day asking for material. We did not get much response and it became clear to us that we needed a different approach.

When I went to my first Shanghai Biennale, four years ago, I found that once you have actually gone to visit people and they can put a face to the organization, they are a lot more willing to part with their materials: books, catalogues, invitations, clippings, images and papers. This is why travel is so essential for the archive. I make most of the trips but my colleagues will also go if it is relevant to their research. I make about three long-haul trips a year, and about six within Asia.

The goal of the Art Archive is to continue growing to become one of the most comprehensive collections of contemporary Asian art materials, a base upon which educational and exhibition programs can be developed. We realize that it is not possible to have a single archive for a field this size, so we hope that we can be a model and that organizations in other countries will set up similar facilities. In the meantime, we have set up research posts in the region to keep track of what is happening. We have offices in Beijing, Tokyo, Taipei and Singapore. There are two kinds of trips that we make. One is to go and document a specific art exhibition or event. Last year, we filmed the Asian participation at the Venice Biennale. A colleague, Phoebe Wong, went to China to film and document the Shanghai Biennale. The other kind of trip is for research, when we spend several intensive days visiting art spaces and meeting professionals. This way we can better assess what needs to be focused on in our collections in Hong Kong, as we want to avoid wasting time duplicating what may already exist somewhere else.

I was not encouraged to study art in school. But then on my year off in 1993, I was living at Beijing University and learning Mandarin. One day I visited the East Village, a community where all the most experimental artists of that time lived and worked. The East Village was shut down shortly after this by the authorities. I was very lucky to be able to get a peek into life there because it inspired me.

A couple of years later, I worked at Hanart TZ Gallery during the summer holidays and was, once again, fortunate to meet some of the most important contemporary artists in China. I ended up doing a masters degree in traditional Chinese painting and ceramics at London University. My initial love was contemporary Chinese art, but since helping to create the archive, my interest has expanded to include the rest of the region.

I think art is such an important dimension in life. Living in Hong Kong, where contemporary art is little seen or understood, offers me even more of a challenge and an impetus to push for people to get involved.

I believe that art, to a certain extent, is a window into a particular place, an indicator of our times. Art being produced in Asia is so distinctive from one country to another, yet strongly connected to their history, local politics, societies and economy.

I love my work, so traveling is mostly fun. Before we travel, my colleagues and I spend a lot of time researching the art scene at our destination. When we are there, we try to meet a range of people to get different perspectives on the art being created in a place.

We like to focus on artists and professionals who have a track record, who sensitively respond to their environment and who are not producing work simply for commercial gain. This last point is tricky because it is not always easy to determine. The art included in major international shows tends to conform to a particular international "look." It is important to take into account the environment and history of the locale where the artist works. It can be very dangerous just to make judgments based on trendy "international" standards.

The Art Archive has only been around for three years, but we now have a vast collection of reference materials on Asian art - about 12,000 items that have been catalogued in detail, in a custom-designed database. Check out our Web site, www.aaa.org.hk, if you can't make the journey to visit us in Hong Kong.

http://www.iht.com/articles/2004/11/29/travel/trseno.html

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Kleine Zeitung, 29.11.2004 17:00
Winzige japanische Schnitzerei um 154.000 Euro

Eine winzige japanische Elfenbein-Schnitzerei hat bei einer Auktion asiatischer Kunst in Köln mit 154.000 Euro einen Sensationspreis erzielt. Es handelt sich um ein kaum 14 Zentimeter großes Netsuke aus dem späten 18. Jahrhundert. Ein Netsuke ist ein oft in Figurenform gestaltetes Teil, durch das die Fäden eines Beutels gezogen werden; es dient zur Befestigung des Beutels an einem Gürtel.

Wie ein Sprecher des Kölner Auktionshauses Lempertz am Montag mitteilte, sei der weltweit zweithöchste Preis für ein Netsuke gezahlt worden ist. Das rare Stück von besonderer Schnitzqualität war auf lediglich 40.000 Euro geschätzt worden.

Das Netsuke zeigt einen Holländer, der einen Hasen geschultert trägt. Zwei amerikanische Sammler hätten sich um die Schnitzerei ein erbittertes Bietergefecht geliefert, sagte der Sprecher. Für einen "regelrechten Ausverkauf" weit über den Schätzpreisen hätten bei der Versteigerung zahlreiche angereiste chinesische Bieter gesorgt.

Unter den chinesischen Porzellan-Objekten, "die in der Mehrzahl zurück nach China gingen", ragte nach Lempertz-Angaben eine grün- glasierte Flaschenvase heraus, die von geschätzt 3.500 Euro auf 59.000 Euro kletterte und an den Handel in Hongkong gegangen ist. Eine chinesische Deckeldose aus rotem Schnitzlack stieg von 3.000 Euro als Schätzpreis auf 22.500 Euro. Ein japanischer Stellschirm (Schätzpreis 4.000 Euro) ging für 14.000 Euro an einen Telefonbieter.

http://www.kleinezeitung.at/nachrichten/kultur/artikel/_653707/index.jsp

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29. November 2004, 02:12, Neue Zürcher Zeitung

Im Schatten hoher Pinien
Chinesische Literatenkunst im Musée Rath in Genf

Malerei, Kalligraphie, Skulptur, Bronzen - auch die chinesische Kunst lässt sich in Gattungen aufteilen. Doch trifft dies bei der Literatenkunst nicht ganz zu: So führt diese, einem Gesamtkunstwerk vergleichbar, ein ganzes Konglomerat diverser Bereiche zusammen. Ja der Gelehrte selber vereinigte in seiner Person noch die verschiedensten Eigenschaften, war nicht nur Connaisseur und Kunstsammler, sondern auch Künstler: Dichter, Maler, Musiker, und beherrschte die Kalligraphie.
Intellektueller Lebensstil

Im 17. Jahrhundert trieb dieser intellektuelle Lebensstil in der reichen Gegend um Schanghai besonders raffinierte Blüten. Das letzte Jahrhundert der Ming-Zeit (1368-1644) war geprägt von wirtschaftlichem Wohlstand und bedeutenden Errungenschaften auf dem Gebiet der Technik und Medizin. In diese Zeit fiel auch die Renaissance der neokonfuzianischen Philosophie sowie der klassischen Ausbildung der Beamten. Die kulturellen Zentren in Schanghai, Nanking und Hangzhou, wo sich Zirkel hochgebildeter Literaten formierten, standen im Wettstreit mit der Hauptstadt im Norden, und als die Mandschus Peking erobert hatten, um dort eine neue Dynastie unter dem Namen Qing (1644-1911) zu gründen, stellten die elitären Literatenkreise im Süden die am meisten umworbene Ressource zur Bildung des Beamtenstabs der neuen Regierung dar. Diese pflegten neben den politischen Geschäften weitab vom Machtzentrum der fremden Herrscher ihre feine Lebenskunst, zogen sich in ihre Gärten zurück und schulten sich im Schatten hoher Pinien in der ethischen wie ästhetischen Vervollkommnung.

Diese esoterische Literatenwelt wird dem abendländischen Kunstbetrachter gegenwärtig in einer Ausstellung im Genfer Musée Rath mit rund 130 Kunstgegenständen aus dem Schanghai- Museum nähergebracht. Die geschmackvollen Gegenstände, mit welchen sich die chinesischen Gelehrten des 17. Jahrhunderts umgaben, waren Bestandteil eines gleichsam bis in den Bambushain im Garten reichenden Studierzimmers: Braunrote kleine Teekrüglein aus Yixing gehörten ebenso in diese Intellektuellen-Oase wie schneeweisse Blanc-de-Chine-Pinselhalter aus Dehua. Die heute so berühmten chinesischen Literatenmöbel der späten Ming-Zeit - Stühle und Tische für das Studio, Schränke zur Aufbewahrung von Schrift- und Malereirollen sowie Tagesbetten zur Kontemplation im Garten - muten in ihrer Schlichtheit äusserst modern an und haben in ihrer funktionsorientierten Konstruktion ohne Nägel und Leim eine Parallele in den Möbelentwürfen der Bauhaus-Schule.

Die Privatgärten, deren Atmosphäre in der Ausstellung durch architektonische Versatzstücke suggeriert wird, waren auch Ort der Zusammenkunft und dienten der ästhetischen Unterhaltung. Hier wurde den Klängen des zitherartigen «Qin» oder dem zarten Duft einer Schale besonders kostbaren Tees «gelauscht», hier wurden Gedichte rezitiert, und hier wurden die Kunstschätze des Herrn des Hauses studiert und mit viel Fachkenntnis kommentiert. Denn die Gelehrten übten sich nicht nur in diversen Künsten, sondern waren auch leidenschaftliche Kunstsammler. Noch vor der Malerei in der Hierarchie der Kunstschätze, die in eine Privatsammlung gehörten, kam die Kalligraphie alter Meister. Auf sie folgten Tuschelandschaften berühmter Maler vorzugsweise der Song-Zeit. Beispiele in der Ausstellung stammen von Ming-Meistern wie Wen Zhengming (1470-1559), bekannt für seinen strengen, trockenen Stil, oder etwa auch vom exzentrischen Malermönch Bada Shanren (1626-1705).
Dem Altehrwürdigen verpflichtet

An dritter Stelle standen schliesslich chinesische Antiquitäten, angeführt von archaischen Ritualbronzen, wobei jene mit alten Inschriften bevorzugt wurden. Auf diese folgten kunstvoll geschnitzte Jaden, vorzugsweise die neolithischen, zylinderförmigen Cong-Objekte oder die Pi- Scheiben der legendären Han. Auf grosse Wertschätzung stiessen auch sogenannte Gelehrtensteine, bizarre Steine, die, im Studio auf einem Holzständer montiert, gemäss der taoistischen Lehre den Kosmos repräsentierten. Schliesslich wurde Keramik gesammelt, etwa die graugrüne Seladonware der Song oder das kobaltblau-weisse Porzellan der Ming. Hohe Wertschätzung genossen - ganz im Sinn eines für China charakteristischen, stets dem Altehrwürdigen verpflichteten Geschmacks - Keramiken, die archaische Gefässtypen imitierten, wie einige Beispiele in der Ausstellung anschaulich vor Augen führen.

Auch den vier Schätzen des Literaten: der Tusche, dem Pinsel, dem Tuschereibstein und dem Papier, widmet die Schau ein Kapitel. Anhand von wertvollen Pinseln, Pinselhaltern aus Edelholz, Wasserbecken aus Porzellan, Papierbeschwerern aus Jade sowie Stempelsteinen und Kalligraphiebeispielen wird das ganze Universum chinesischer Schreibkultur ausgebreitet.

Philipp Meier

Genf, Musée Rath: «A l'ombre des pins - Chefs-d'œuvre d'art chinois du Musée de Shanghai». Bis 16. Januar 2005. Katalog Fr. 48.-.

http://www.nzz.ch/2004/11/29/fe/page-article9WF2C.html

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