Headlines from China: The 3rd Pingyao International Film Festival Unveils Lineup

The 3rd Pingyao International Film Festival Unveils Lineup

On September 16, Pingyao International Film Festival (PYIFF) hosted a press conference in Beijing, announcing the first batch of this year’s selections. Jia Zhangke, the founder of PYIFF, and Marco Müller, artistic director of the Festival, attended the conference. The first batch of selections include 52 films from 26 countries. All of them will be screened in China for the first time while 28 of them will have world premieres at Pingyao. This year’s Pingyao Night features Indian sports film Bull’s Eye from director Tushar Hiranandani, and the closing film is The Opera House, which is directed by Hong Kong filmmaker Jacob Cheung and stars Mason Lee and Ouyang Nana. Other highlights in this year’s competition section include Caméra d’Or winning film Our Mother, They Say Nothing Stays the Same, horror film Howling Village by Ju-on: The Grudge director Takashi Shimizu, and Chinese film Summer of Changsha by Zu Feng. Read more on Mtime

Zhang Yimou Wraps Filming Police Drama Film ‘Jian Ru Pan Shi’

At a recent event in Beijing, renowned Chinese director Zhang Yimou revealed that he just wrapped filming his latest police drama film named Jian Ru Pan Shi (Hard as A Rock). He also mentioned that his next project will be a spy drama.  A cast list of the Jian Ru Pan Shi is being circulated on the internet. However, Zhang’s team said to Sina Entertainment that the list was “not accurate.”  Read more on Sina