On 4 November, the “Golden Rooster Film Forum · Actors’ Forum”, hosted by the China Film Association and the Xiamen Municipal People’s Government, co-hosted by the China Film Performance Art Academy and organised by the Film Art Center of the China Federation of Literary and Art Circles, was held in the Zijin Hall of the Tianyuan Hotel in Xiamen. The theme of the forum was “Refining the Craft, Creating Classics”.
Attending the forum were Chen Daoming, Chairman of the China Film Association; Chen Baoguo, President of the China Film Performance Art Academy; Ge You, Honorary President of the China Film Performance Art Academy; Zhu Hongzi, Party Secretary and Chairman of China Film Press Co., Ltd.; performing artists Tian Hua, Niu Ben, Da Shichang, Zhang Yongshou, Tao Yuling and Xu Huanshan; Huang Bo and Wu Jing, Vice Chairmen of the China Film Association; Hou Yong, Chairman of the Jiangsu Film Association; Huo Tingxiao, President, and Shi Jiandu, Vice President, of the China Film Art Design Society; Zhang Wei, Vice President of the China Film Critics Association; Yang Buting, former Chairman of China Film Group Corporation; Zhuang Yan, Party Secretary and Chairman of Changchun Film Group; Feng Wei, President of Greater China and Vice President of Asia Pacific of the Motion Picture Association; Yue Hong and Narenhua, Vice Presidents of the China Film Performance Art Academy; Huang Xiaolei, former Secretary-General of the China Film Performance Art Academy; Cui Xinqin, Huo Xuan and Zhao Ningyu, Professors at the Beijing Film Academy; Tao Jing, Professor at the Communication University of China and sound engineer; Chen Jie, Dean and Professor of the School of Film and Television at Nanjing University of the Arts; Wang Qinren, member of the Party Committee and Deputy Editor-in-Chief of China Film Press Co., Ltd.; actors Wang Fuli, Song Xiaoying, Wang Ying, Tong Fan, Yan Qingyu, Chen Wei and Zhao Yue; and some of this year’s Golden Rooster acting nominees, including Kara Wai, He Saifei and Yan Ni. The forum was moderated by Zhang Guangbei, Secretary-General of the China Film Performance Art Academy.
Moderator: Zhang Guangbei
With the study and implementation of Xi Jinping Thought on Culture as its theme, this year’s forum focused on further raising the level of film acting in China and creating classic screen images for the new era. Experienced actors were invited to share how they enter a character’s inner world, uncover its essence and, drawing on their own qualities, present vivid film characters with distinct personalities. The forum also looked at the relationship between actors and social life and discussed how actors deal with social topics and public opinion.
Chen Baoguo, President of the China Film Performance Art Academy
In his address, Chen Baoguo, President of the China Film Performance Art Academy, pointed out that the basic task of an actor is to create characters with distinctive traits, and in the actor’s secondary creation, creating typical characters with typical personalities is the artistic goal to be reached. Guided by the guiding principles of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, Chinese cinema is growing vigorously and the level of film acting in China keeps rising. More and more vivid and moving characters that audiences love are appearing on screen. The Actors’ Forum is not only an academic discussion of real value but also a call from the times to today’s filmmakers.
The forum was divided into four parts: an art dialogue, a roundtable forum, honorary speeches and a book launch
Art Dialogue
In the art dialogue, Cui Xinqin, Professor at the Beijing Film Academy, held one-on-one interviews with performing artist Da Shichang and Wu Jing, representing the mid-career generation of actors, on creating classic characters and actors giving back to society.
Moderator: Cui Xinqin Guest: Da Shichang
Da Shichang said that in playing a role an actor should bring out what makes the character unique. In creating a character, an actor is not just completing a task; the performance should have depth and should make the audience think and learn. This is what he pursues in his work.
Moderator: Cui Xinqin Guest: Wu Jing
Wu Jing said he recently set up “Yingwutang”, which focuses on training action actors. He hopes to bring together young people who aspire to become action actors and share with them what he has experienced and what senior actors taught him, so that whether they have faced failure or setbacks, they can learn something there, regain confidence and return to the set, and contribute to the industrialisation of Chinese cinema and to action films reaching the world again.
Roundtable Dialogue
Moderator: Zhao Ningyu
The roundtable dialogue was moderated by Zhao Ningyu, Professor at the Beijing Film Academy, Vice President of the China Film Performance Art Academy and winner of the Golden Rooster Award for Best Screenplay. Nominees for the acting awards of the 36th China Golden Rooster Awards were invited to share their feelings about their nominations and to discuss the theme “The Birth of a Character”.
Kara Wai
Nominee for Best Actress, 36th China Golden Rooster Awards
I habitually observe and study the people around me, and when I play a role I look for the character’s image in real life. When working out a character, I use what I have learned of psychology to give the character a soul.
He Saifei
Nominee for Best Actress, 36th China Golden Rooster Awards
Acting lets you enter other people’s lives and convey the right values through stories. It is hard work, but it brings happiness.
Yan Ni
Nominee for Best Actress, 36th China Golden Rooster Awards
No role comes easily. Truly finding a character is a painful process that requires repeated reflection, and constant reflection is very important for an actor.
Huang Bo
Nominee for Best Actor, 36th China Golden Rooster Awards
I am fortunate to have become an actor. Mastering the measure of a performance is important: sometimes you need to commit fully and become one with the character, and sometimes you need to hold back in certain places and handle the degree of the performance calmly.
Honorary Speeches
Moderator: Hou Yong
Guests from left to right: Xu Huanshan, Tao Yuling, Zhang Yongshou, Niu Ben, Tian Hua
Hou Yong, Chairman of the Jiangsu Film Association, moderated the honorary speeches, in which performing artists Niu Ben, Tao Yuling, Zhang Yongshou, Xu Huanshan and Tian Hua spoke in turn. They looked back on their acting careers and expressed the hope that the China Film Performance Art Academy would continue its good work and encourage film actors to create for the people through active practice, using film as a medium to present an image of China that is credible, lovable and respectable.
Book Launch
Presenter: Wang Qinren
At the book launch, Wang Qinren, member of the Party Committee and Deputy Editor-in-Chief of China Film Press Co., Ltd., introduced the book The Birth of a Character, planned and compiled jointly by China Film Press and the China Film Performance Art Academy. It reviews the Academy’s development over the past ten years and gives a detailed account of last year’s Actors’ Forum.
