The Chinese Mirror

Xu Zhuodai (1881-1958)

    Xu Zhuodai 徐卓呆 was born Xu Fulin 徐傅霖 in Wuxian, Jiangsu.  He studied physical education in Japan during his early years, and after returning to China established a gymnastics school, for which he served as schoolmaster.  He also wrote short stories for newspapers and magazines, and later became interested in studying drama.  Towards the end of the Qing dynasty he participated in the formation of the Spring Willow Society, which staged modern drama, and contributed articles to major newspapers advocating transformation of Chinese drama.  He began in movies when he and director Wang Youyou 汪优游 partnered in founding the Kaixin Film Company, for which Xu became chief writer as well as co-director and actor.  Kaixin was seriously damaged financially during the worldwide depression, and was one of the smaller Shanghai studios forced out of business by the Japanese attack on Shanghai in 1932.  After the studio folded, Xu turned to writing full time and published a best-selling novel Where Can We Run?, which advocated rallying to the nation's crisis.  He returned to movies in 1934 as a writer for the Yihua studio, then in 1936 joined Mingxing in the same capacity.  During the "Orphan Island" period, he worked for the Guohua film studio.  Among his most popular films during this time were the《Dr. Li》domestic comedy series.  After the war, he concentrated on writing, among other works authoring a text on filmmaking and his memoirs. 

[Xu Zhuodai's filmography continues after the bump]

Hu Xinling (1914 - ?)

    Hu Xinling 胡心灵 was a native of Jiangsu province, born October 8, 1914.  After graduating in 1933 from the China University of the Arts, he studied political economics at Meiji University in Japan.  During that time he participated in the activities of the Chinese Overseas Student Association, which included theatricals and got him interested in theater.  Returning to Shanghai in 1935, he abandoned his original career plans and found employment as deputy manager and chief stage manager of the newly-formed Shanghai Oriental Theater.  In 1936 he organized his own film studio,  Wenhua (Cultural) Pictures, making《Parents and Children》, which he wrote and directed, and which resulted in his being hired by the Mingxing (Star) film studio, serving in an adminstrative position.  Perhaps more importantly for the aspiring young filmmaker was that while filming this movie a young singer making her screen debut became his future wife, popular singer/actress Gong Qiuxia.  In 1940 he began publishing a movie magazine "Movie Life," a semimonthy for which he served as editor in chief.  Hu went to Hong Kong in 1946, joining the Da Zhonghua (Great China) Film Corporation, writing and directing《Portrait of Four Beauties》, starring Gong Qiuxia.  After making several more films in Hong Kong, he returned to China, taking a succession of  administrative and managerial posts in theaters and culture-related government departments in Tianjin and Shanghai.  He returned to Hong Kong in the late 1940s, becoming a theater manager there.  In 1971 Hu moved to Taiwan to accept a post as consultant to the Central Motion Picture Corporation.  At the 13th Golden Horse Awards in Taiwan in 1993, Hu Xinling was honored with a lifetime achievement award.

Filmography (director, unless otherwise noted):

1936:
Parents and Children                    (also writer)

1937:
New Year's Money                         (assistant director)

1947:
Every Girl Should be Married (HK)  (writer)

1948:
Debt of Lovesickness 
Portrait of Four Beauties (HK)        (also writer)
The Corn is Ripe for Picking (HK)   (writer)

1949:
The Unmarried Mother (HK) 

Gu Wuwei (1892-1961)

    Gu Wuwei 顾无为 was born in Shaoxing, Zhejiang in 1892, and grew up in Nanjing.  He initially trained for a law enforcement career, and after attending the Shanghai Police Academy, graduated from the Southern Law School.  But he became increasingly involved in political activities, and after joining the Tongmenghui, the amalgam of revolutionary groups supporting Sun Yat-sen, he turned to writing revolutionary plays, and abandoned his original career path to do publicity and liaison work for Sun.  With the founding of the Republic, he established a theater in Changsha, Hunan.  In 1915 he moved to Shanghai and continued his political work, and at one point was arrested for his open opposition to Yuan Shikai's attempt to install himself as a new emperor.  Artistically, Gu Wuwei concentrated on writing operas, performing in most of them.  In 1925 he founded the Da Zhongguo (Great China) film studio, and took on the role of principal director.  He directed, wrote and acted in several films throughout the 1920s, both for his own studio and then for the Great Wall studio.  He then took on the position of CEO of the Dahua Film Company, and also operated motion picture and stage theaters in Shanghai and Nanjing.  When the PRC was founded in 1949, Gu Wuwei relocated to Hong Kong, where he died in 1961.
********************** 
Filmography (as director, unless noted otherwise):

1925:
Who is the Mother?                  (also actor)

1926: 
Hell and Heaven                      (also actor)
The Milky Way Lovers               (writer)
Princess Lotus, I-III                   (writer)

1927:
Conquering the Dragon King
General Xue Conquers the West I,II
Three Kingdoms:  Cao Cao had the Emperor in his Power (actor)
Three Kingdoms:  Fengyi Pavilion
Bloodshed at Mandarin Duck Mansion                               (actor)

1928: 
Rescuing Mother from the Mountain
Hong Hai'er 

Chen Zhiqing (1897 - ?)

 

   Chen Zhiqing (陈趾青) was an important early writer and director.  Little is recorded concerning him prior to 1926, when he joined the staff of "Silver Star" (银星) film magazine.  Later that same year wrote the adapted screenplay for the Guoguang (National Light) studio's "Buru Gui" 不如归 (Better Go Home).  The success of this film led to his joining the Changcheng (Great Wall) studio the following year as a writer-director, then the Changming studio in 1929.  In the early 1930s he turned increasingly to writing, and among the numerous works he authored were several books and articles on screenwriting.

Cao Yuankai (? - ?)

     Cao Yuankai 曹元恺, actor and writer.  Native of Chuansha, Jiangsu (now a part of metropolitan Shanghai).  In early youth, he and some friends started a small film study society, publishing a film magazine for which he edited and wrote articles commenting on cinema art.  These were popular with readers, and led to his joining the Guoguang (Light of the Nation) Film Co., making his first screen appearance in 1926's "Flowers of Shanghai."  Beginning in the following year he concentrated more on writing, and also directed one film.
**********

Filmography
1926:
Flowers of Shanghai                    (actor)

1927:
Strange Happenings Onstage      (actor, co-writer)
Wishful Thinking                         (writer)
Wusong Kills his Sister-in-Law    (writer)
1930:
Ghost of the Gold                       (director)
1935:
Three Daughters-in-Law             (writer)

Gao Lihen (1890-1982)

     Gao Lihen 高梨痕, actor, director and writer, was born September 25, 1890 in Zhuxi County, Hubei province.  As a young man, he was an active participant in the revolution which overthrew the Qing (Manchu) dynasty in 1911, then for two years edited a newspaper in Hankou.  During this time he became interested in theatricals, and in 1914 joined with Zheng Zhengqiu  and others in forming the Great China Dramatic Society, for which Gao acted from 1914-1923.  A supporting role in 1923's "Patriotic Umbrella" prompted him to enroll in 1924 in the China Film School established by Hong Shen, after which Gao joined the Tianyi Film Co. in 1925, then moved to the Mingxing studio in 1926, as both director and actor.  Not a leading man type, he nevertheless was a familiar on-screen figure in supporting roles during the rest of China's silent era, at the same time moving into writing and directing.  He had 23 acting credits and 46 credits as writer and/or director.  In 1937, Gao moved to the South Seas Film Company, the Tianyi studio's Hong Kong branch, and during World War II was involved with the resistance there.  After the war, he returned to Shanghai, and in 1954 joined the staff of the Museum of Literary History as a researcher, compiling and editing a great many materials on the history of theater and motion pictures in Shanghai.  Among his many publications were "Old Talks on the Shanghai Film Community" and "The Tianyi Studio as I Know it." He died in Shanghai, October 16, 1982, age 91.

[left, Gao Lihen as cinematic elder statesman/historian]

Yang Xiaozhong (1899 — 1969)

    One of China's earliest writer-directors was Yang Xiaozhong 杨小仲 , born Yang Baotai 杨保泰 December 11, 1899, in Changzhou, Jiangsu.  
    His father's early death prevented the future filmmaker from getting a formal education.  However, his mother had a love of reading which she instilled in her son, and for some years he pursued an informal education through extensive reading.  In 1916 he tested successfully into a work-study program operated by the Commercial Press, training for a publishing career.  After two years, he became a full time employee.  His mother, an avid fan of American movies as well as literature, again exerted her influence to get him interested in the new media.  When the Commercial Press established its Motion Picture Division he was eager to join the new unit.
    His chance came in 1920, when Yang was assigned to adapt Chen Chunsheng's script of the successful stage play《Yan Ruisheng》 for the China Film Research Society.  The movie version, filmed for the Society by the Commercial Press and released the following year, was China's first full-length motion picture, and a huge success.   At this point, Yang Baotai changed his name to Yang Xiaozhong and made a full transfer to the Motion Picture Division as a screenwriter.    
    In 1922, he prepared two more scripts for the Press,《The Predestined》, released in 1923, and《The Good Brother》, in 1924.    
    His first solo effort came in 1925, when he directed《Regrets for Drunkeness》.  He took a bold step in casting the movie by selecting a group of teachers and students for the film roles instead of the experienced stage actors studios had been relying on to that point.  At the same time, he created models for background in some scenes and natural, outdoor scenery in others.  He also employed special effects to create such things as explosions, rainstorms, etc.  In China's earliest period of filmmaking, these were innovative measures.
     When the Commercial Press reorganized its Motion Picture Division in 1926, renaming it the Guoguang Film Company, Yang Xiaozhong was appointed Chief Writer, which carried responsibility for both writing and directing.  In that same year he made three films,《Mother's Heart》,《Better Go Home》and《The Loafer》.
    After the Commercial Press shut down its filmmaking activities in 1927, Yang Xiaozhong worked for a half dozen studios, writing and/or directing more than 30 narrative films as well as opera films in a filmmaking career that lasted into the 1960s.  After 1949, he also served as a trustee of the Chinese Film Workers Association and vice president of the organization's Shanghai branch.  He died in January, 1969 during the height of Cultural Revolution fanaticism and violence.  Although Chinese sources do not furnish the details of his death, so many of China's classic filmmakers perished during that decade it is very possible his passing was related to that.
******
Filmography:

1921:
Yan Ruisheng                                                                               (writer)
1922:
The Good Brothers                                                                       (writer)
1923:
The Predestined                                                                           (writer)
1924:
My Dear Brother                                                                           (writer)
1925:
Eternal Regret for Drunkenness                                                     (writer/director)
The Hearts of Mothers                                                                  (director)
1926:
Ma the Vagrant                                                                            (writer/director)
Better Go Home                                                                           (director)
1927:
Shi Xiu Kills his Sister-in-Law                                                        (director)
The Arrow of Hatred                                                                    (director)
Wu Song's Bloody Battle at Yuan Yang Lou                                      (director/set designer)
1928:
Hero Gan Fengchi                                                                        (director)
Fire on the Mountain                                                                    (director/writer)
The Shadow of Evil                                                                      (director/writer)
1929:
Heroic Son (aka Poor Daddy)                                                         (director)
The Secret Treasure                                                                     (director)
Flying Hero Lü Sanniang                                                               (director/writer)
Burning of Pingyang City, pt.I                                                       (director/writer)
1930:
Burning of Pingyang City, pts.II-IV                                                (director/writer)
Heroine of the South                                                                    (director/writer)
The Queen and the Magician                                                         (writer)
1931:
Burning of Pingyang City, pts.V,VI                                                (director/writer)
Two Kings                                                                                   (director)
Heartaches                                                                                  (director/writer)
1934:
A Beautiful Night                                                                         (director)
1935:
Femme Fatales                                                                            (director/writer)
Legend of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom                                      (director)
Four Sisters                                                                                 (director/writer)
1936:
Spring Dream in the Peach Garden                                                (director/writer)
Little Orphan Girl                                                                        (director/writer)
1937:
By the Fuchun River                                                                     (writer)
Unexpected Fortune                                                                    (director/writer)
1938:
Exploring Hell (aka Play Dead)                                                     (director/writer)
Visiting Shanghai After 60 Years                                                   (director/writer)
1939:
Exchanged                                                                                  (director/writer)
Story of the Lute                                                                         (director)
Legend of the White Snake                                                          (director/writer)
1940:
Sanniang Lectures her Child                                                         (director)
Ghost                                                                                         (director/writer)
1941:
Family                                                                                       (director)
Legend of the Sui Dynasty                                                           (director/writer)
There's a Full Moon Tonight                                                        (director/writer)
New Twin Sisters                                                                        (director/writer)
Yao Nationality Love Story                                                          (director)
Phoenix with Two Pearls, pts.I,II                                                (director/writer)
Revenge of the Female Corpse                                                    (director/writer)
Shanghai Gold Rush (aka Two Tramps)                                        (director/writer)
1942:
Zhuo Wenjun                                                                             (director/writer)
Endless Joy                                                                                (director/writer)
1943:
Three Flowers                                                                            (director/writer)
The Beauty Trap                                                                         (director/writer)
1946:
Sparks of the Nation                                                                   (director/writer)
1947:
Lust Tide                                                                                   (director/writer)
Hairpin with a Phoenix                                                               (director/writer)
1948:
Story of a Street-Singing Girl                                                      (director/writer)
Shadows in the Old House                                                          (writer)
Spy Net 26                                                                                (director)
Looking for Marriage                                                                 (director)
Brink (aka Burglar with a Sense of Justice)                                 (director/writer)
1949:
The Last Days of Winter                                                             (director)
Female Corpse                                                                          (director)
A Fantastic Idea                                                                        (director/writer)

[Yang Xiaozhong's filmmaking career extended well into the 1950s, but those years lie outside of our primary interests.] 

Gu Kenfu (189?-1932)

    Little personally is known about Gu Kenfu 顾肯夫, especially his early years.  He was born in the late 19th century in Suzhou, Jiangsu, and his original profession was the law.  In 1921 he was cast as a woman in the China Film Research Society's production of "Yan Ruisheng."   He was one of the founders in 1922 of China's first movie magazine, "Motion Picture Review," taking on its chief editorial responsibilities.  At the same time he joined the Mingxing company, participating in set management and editing.  In 1923, he started his own film studio, the Da Zhonghua (Great China) Company.  In addition to serving as studio head, Gu also wrote and directed films, then started and operated the company's film school.  In 1928 he drew on his legal background to participate in drafting the Shanghai Film Review Regulations, and in 1929, served as an advisor to the national government's commission on opera and film.  In 1932, Gu was the leader in establishing the Chinese Film Education Association, but died suddenly that same year.
****
Filmography

1921:
Yan Ruisheng – actor

1924:
Public Opinion – co-director

1925:
The Newcomer's Family – writer

1926:
Shanghai Nights - - writer
Leopard – director
Three Girls in Shanghai – writer
The Gate of Justice – director, writer
All for Love – director

1927:
The Good Son – co-director
A Crushing Blow – actor
A Prostitute's Wish – director

Chen Chunsheng (1886 - ?)

    Chen Chunsheng (陈春生) was one of the first Chinese writers to write specifically for the screen.  A native of Shanghai, he began his writing career with the Shanghai Christian Association, later becoming the editor of all its publications.  He entered the movie industry in 1919, as the chief screenwriter for the Commercial Press Motion Picture Division.  In addition to writing a number of scenarios for the studio, he also adapted for the screen several Chinese translations of Western stories, including 1920's《Railway Robbers》, commonly regarded as China's first narrative martial arts film. He also wrote most of the Commercial Press's early comedy shorts.

Filmography (all as writer):

1919:
The Gambler
In a Dilemma

1920:
Railway Robbers
Gold in the Wasteland
The Li Family Scion
Sudden Turnaround

1921:
Taking First Prize
The Servant Girl
The Fool Offers Congratulations

1922:
The Loser

1923:
The Lotus Falls
The Dream of a Taoist Priest