Ai Xia (; 29 November 1912 – 15 February 1934) was a Chinese left-wing

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized Sound recording and reproduction, recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) ...

actress and screenwriter. She committed suicide in 1934, the first Chinese actor to have done so. Her suicide inspired

Cai Chusheng Cai Chusheng (January 12, 1906 – July 15, 1968) was a Chinese film director of the pre-Communist era, and was the first Chinese director to win an international film award at the Moscow International Film Festival. Best known for his progres ...

's classic film ''

New Women ''New Women'' () is a 1935 Chinese silent drama film produced by the United Photoplay Service. It is sometimes translated as ''New Woman''. The film starred Ruan Lingyu (in her penultimate film) and was directed by Cai Chusheng. This film became ...

'' starring

Ruan Lingyu Ruan Lingyu (born Ruan Fenggen; April 26, 1910 – March 8, 1935), also known by her English name Lily Yuen, was a Chinese silent film actress. One of the most prominent Chinese film stars of the 1930s, her exceptional acting ability and suicid ...

, who also killed herself soon after the release of the film.

Life and career

Ai Xia was born Yan Yinan () on November 29, 1912 in

Tianjin Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popu ...

to a large middle-class family. She attended university. After graduating, she fell in love with her cousin and had a child. Her family disapproved of the relationship, resulting in her lover leaving. In 1928, she was in an arranged marriage but, as a personal protest, left home for

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flowin ...

to pursue a career in film. Ai Xia started her career as a stage actor with the South China Theater Society (''Nanguo jushe''), founded by

Tian Han Tian Han ( zh, 田汉; 12 March 1898 – 10 December 1968), formerly romanized as T'ien Han, was a Chinese drama activist, playwright, a leader of revolutionary music and films, as well as a translator and poet. He emerged at the time of the ...

, before joining the Leftists Dramatists League (''Zuoyi juzuojia lianmeng''). She was introduced to Mingxing (Star) Film Company in 1932. She wrote a book ''Xiandai yi Nüxing'' (''A Woman of Today'') in 1933. The book was adapted as a film in the same year. Despite the intrigue around the story, the film was not well received by critics because of its focus on revolution. Ai Xia was one of only two female screenwriters during the "Left-Wing" movement in

Chinese film The cinema of China is one of three distinct historical threads of Chinese-language cinema together with the cinema of Hong Kong and the cinema of Taiwan. Cinema was introduced in China in 1896 and the first Chinese film, '' Dingjun Mountain'' ...

. She starred in a total of eight films in her lifetime.

Death and legacy

Ai committed suicide in 1934 by consuming raw opium. Being the first actress in the Republic of China to do so, her death is considered iconic in Chinese film. The film ''

'' is based on her life. It stars actress

who also committed suicide shortly after the film's release in 1935. It is speculated that director

may have been romantically involved with Ai and thus, made the film for personal reasons.

Filmography

*'' Adventures in a Battlefield'' (1922) *'' Jiu hen xin chou'' (1922) *'' Chuncan'' (1933) *'' Good Harvest'' (1933) *'' Sons and Daughters of the Times'' (1933) *''

A Woman of Today ''A Woman of Today'' (german: Eine Frau von heute) is a 1954 West German drama film directed by Paul Verhoeven and starring Luise Ullrich, Curd Jürgens and Carsta Löck.Berghahn p. 177 It was shot at the Bavaria Studios in Munich with location ...

'' (1933) *'' Two Verses One'' (1933) *'' Cosmetics of Market'' (1933) *'' Spring Silkworms'' (1933)

Bibliography

*''

'' (现代一女性, 1933)

References

External links

*
Ai Xia
at the Chinese Movie Database
A Woman of Today
in the

WorldCat WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the O ...