Fengtai Photography Studio, founded by Ren Qingtai in

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

Qing dynasty The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

, was the first Chinese

photographic studio A photographic studio is often a business owned and represented by one or more photographers, possibly accompanied by assistants and pupils, who create and sell their own and sometimes others’ photographs. Since the early years of the 20th ce ...

. It was also the earliest film production organization in China. It made at least eight

Peking opera Peking opera, or Beijing opera (), is the most dominant form of Chinese opera, which combines music, vocal performance, mime, dance and acrobatics. It arose in Beijing in the mid-Qing dynasty (1644–1912) and became fully developed and recognize ...

films, including '' Dingjun Mountain'', China's first ever film. Fengtai Photography Studio was located near a glass factory in southern Beijing. The business closed in 1909, when all machinery and equipment were destroyed in a fire.

History

Fengtai Photography Studio opened in 1892, the 18th year of the

Guangxu Emperor The Guangxu Emperor (14 August 1871 – 14 November 1908), personal name Zaitian, was the tenth Emperor of the Qing dynasty, and the ninth Qing emperor to rule over China proper. His reign lasted from 1875 to 1908, but in practice he ruled, wi ...

's reign. The owner Ren Qingtai () was from

Faku County Faku County () is a county of Liaoning Province, Northeast China, it is under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Shenyang, the capital of Liaoning, north of downtown Shenyang. , it has a population of 399,587 in an area of . It l ...

Liaoning Liaoning () is a coastal province in Northeast China that is the smallest, southernmost, and most populous province in the region. With its capital at Shenyang, it is located on the northern shore of the Yellow Sea, and is the northernmost ...

Province. Ren's ancestors were allegedly relatives of

Nurhaci Nurhaci (14 May 1559 – 30 September 1626), also known by his temple name as the Emperor Taizu of Qing (), was a Jurchen chieftain who rose to prominence in the late 16th century in Manchuria. A member of the House of Aisin-Gioro, he reigned ...

, the founder of the

Later Jin Later Jin may refer to two states in imperial China: * Later Jin (Five Dynasties) (後晉; 936–947), one of the Five Dynasties * Later Jin (1616–1636) (後金; 1616–1636), precursor to the Qing dynasty See also * Jin (disambiguation) Jin ...

dynasty (later, the

). In his youth, Ren Qingtai went to Japan to inspect the industry there and study modern physics and photography. He believed that photography had a promising future in China. After returning home, he opened the first Chinese photographic studio in Beijing, the Fengtai Photography Studio. Photography had come to China in the 1880s. After Fengtai Studio opened, photography became a hobby for local residents in Beijing. The success of Fengtai Studio attracted many followers. A lot of other photographic studios opened on the street where Fengtai Studio was located. However, Fengtai Studio was the premier one in both size and technology. It had more than 10 employees, including famous photographers Liu Zhonglun (劉仲倫) and Xu Zihe (徐子和). Fengtai Photo Studio was famous for taking photos of

stars. Selling these photos was very profitable for the studio. In the 1905, 10 years after

Auguste and Louis Lumière The Lumière brothers (, ; ), Auguste Marie Louis Nicolas Lumière (19 October 1862 – 10 April 1954) and Louis Jean Lumière (5 October 1864 – 6 June 1948), were French manufacturers of photography equipment, best known for their ''Ciném ...

invented film, the enthusiasm of Chinese people for film was rising. Ren Qingtai opened a grand viewing cinema, called Daguanlou (大觀樓), near the Gate of China. At the time, only foreign films were available, and films were scarce. Ren wanted to make a film that would belong to the Chinese people. He bought a French-made wooden shell hand camera and 14 rolls of film, and invited celebrity

Tan Xinpei Tan Xinpei (23 April 1847 – 10 May 1917) was a Chinese Peking opera artist who specialized in ''sheng'' roles. A disciple of Cheng Changgeng, Tan Xinpei was undoubtedly the most important Peking opera performer of his generation. Some of his a ...

, the most famous Peking opera actor at the time, to star in the short film '' Dingjun Mountain''. Chinese audience warmly welcomed ''Dingjun Mountain'', which combined western filming technology with

Chinese opera Traditional Chinese opera (), or ''Xiqu'', is a form of musical theatre in China with roots going back to the early periods in China. It is an amalgamation of various art forms that existed in ancient China, and evolved gradually over more tha ...

to create a new art form. This film paved the way for the

cinema of China 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 Mountai ...

. From 1906 to 1909, Fengtai Photography Studio invited Peking opera stars Yu Jusheng, Zhu Wenying, Xu Deyi and Yu Zhenting to appear in other films, such as ''Green Rock Mountain'', ''Yanyang Tower'', and more. Unfortunately, a fire in 1909 destroyed the Fengtai Studio machinery and equipment. The studio never recovered. In the turmoils of the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goal ...

, the Chinese government advocated for destruction of traditional material and cultural heritage. Fengtai Studio ruins were almost destroyed during this period. In 1987, the land was converted into a kindergarten.

Filmography

*'' Dingjun Mountain'' (1905) starring

*''Changban Slope'' (長坂坡, 1905) starring Tan Xinpei *''Green Rock Mountain'' (青石山, 1906) starring Yu Jusheng (俞菊笙) and Zhu Wenying (朱文英) *''Yanyang Tower'' (艷陽樓, 1906) starring Yu Jusheng *''Golden Leopard'' (金錢豹, 1906) starring Yu Zhenting (俞振庭) *''White Water Shore'' (白水灘, 1907) starring Yu Zhenting *''Receiving Guan Sheng'' (收關勝, 1907) starring Xu Deyi (許德義) *''Weaving Cotton'' (紡棉花, 1908) starring Xiao Magu (小麻姑)

References

{{reflist Chinese companies established in 1892 Mass media companies established in 1892 Mass media companies disestablished in 1909 1909 disestablishments in China Photography companies of China Companies based in Beijing Defunct film and television production companies of China Defunct photography companies Peking opera