Mingxing Film Company (), also known as the Star Motion Picture Company, was one of the largest production companies during the 1920s, and 1930s in the

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. Founded in

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 ...

, the company lasted from 1922 until 1937 when it was closed permanently by the

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History

Founded in 1922 by Zhang Shichuan, Zheng Zhengqiu, and

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, Mingxing emerged along with Dazhonghua Baihe Film Company, and Tianyi Film Company as one of the three dominant film studios of the 1920s. During this period, all three studios were known for producing "light" entertainment though even at this early time there was a sign of social criticism, inherited from the May 4th Movement. The film company struggled in its first few years with comic shorts like 1922's '' Laborer's Love''. In 1923, the company produced ''

Orphan Rescues Grandfather An orphan (from the el, ορφανός, orphanós) is a child whose parents have died. In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents due to death is called an orphan. When referring to animals, only the mother's condition is usuall ...

'' which became a commercial success and with it Mingxing's fortunes were assured. By the early 1930s, Mingxing had become the leading film studio in China, and dominated the market with its upstart rival, the Lianhua Film Company (which had co-opted Dazhonghua Baihe) as a close second. In 1931, the first Chinese

sound film A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed befo ...

''Sing-Song Girl Red Peony'' was made, the product of a cooperation between the Mingxing Film Company's image production and

Pathé Pathé or Pathé Frères (, styled as PATHÉ!) is the name of various French businesses that were founded and originally run by the Pathé Brothers of France starting in 1896. In the early 1900s, Pathé became the world's largest film equipment ...

's sound technology. However, the sound was disc-recorded, and the first sound-on-film

talkie A sound film is a motion picture with synchronization, synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decad ...

made in China was by Tianyi Film Company. Tianyi also continued to produce films throughout the 1930s, though its output did not match the two leaders. By the mid-1930s, both Mingxing and Lianhua became major production houses for films in Shanghai. With the death of co-founder Zheng Zhengqiu in 1934, and the advent of full-scale war in 1937, Mingxing was forced to close its doors permanently. Elements of the Mingxing operation would be resurrected by Zhang Shichuan in 1938 as the Guohao Film Company.Fu, p. 9

Notable films

*'' Laborer's Love'' (1922) (Dir. Zhang Shichuan) *'' The Burning of the Red Lotus Temple'' (1928) (Dir Zhang Shichuan) *''

Spring Silkworms ''Spring Silkworms'' (''Chun Can'') is a novella by the Chinese author Mao Dun about the experience of Chinese villagers engaging in sericulture. History Mao Dun dates the story November 1, 1932. It is part of a trilogy, together with ''Autumn H ...

'' (1933) (Dir. Cheng Bugao) *'' Wild Torrents'' (1933) (Dir. Cheng Bugao) *''

The Boatman's Daughter ''The Boatman's Daughter'' is a 2020 gothic horror novel by Andy Davidson. It was published on February 11, 2020 through the MCD x FSG Originals imprint of Farrar, Straus and Giroux. Synopsis Miranda Crabtree spends her time running contraband f ...

'' (1935) (Dir. Shen Xiling) *'' Crossroads'' (1937) (Dir. Shen Xiling) *'' Street Angel'' (1937) (Dir. Yuan Muzhi)

Notes

References

* Fu, Poshek. ''Between Shanghai and Hong Kong: The Politics of Chinese Cinemas''. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2003. * Zhang, Yingjin. "A Centennial Review of Chinese Cinema" ''available at'' https://web.archive.org/web/20080907160026/http://chinesecinema.ucsd.edu/essay_ccwlc.html.

External links

An Incomplete List of Films Produced by Mingxing
{{Authority control Chinese film studios Film production companies of China Defunct film and television production companies of China Mass media companies established in 1922 Mass media in Shanghai Mass media companies disestablished in 1937 Companies based in Shanghai Chinese companies established in 1922 1937 disestablishments in China

History

Notable films

See also

Notes

References

External links