Feng Xiaogang (; born 18 March 1958 in
Beijing
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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 ...
) is a Chinese film director, screenwriter, actor, producer and politician. He is well known in China as a highly successful commercial filmmaker whose comedy films do consistently well at the box office, although Feng has broken out from that mold by making some drama and
period drama
A historical drama (also period drama, costume drama, and period piece) is a work set in a past time period, usually used in the context of film and television. Historical drama includes historical fiction and romances, adventure films, and swas ...
films. Feng was a member of the 12th National Committee of the
CPPCC
The Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC, zh, 中国人民政治协商会议), also known as the People's PCC (, ) or simply the PCC (), is a political advisory body in the People's Republic of China and a central part of ...
.
Biography
The son of a
college professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professors ...
and a factory nurse, Feng joined the Beijing Military Region Art Troupe as a stage designer after high school. He began his cinema career as an art designer in the Beijing Television Art Center in 1985. Later, he moved on to write screenplays. During this period, he worked closely with director
Zheng Xiaolong
Zheng Xiaolong (; born November 30, 1953) is a Chinese TV and film director and screenwriter.
Selected filmography
*''Stories from the Editorial Board'' (1991)—China's first sitcom
*''A Native of Beijing in New York'' (1992)—first Chinese TV ...
and writer
Wang Shuo
Wang Shuo (, born August 23, 1958) is a Chinese author, director, actor, and cultural icon. He has written over 20 novels, television series and movies. His work has been translated into Japanese, Spanish, French, English, Italian, Hindi, and ...
.
In the late 1990s, Feng established himself in a Chinese genre called "''
Hesui Pian'' (贺岁片)", or "New Year's Celebration Films." He became famous as the director of the movie ''
The Dream Factory'' (1997). Professor
Ying Zhu
Ying Zhu is Professor Emeritus at the City University of New York and Director of the Center for Film and Moving Image Research in the Academy of Film, Hong Kong Baptist University.
Career
A New York-based expert on Chinese film and media indu ...
, an expert in Chinese cinema calls Feng's films 'talk of the nation' for their ability to check the pulse of Chinese society."
Jason McGrath, a
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...
professor, believed that, having achieved success within mainland China in the face of Hollywood competition, "The entertainment cinema of Feng Xiaogang represents a new model of a Chinese national cinema that positions itself vis-à-vis Hollywood."
Feng is renowned for making comedies in the
Beijing dialect
The Beijing dialect (), also known as Pekingese and Beijingese, is the prestige dialect of Mandarin spoken in the urban area of Beijing, China. It is the phonological basis of Standard Chinese, the official language in the People's Republic of ...
. Almost all of his films star
Ge You
Ge You (born April 19, 1957) is a Chinese actor. A native of Beijing, often with a bald shaven pate, he is considered by many to be one of the most recognizable acting personalities in China.
He became the first Asian actor to win the Cannes ...
in a leading role. In recent years, he has transitioned from solely making comedies to directing drama and period drama movies.
He married actress
Xu Fan
Xu Fan (, born 16 August 1967) is a Chinese actress and Asian Film Awards winner. She married film director Feng Xiaogang
Feng Xiaogang (; born 18 March 1958 in Beijing) is a Chinese film director, screenwriter, actor, producer and politician ...
in 1999.
Filmography
As director
As writer
As actor
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Feng, Xiaogang
1958 births
Living people
Male actors from Beijing
Film directors from Beijing
Chinese film producers
Screenwriters from Beijing
Asian film producers
Chinese male film actors
Asia Pacific Screen Award winners
Members of the 12th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference
Members of the 13th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference