Chinese director Lu Chuan, whose Nanjing Massacre film "City of Life and Death" was one of the most successful at Chinese box offices this year, is making headway into Hollywood by signing with Creative Artists Agency.

CAA, Hollywood's leading talent agency with such heavyweight clients as Steven Spielberg, Brad Pitt and Will Smith, signed with 38-year-old Lu a few weeks ago, the director told The Hollywood Reporter over the weekend at the Shanghai International Film Festival.

Lu says he has already begun working with agent Jonah Greenberg of CAA's Beijing office on two contemporary English-language projects, both set in the United States.

Among Lu's other CAA agents is Spencer Baumgarten, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Baumgarten also represents John Woo, who is believed to be the most successful Chinese director to work in Hollywood so far.

"City of Life and Death", Lu's third feature film, grossed 9 million yuan (US$1.3 million) on April 22, its opening day in Chinese theaters.

Lu's previous film, "Kekexili: Mountain Patrol", gained international recognition in 2004. The film, which depicts the lives of a group of Tibetan antelope vigilantes, won awards at film festivals in Tokyo and Berlin.

(CRI June 15, 2009)