Chinese director Jiang Wen's long-anticipated film Sun Rises Again has finally been announced with eight promotional stills released yesterday.
The film finished shooting in southern China's Yunnan Province this February and has now entered the post-production stage. Vice-president of Taihe Film Corporation Du Yang reveals that it only took three months for Jiang Wen and his huge cast to complete the project, traveling to ten locations in Yunnan, Tibet and Xinjiang.
Jiang Wen wrote and directed the movie which is based on the short story Velvet by female writer Ye Mi.
The story, which takes place in the 1960s, is about a relationship between a married couple sent to a remote village to be "re-educated" after their experience of living abroad, and a young local farmer.
The story is actually made up of four interlocking stories. Each actor has his own perspective towards his role.
One of lead actors, Jaycee Chan, says it is an action movie, as he has jumped and climbed more frequently than he would in a martial-arts film. While veteran actor Anthony Wong says it is more like an erotic film, and actress Joan Chen says it felt like her own Roman Holiday. Lead actress Zhou Yun says it felt like a fantasy love story because her role is crazy as well as touching.
The movie was somewhat expensive to make. It involved hundreds of birds and animals, over a hundred burning tents, the 300 square meter traditional Tibetan style houses, several dozen cases of ammunition and even a warplane.
Production of Sun Rises Again has wrapped up with one shot left unfinished.
(CRI March 30, 2006)