Zhang Yimou has directed several blockbuster movies, but none of them took so much time, efforts and sleep out of the most acclaimed filmmaker in China.

He has been the director-in-general of opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics and Paralympics. When the curtain of the Paralympics was drawn in the iconic Bird's Nest stadium, Zhang finally handed in his last answer sheet, and time for a little rest for the 57-year-old.

"I had never needed so many people and gone into so much trouble when I made any of my films," Zhang told Xinhua before the Paralympics closing ceremony.

"The ceremonies are grand cultural events, which entail a daunting amount of coordination. It's been a lot of working with other artists, technicians and officials. It is a time and energy consuming job, yet a rare and rewarding experience," he said.

While directing the four ceremonies, Zhang was teamed up with some of the finest artists in China and other countries, including Zhang Jigang, choreographer of the popular "Thousand-hand Dance" which is in tribute to the Bodhisattva, and established fireworks artist Cai Guoqiang.

They have been working for years to make sure their shows were in style and impressive. "People want to see something they have never seen before, so it has been extremely difficult for us to be creative," Zhang Yimou said.

"The use of water at the Athens Olympic opening ceremony, for instance, was a brilliant stunt, and that put us under pressure to be equally stunning," he said.

So the whole team went into immense searching into the Olympic, Paralympic and Chinese culture, innumerable late-night discussions, arguments and compromises, Zhang said.

Gladly, the meticulous efforts bore the fruits that made the artists themselves proud.

The footprints-shaped fireworks and the countdown drum-beating at the Olympic opening, the "Tower of Memories" at the Olympic closing, and the jade plate in the Paralympics opening were all their own language of artistic expression, Zhang said.

"We have to go by certain ceremony procedures stipulated by the two Games supervising bodies, but we have our own ways to present the mandatory elements and procedures," he said.

Zhang said he had the privilege to command the resources within the budget. A 72-meter-long LED scroll, a 25-meter-tall luminescent ball on which singers sang the Olympic theme song, and a sprawling green lawn for the Paralympics closing ceremony exemplify the enormity of the tasks in preparing the facilities. There were also a lot of Plan Bs in case of any glitches.

More than 40,000 people participated in the four ceremonies, thousands of costume sets were made, and every cosmetician had to make up about 180 performers in just hours. The quantity was accompanied by a relentless pursuit for quality and perfection.

The artists went into great lengths to gather 2,000 people with similar heights as drummers, and also used simple props to impress audiences, like in "The Letter to the Future", an artistic segment of the Paralympic closing ceremony.

"Beijing won't host another Paralympics in a near future, and we all want every moment to be memorable," Zhang said.

The delight and revelry Zhang and other artists created also touched themselves.

"Being so close to the world's top-notch sports events is something truly memorable. I was very much moved by the athleticism they demonstrated. It'll have an influence on my life and work in the future," Zhang said.

"The two Games have been once-in-a-life-time experience to a lot of us," said Zhang Jigang, assistant director of the ceremonies.

"We not only have learnt the language to deliver the Chinese culture but also discovered more artistic languages understood by all," he said.

(Xinhua News Agency September 17, 2008)