What is your subject of study?
Film, culture diffusion and globalisation
What is your research question?
The opportunities and challenges of globalisation for contemporary Chinese
films
Research aim(s):
What are the overall
aims of the project?
The aim
of this research is to study the proceeding of the globalisation of Chinese
films and how to improve the acceptability to viewers from different cultural
background. During this experimental films will be produced as a main method of
research.
Research objectives(s):
What are the specific
tangible project objectives?
Note: these are separate
to what you personally need to learn in terms of skills and knowledge, see
learning objectives below.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->1.
<!--[endif]-->Research films in different cultural environments, analyse the features
of the films.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2.
<!--[endif]-->Review existing researches, books, articles, film appreciation and
reflect journal writing.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->3.
<!--[endif]-->Work on 2-3 experimental works during the study.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->4.
<!--[endif]-->Produce a final piece of work which is about 10 minutes in length.
Rationale
<!--[if !supportLists]-->·
<!--[endif]-->What is the wider
context of your project?
‘Now that we can
photograph our loved ones, not only in stillness, but as they move, as they act, as they
making familiar gestures, as they speak… Death ceases to be absolute.’ -- Georges Méliès (1902)
As the French movie pioneer stated, movies are a
revolutionary form of art which affects the entire human history since the year
1889. It brings us fun, excitement, knowledge and more importantly, it works as
eyes of our minds to explore a brand new world. Nowadays, as the pace of cultural
collision and fusion is
getting faster and faster, we are being able to getting more and more exposed
to films from countries with a variety of different cultural backgrounds. However,
it comes to our attention that the development of film industry is lopsided,
English films have long been the dominant in this industry in a worldwide
range. According to the theoretical market statistics, although global box
office for all films released in each country around the world reached $32.6
billion in 2011, all the top 25 films of the US/Canadian box office earned are
produced by the Hollywood, specifically the reconfigured Big six of Warner
Bros, Paramount, Twentieth Centries-Fox, Universal, Columbia and Disney.1
As an international student from the mainland
China, I am very much aware of that with a 5000 years history and splendid
culture this nation contains, we have the ability to produce outstanding films.
I hope to form an exhaustive study about the deeper reasons of this phenomenon
and provide some helps.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->·
<!--[endif]-->How does the
project relate to your previous experience/practice?
The major on my previous degree study stage was
broadcast and media production which helped me laid a solid foundation on both
sound and vision producing. In this case I would like to change my research
direction on this advance stage to narrative field. With a wider range of knowledge
on all aspects of film research I will be more confident in the future.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->·
<!--[endif]-->How does it
relate to relevant current practices, debates and theory?
Although
by the year 2009, China would replace the United States as the world’s largest economic
power, the gap between the film industries of these two countries is more than
evident. “As the movie industry entered its third century, movements between
old and new realities and between consistency and change informed especially
the institutional force behind the movies as they adjusted to increasingly
expanding markets and more activity discriminating viewers. … but there work
began to focus increasingly on development, financing, marketing, and merchandising.”
<!--[if !supportFootnotes]-->[1]<!--[endif]-->there
is beyond all doubt that a complete industry chain has been formed in America
which is supported by strong technique force, talent and sufficient fund. According
to the research of Hunqun Li from the Beijing Communication University, the
reasons were summarized as lack of innovation, outdated technology and the film
administrative system. Meanwhile, advises were given as: “ In order to compete
in this highly competitive field, Chinese film producers should first try to
integrate the film industries in Greater China, that is the mainland, Taiwan,
Macao and Hong Kong – taking cultural origins into consideration – to build a
solid foundation for cooperation and communication.”<!--[if !supportFootnotes]-->[i]<!--[endif]-->
<!--[if !supportLists]-->·
<!--[endif]-->Why is the
intended research significant? (So what?)
Human beings require a culture to which they
belong. As Béla Balázs reviewed “The art
of film had a profound impact on and changed the lifestyle, the aesthetic way
and the way of thinking of people around the world, which allowed human beings
on earth to be able to walk towards the direction of integration and universal brotherhood
for the first time.” There is no doubt that films nowadays serve important
functions on cultural diffusion, they are windows which acquaint us with the
world we are not familiar with. Rely on the medium of film we are able to
create more communication and facilitate further cultural exchanges and
cooperation. On the other hand, Chinese filmmakers are seeking for the
affirmation from international market for decades but the truth is they are
neither accepted by audiences from other cultural backgrounds nor film award communities
abroad.
This research will intensively study the reason in
all directions and provide a out-o-box solution.
<!--[if !supportLists]-->·
<!--[endif]-->How does this
project relate to your plans for the future?
This project provides a good opportunity to
penetrate into the film industry in the UK, get acquainted with local film
makers and to gain experience during working with them. With the better
understanding it helps me lay a solid foundation for my future career to become
an independent filmmaker back to China, as well as establish my own film
production company in ten years’ time.
<!--[if !supportFootnotes]-->
<!--[endif]-->
<!--[endif]-->
<!--[if !supportEndnotes]-->
<!--[endif]-->
<!--[endif]-->
