The Origin Of Inner Mongolia Cinema And Its Development

Inner Mongolian Cinema means those movies related to Mongol nation in China. We can analyze the viewpoint on Mongol nation of people concerned those movies. The requirement for researches on their industrial and aesthetic dimensions has been aroused as the production of Inner Mongolian cinema has increased over recent years. Thus, this study approaches on Inner Mongolian cinema with the title The Origin of Inner Mongolia Cinema and its Development. The word Development does not mean biological progress nor industrial improvement but the aesthetic and thematic diversification to represent Mongol nation through movie since the naissance of Inner Mongolian cinema to the present time.Few movies had been filmed on Mongol nation before the founding of People's Republic of China. Stephane Passet, French cameraman, who had been employed by Albert Kahn and delegated to Mongolia in1913recorded some situations of Mongolia by film. On the other hand, Jean Epstein, a film theorist and director, wrote the script and directed Le Lion des Moguls in1924. Albatross, A film company founded by Russian refugees in Paris in1920s filmed Michael Strogoff a featured movie with technical color in which shabby Tartars appear in1926. In1928, Vsevolod Illarionovich Pudovkin of the Soviet Union directed Storm over Asia that describes a Mongolian young man being aware of revolutionary movement and fighting against imperialism. Those fiction movies scarcely reflect the reality of the Mongols but represent imaginary world.For China, a film studio founded by the government of Republic of China filmed Storm on the Border([塞上风云])in1940and released it in1942. This film portrays the Mongols and a Chinese hero in the grassland of Inner Mongolia struggling in order to defeat Japanese imperialism. People's Republic of China was founded in1949and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region was established under the approval of Communist Party of China in1947even earlier than People's Republic of China. The Dongbei Film Studio made three movies that should be categorized into Inner Mongolian cinema, The Victory of the People in Inner Mongolia([内蒙人民的胜利],1950), The People of the Grassland([草原上的人们],1953), and The Son of Nomads([牧人之子],1957.) In1958, Inner Mongolia Film Studio was established and its first narrative film Morning Song over the Grassland([内蒙晨曲])was subsequently filmed by collaboration with Changchun Film Studio(former Dongbei Film Studio). On the other hand, the Bayi Film Studio under the control of People's Liberation Army also produced a movie dealing the Mongols in China, Storm over Ordos([鄂尔多斯风暴])in1962. Those works of Inner Mongolian cinema in the period between the foundation of People's Republic of China and the beginning of Cultural Revolution are characterized with propaganda for the policies of Communist Party of China such as the national policy of unity between Mongols and Chinese nation. Moreover, the situation that the Mongols on the grassland try to change their tradition to realize the ideal of communism is represented through those movies.During the Cultural Revolution, few movies were filmed dealing the people in a deserted place of Inner Mongolia but Spring of the Desert([沙漠的春天]1975). Just after Communist Party of China declared the end of Cultural Revolution, in1977, Motherland Is Mother!([祖国啊,母亲!])was filmed by Shanghai Film Studio. The both movies can be categorized to Model Operas cinema that had been established during Cultural Revolution of China. Since the reform and opening up of China that started in1979, some works of Inner Mongolia cinema were provided with some typical characteristics of commercial films due to the influence of foreign movies. Alima([阿丽玛])filmed by Inner Mongolia Film Studio in1981obviously shows such characteristics while it still includes propaganda for the policies and performance of Communist Party of China. On the other hand, Rainbow([彩虹])demonstrates various performance of Mongolian traditional folk art borrowing a style of narrative film that describes a love story of a couple of a Mongol nation woman and Chinese nation man. Tian Zhuang Zhuang directed the film, On the Hunting Ground([猎场扎撒])in1985. This film portrays the Mongols that live on the Grassland in Inner Mongolia preserving their traditional lifestyle in different ways from typical styles of narrative film.In1990s, Inner Mongolian cinema achieved a great leap by appearing of an outstanding filmmaker couple, Saifu and Mailisi. The Time of Knight([骑士风云],1990), Going East to Native([东归英雄传],1993), The sorrow of Brook Steppe([悲情布鲁克],1995), and A Brilliant Man, Cheng Ji Si Han(一代天桥成吉思汗],1997) were filmed by their co-direction. Saifu and Mailisi introduced and did experiments of various kinds of filmmaking styles in those works that are dealing historical events of the Mongols. Moreover those works could fairly win art and industrial success. In2002, they filmed Heavenly Grassland([天上草原],2002) that portrays a nomad family on the grassland of Inner Mongolia at the present time. Mongolian traditional lifestyle that is still kept is described in Heavenly Grassland although the Mongols of Inner Mongolia have been facing great changes on their natural and political environment over recent decades. Saifu and Mailisi's achievements in Inner Mongolian cinema have taken a part to introduce the state of the Mongols in China and their history and lifestyle to the filmgoers in other countries.A Chinese film director, Ning Hao filmed Mongolian Pingpong([绿草地])in2005and another Chinese film director, Wnag Quan An took Tuya's Marriage([图雅的婚事)in2006. Both of them were financed not from a company or film studio in Inner Mongolia but other regions of China. Pure-hearted Mongolian children of nomad families on the grassland are described in Mongolian Pingpong. A Mongolian woman and her family struggling to overcome the harsh conditions due to the desertification of grassland show up in Tuya's Marriage. Both works dealing the life of the Mongols in Inner Mongolia are not adopting the national policies of Communist Party of China such as the unification between Mongols and Chinese nation as their major theme.On the other hand, Orga([蒙固精神],1991) and A Mongolian Tale([黑骏马],1995) were produced with foreign finance. Orga that was financed by a French film company and produced by Russian film director, Nikita Mikhalkov, describes a story among the Mongolian, Chinese, and Russian people living around the boundary between China and Russia. That international relationship appeared in that film implies harmony and hope in the future. A Mongolian Tale describes love of a family living on the grassland and the tragic affair occurred on the family because of the change on the family members'culture and way of thinking. The grassland of Inner Mongolia appeared in both movies of Orga and A Mongolian Tale give the impression of a remote corner of the world. The recognition on the Mongols of China of the persons related with the production of both movies can be analyzed through such description.Over the first decade of21st Century, the production of Inner Mongolia cinema has increased and their styles and themes got diversified. More independent filmmakers have made their works with the themes about the changes on national tradition and lifestyle. Especially, inevitable changes on the traditional lifestyle of the Mongols because of environmental change like desertification and the conflict among those changes and traditions have often been dealt as major or minor theme in recent works of Inner Mongolian cinema.