The Chinese Cinema Project presents a mini-season celebrating Qiu Jiongjiong, showcasing his early non-fiction works and this modern classic.

Qiu Jiongjiong is one of China’s most innovative, critical, and entertaining artists/filmmakers, whose works joyously blur the boundaries between fiction, documentary, and experimental cinema; intimate memory and national history resonate in Qiu’s baroque rhapsodies of music and design.

One evening in the 1980s, Qiu Fu (Yi Sicheng), a leading clown-role actor in 20th-century Sichuan opera, is killed in an accident and must reluctantly set off for the Ghost City under escort of two underworld officials. Along the way, he meets old friends. As they recall the past, earthly scenes creep into the mists of the underworld.

Notable prior screenings:

The screening on 19 November 2022 was introduced by Tony Rayns, who also hosted an after-screening online Q&A with the director Qiu Jiongjiong. The screening on 4 February 2023 was introduced by Victor Fan and included a pre-recorded video from the leading actor Yi Sicheng.

Cast:
Yi Sicheng, Guan Nan, Qiu Zhimin