FilmIndia (1940)

THE CHINESE FILM ITS SHORT HISTORY AND SCOPE By D. G. TENDULKAR The advent of motion pictures in China precedes the formation of the Chinese Republic by some eight years, for it was in 1904 that motion pictures were first brought into the country by an enterprising Spaniard, Senor Ramos. Since then the cinema industry in China has made a steady progress. Films are shown today even in the remotest districts and into the well-nigh inaccessible interior, where communications are yet undeveloped and in some cases transportation of films by airplanes has to be resorted to. Prior to the outbreak of SinoJapanese hostilities it was estimated that there were slightly over 300 theatres (excluding of course the improvised cinema houses in the Chinese villages) with an aggregate seating capacity of approximately 255,000 persons. Of th.s total which includes Hong Kong and Macao, but excludes Manchuria, about 250 theatres were fitted with sound projectors with seating accommodation for 214,000 persons. Certainly not an imposing achievement for a nation of 400 millions. But the immense possibilities ahead and the intelligent and forceful use of the cinema and the quality of pictures and the intelligent and selfless people engaged in the film industry today assure a great future for the Chinese cinema. WHY PROGRESS is SLOW For us in India the study of Chinese films is useful because their problems are more or less similar to ours. Though several dialects are spoken in China, vast majority of the Chinese understand Mandarine— the standard Chinese language. The nature of the Chinese script is such that it conveys meanin;; to all whatever dialect one might speak in different provinces of China. Naturally all pictures speak Mandarine (except in Kwantung, a Pro vince with a population of 30 million, where they produce pictures in their own dialect for local consumption and overseas Chinese from Burma, Singapore etc.) The motion picture business in China may be conveniently divided into the distribution of foreign films and the production of the Chinese. Prior to the coming of sound, the exhibition of foreign films was highly remunerative — because pantomimes are easily understood everywhere — but the advent of the talkies and of the Chinese films have changed the situation. Production of motion pictures in China started as early as 1909. It was under foreign management and capital; but it did not last long. There was another attempt during the Peking regime. The late Chow-Tzu-chin, sometime Finance Minister and Prime Minister organized the Peacock Motion Picture Company with the co-operation of certain Americans but owing to his death the production of films was discontinued. The most successful picture of this company was "The Dream of the Red Chambers". The Commercial Press Limited was the pioneer Chinese concern to enter the picture production field and made its advent in 1917 but abandoned production in 1927. Its important role was to give an opportunity to Chinese cinema workers to train themselves under foreign film technicians, whose services were later dispensed with because their pay was much too high. So the real Chinese film production is only twenty years old. SOUND FILMS AND AFTER First Chinese sound film was made by the Star Motion Picture Company from a play by Hung Shun, a noted Chinese dramatist. It was exhibited in 1931. Before the outbreak of the SinoJap^nese hostilities there were probably 50 studios in all and most of them in and about Shanghai. Over half of the total production goes to the credit of three companies — The Star Motion Picture Company, The United Photoplay Company, and The Unique Pictures. Aggregate raw film used in China in 1936 was 265,520 feet. The most popular picture — "A Fisherman's Song" which had a first run release of 81 days (a record run