Zhang Zuoji

Zhang Zuoji

Zhang Zuoji, born on December 26, 1961 in Chiayi, Taiwan, is a film director, screenwriter, producer and editor in Taiwan, China. He graduated from the drama department of China Cultural University.

In 1994, he started his career as a director of "gunshot". In 1999, he directed the feature film light of darkness, which won the golden kylin award at the 12th Tokyo International Film Festival. In 2001, he directed the feature film "beautiful time", which was shortlisted in the main competition unit of the 59th Venice International Film Festival. In 2007, he directed the feature film "Butterfly", which was shortlisted in the "world view" unit of the 58th Berlin International Film Festival. In 2010, he directed the feature film when love comes and won the best screenwriter award of the 11th Chinese Film Media Award.

In 2015, he directed the feature film "drunk, living, dreaming and dying", and won the Victory Column award of the 65th Berlin International Film Festival and the jury award of the 16th Chinese Film Media Award. In 2017, he directed the short story "the taste of saltwater chicken", which won the best short film award of the 19th Taipei Film Festival.

Acting experience

In 1994, he directed the feature film "gunfire in the dark" starring Gao Jie, bao'er and Xu Jiaming, thus officially starting his career as a director. In 1996, he directed the feature film "Zhongzai" starring Liu Shengzhong, Lu Ying and Qiu Xiumin, which won the special jury award of the 41st Asia Pacific Film Festival and was shortlisted in the main competition unit of the 25th Rotterdam International Film Festival.

In 1999, he directed the feature film "light of darkness", starring fan Zhiwei, Li KANGYI and Cai Mingxiu, and won the gold kylin award at the 12th Tokyo International Film Festival. He won the best original script award at the 36th Golden Horse Award for Taiwan film for this film.

In 2001, he directed the feature film "beautiful time", starring Gao Lianjie, Wu Yuzhi and Zeng Yizhe, and was shortlisted in the main competition unit of the 59th Venice International Film Festival. With this film, he won the best director award of Hong Kong and Taiwan in the 3rd Chinese Film Media Award, the best Director Award and the best original script award in the 39th Golden Horse Award of Taiwan film.

In 2007, he directed the drama butterfly, starring Zeng Yizhe, Chen Peijun and Cheng Yuren. It tells the story of Yi Zhe, whose mother was forced to commit suicide in the river and couldn't extricate herself from the whirlpool of hatred. The film was shortlisted in the "Grand View of the world" unit of the 58th Berlin International Film Festival.

In 2009, he directed the drama "Dad, how are you?" starring Ji peihui, Gao Jie and Zhang Jie? 》This is a plot film composed of ten short films, which tells a story about father.

In 2010, he directed the drama when love comes, starring Li Yijie, Li Pinyi and Wu kangren. He won the best screenwriter award of the 11th Chinese Film Media Award, the best screenwriter award of the 13th Taipei Film Festival, the best director award and the best original script award of the 47th Golden Horse Award for Taiwan film.

In 2011, he co directed the plot film "10 + 10" with 20 directors including Wang Xiaodi, Wang Tong and Zhu Yanping, which is composed of 5-minute short films shot by each of the 20 directors.

In 2013, he directed the drama summer vacation assignment starring Yang Liangyu, Guan Yunlong and Zheng renshuo. Shortlisted for the main competition unit of the 66th International Film Festival of Locarno.

In 2015, he directed the drama "drunk, living, dreaming and dying" co starred by Li Hongqi, Zheng renshuo and Huang Shanghe, which won the "Victory Column Award" of the 65th Berlin International Film Festival and the jury award of the 16th Chinese Film Media Award. He won the best editing award of the 52nd Golden Horse Award for Taiwan film.

In 2017, director Zhang Zuoji directed the short film "the taste of saltwater chicken", which was adapted from the story of another prisoner in prison. This is a short film shot by Zhang Zuoji in prison, which won the best short film award of the 19th Taipei Film Festival.

Main works

Directing works

Screenwriter's works

Production works

Works of deputy director

Editing works

Award winning record

Character evaluation

Zhang Zuoji is the backbone of Taiwan's film industry. Although he completes the final narrative purpose in a closed space, the information transmitted by his every shot in the closed space has a sense of time and space. In the process of reality expression, he introduced a lot of traditional philosophical ideas to a great extent, and with the color of reincarnation of surrealism. (comments on Beijing Youth Daily and new express)

Zhang Zuoji has a unique film style, which makes him particularly prominent in Taiwan films. His attention to the bottom and even the edge of the crowd is continuous and strong. In most cases, it presents a mixed state of bottom and edge. Different from Hou Hsiao Hsien, he smashed the accusations against society, history and even the state machine and then re installed them on each individual. The theme was not grand or even private, and he focused on the growth experience of individuals after the great social changes in Taiwan. In his films, he tends to deconstruct male chauvinism and anxiety about identity. He adheres to the creative principle of "faithful representation", with his own unique realistic style, pays attention to the situation of men in Taiwan's local society, and highlights his perceptual presentation and rational philosophy of Taiwan's social status quo. He has a keen perception and careful observation of social reality, and gives full play to the director's cognitive experience of "locality" of Taiwan society. (comments on new film works and Journal of Taiyuan University (SOCIAL SCIENCE EDITION)

From his own experience, Zhang Zuoji not only paid attention to the survival situation of the children from other provinces, but also expressed the inner world of the individuals in trouble in a hierarchical image. His films are rooted in the local history and culture of Taiwan, and have their own themes and images, showing his ability to think independently about the world he cares about and express accurately with images. Through the aesthetic point of view of long single shot and the emotional interpretation of non professional actors, his films integrate the documentary color of documentary and the dramatic tension of feature film. His film events and character modeling never run to a simple social theme, but with the consistent approach of recording realism, in the scene scheduling of long shot and depth of field shot, reveals the rich poetic picture of the mixture of realism and aestheticism. His aesthetic value in the film is based on his lens language and narrative strategy, showing a unique pursuit of individuality. He does not deliberately use the symbolic symbols of the lens to increase the narrative power, but always controls the reading aesthetics of the lens in the actual real modeling itself. (review of contemporary film)

Chinese PinYin : Zhang Zuo Ji