How the FIRST Festival Champions the Cause of Independent Chinese Cinema
Li Ziwei was taking the Mandarin Proficiency Test at Beijing’s Communication University of China when she first heard about plans to inaugurate what would evolve into the FIRST International Film Festival.
That was 18 years ago and, as Li tells it, the landscape for cinema in China remained dominated solely by the major film and TV studios. But changes were afoot. Technology was increasingly allowing students to dream big as digital video (DV) cameras, first, and later smartphones, brought filmmaking within reach.
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FIRST founder Song Wen began by launching a Student DV Film Festival in Beijing before the FIRST concept took shape. In the 18 years since its launch, the festival has carved a niche in Chinese cinema as the place where the “next generation” of talent is given its first time in the spotlight.
Li has worked alongside Song in her role as fest CEO. The festival has helped launch the careers of the likes of Wen Muye, whose work first appeared in the short film section at FIRST before his breakthrough dark comedy, 2018’s Dying to Survive, collected a cool $453 million from the Chinese box office.
As this year’s event was launched on July 20, news reached host city Xining — in the central China highlights — that another alumnus, emerging director Jiang Xiaoxuan, would debut the feature To Kill A Mongolian Horse at Venice’s Giornate degli Autori sidebar after featuring in FIRST’s in-development market last year.
“At FIRST, we have steadfastly ensured that every idea gets a chance to be seen or heard, no matter how cumbersome the process may be,” says Li, who took time this year to talk about FIRST’s evolution, and to look to its future.
Can you share the story of how the idea for your festival first came to light?
With China’s box office revenues climbing, there was a growing call within the industry for professional film festivals. We identified this demand and transitioned the festival from a student-only event to a city-wide celebration. This expansion allowed us to support early-stage creators and engage a wider audience. We aimed to identify problems, spot trends, solve issues and present emerging trends in the industry.
A film festival serves as a crucial hub for talent exchange within the industry and must therefore adopt a forward-looking and exploratory approach. What do filmmakers require? What is the market seeking?
In an industry that evolves swiftly, new opportunities and challenges arise. It is essential to bring attention to obscure, unconventional or imperfect works, ensuring they receive the recognition they deserve. Only through concrete actions can viewpoints be defended, and only through perseverance can goals be achieved.
In what ways do you think the festival has then evolved over the years?
For 14 years, FIRST has been deeply rooted in Xining, and the city’s unique characteristics have significantly shaped the festival’s identity. Located at the gateway to the Tibetan Plateau, Xining offers vast, expansive landscapes and an untamed vitality that lends FIRST a wild, free and unrestrained spirit. As one of China’s most culturally diverse cities, Xining’s inclusive and egalitarian attitude towards different cultures has profoundly influenced us.
We have frequently selected female directors and actors with significant international influence as the chief jury members of our main competition. For example, Sylvia Chang served as the chairwoman of the 13th FIRST International Film Festival, while Zhang Ziyi and Joan Chen chaired the 16th and 17th editions, respectively.
Each year, the competition section serves as a platform for rising stars from the Greater Chinese-speaking regions. The films selected for the competition make unique explorations in both genre and aesthetics, leading the way in avant-garde filmmaking.
The curated sections like Berlin Focus and Masters at the Beginning showcase international vision. Additionally, we are revisiting and rediscovering the history of Chinese cinema through the works of Fourth Generation directors.
Given the current trend toward specific genres, we urge creators to break free from the curse of homogeneity. Through financing forums, training camps, labs and short film projects, we seek new themes, styles and expressions within existing genres. After all, quality content is the essence of cinema.
What role would say it now plays in contemporary Chinese cinema?
For young filmmakers, FIRST is a debut platform, a competitive arena and a hub for experimentation and youth film culture. Through its competition format, it selects and promotes adventurers, enthusiasts, and mavericks. This festival carries the memories and glory of a cinematic journey. For me, FIRST is a fire tender. It might be a stick of firewood or even two pieces of scrap paper. It may not be the best fuel, but it can keep the flame alive. Its flame may flicker, but it will rekindle countless times. I will do everything I can to ensure it keeps burning.
What for you has been the personal highlight of your 18 years with the festival?
Adapting to change, understanding the rules, updating them reasonably.
Volunteering here has become almost a rite of passage for young Chinese film lovers — what draws them all to Xining?
Top-tier youth films, young creators and curated content, a commitment to discovering debut works and connecting with youth, youth culture, highland culture and the spirit of wildness.
Looking ahead, what do you see as the festival’s main looming challenges?
Embracing uncertainty, generating ideas constantly and engaging in cross-disciplinary research. As a fully market-operated festival, managing the company remains challenging. This includes balancing talent and establishing effective management. Given that 95 percent of attendees are non-local, enhancing the cultural experience of the festival will be a key focus over the next three years.
In my reflections, I discovered that our fear of failure makes us instinctively reluctant to try new things. Consequently, we see problems in new ideas first, rather than opportunities. If a society is ashamed to talk about failure, afraid of failure and rejects failure while only admiring success, we are unlikely to achieve meaningful innovation. If we want this to be an innovative country and society, we must redefine, re-discuss and re-understand failure. We need to treat it as a catalyst to restart our creative mindset. Because pessimists are always correct, but optimists keep moving forward.
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