Video Mash-Up of Joan Chen’s Films 

As a renowned female film creator in China and abroad, Joan Chen has contributed countless touching moments in films such as Xiao Hua, The Last Emperor, Red Rose White Rose, etc. In 1997, she bravely challenged her new identity and made her debut in directing. Her work was selected for several major international film festivals, and she therefore accomplished a magnificent transformation from actress to director. At the 14th Beijing International Film Festival (BJIFF), Joan Chen and Feng Xiaogang had a conversation on the topic of "From 'Best Actress' to Famous Director: A Rosy Life of Joan Chen", and recalled the wonderful life intertwined with time and images.

　　Joan Chen Workshop & Masterclass

▌Mindful and Atypical: A Methodology for the Performing Arts

To have a more intuitive understanding of Joan Chen’s creative process, the Masterclass & Workshop adopted the method of clip appreciation to lead the audience to deeply explore the method behind her superb performing arts. While appreciating the film clip of Red Rose White Rose directed by Stanley Kwan, Joan Chen confessed that when she is portraying a character, "the first step is to be mindful, and the second step is to give the character an atypical presentation, and think about how to deal with it emotionally in order to make the character more unique." 

　　Joan Chen 

Be mindful means to be attentive to details. For Joan Chen, one of the details of performing acts is the treatment of language. Film is the art of audio-visual language, and the actor's handling of language plays a vital role in character creation. She said that when she read the script of Hachiko, performing in Chongqing dialect was her primary consideration. "Because I think it's the only best entry point for me. After I've fully mastered this dialect, its sense of place and localization will come out, and it will become more popular among the public." When talking about her plans in the future, Joan Chen revealed that she will be starring in a new film, and one of the reasons she decided to perform was also the details about language, "I'm looking forward to it because I have to learn French."

As for another detail about characterization, Joan Chen mentioned that she was particularly impressed with the styling of Red Rose White Rose, "I think what is particularly successful is that pair of earrings. Because after Wang Jiaorui moved, she fell in love or many forbidden moments, the pair of earrings slightly shake and it will catch some light, so that you can feel this commotion in her heart." It's the attention to detail like this that makes the presentation of the image memorable, which demonstrates the influence of other filmmaking departments, such as arts, on the actors' performances.

To enable her characters with uniqueness, Joan Chen chose an "atypical" approach in the characterization process. In the scene of “eating noodles” in Hachiko, the treatment of the character is atypical, "it was not an exceptionally clear close-up for me, he gave you a window to block a little bit, which seemed to have better effect instead."

▌Empathy: Actor's Self-Consciousness from the Director's Perspective

In front of the screen or behind the screen, the identity change between actor and director makes Joan Chen learn to think differently in the process of film creation. "After working behind the camera, I am especially sympathetic to the difficulties of the director and the camera. I would become a particularly conscious actress, trying to assist where I can and not to cause too much trouble for others. I think this is how I feel when I come back to acting after being a director."

　　Feng Xiaogang 

Feng Xiaogang also confessed that after being an actor, he can better understand the actors, "Without being an actor in the past, I would be skeptical about the of difficulty of acting. However, it is only after being an actor that I realize that the greatest pressure of the film may be on the actors." In his opinion, "Actors cannot have the fullest emotions all the time. After they feel fatigued, they could have given you 100 points but in the end only 60 points. Therefore, it's a feeling after being an actor and experiencing the work of performance. I think this is very important for me to work with actors." Feng Xiaogang also offered advice for young directors, "You must make it clear to the actor what you really want, because a good actor can actually present any performance, but the director has to give him a clear direction."

▌Trigger Vigor: Spark of Collaboration with Young Creators

In recent years, Joan Chen has been working more often with young creators, such as her collaboration with young actor Jackson Yee in Hero, and her collaboration with young director Sean Wang in Didi. Collaboration with young creators has inspired her creative vigor, "I actually especially like to work with young people, and I do get a lot of energy from them and learn a lot of new things."

　　Joan Chen Workshop & Masterclass

While directing Hero, Joan Chen confessed that she felt nervous at first about working with Jackson Yee. She recalled that Yee was initially a man of few words, and she didn't know how to start communication with him at first. But eventually she was convinced by his performance, "He has a natural sense of self-control while being explosive, he is extraordinarily sincere, which makes him have more real texture than many non-celebrity actors. This did give me a big surprise." 

At the event, Joan Chen also read a letter to Jackson Yee for the filming of Hero. The method of writing a letter made the actor feel the sincerity and she meticulously explained the character to him, which promote the great success of the cooperation.

From the “Best Actress” who became famous at the age of 18 to a famous director Joan Chen “capable of excellent acting and directing”, the Masterclass & Workshop linked her rosy life on and off the screen with the highlights of her film clips. In the future, she will continue to pursue acting and directing, draw strength and inspiration from young filmmakers, and create new legends of light and shadow.

　　Joan Chen Workshop & Masterclass