Wang Bing’s Cannes-Bound ‘Man in Black’ Picked up by Asian Shadows (EXCLUSIVE)

Patrick Frater
·3 min read
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Rights to ‘Man in Black,” one of two documentary films by China’s Wang Bing to appear in Official Selection at Cannes this year, have been picked up by specialty sales agency Asian Shadows.

The 60-minute film, which will debut as a special screening, is a portrait of 86-year-old Wang Xilin, one of China’s most important modern classical composers and is now lives in exile in Germany. It was made in close collaboration with French cinematographer Caroline Champetier, whose credits include Leos Carax’s “Holy Motors,” Amos Gitai’s “Promised Land” and Andre Techine’s “Alice and Martin.”

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During the 1960s, when China’s Cultural Revolution forced intellectuals into the fields and stripped the middle classes of their wealth, Wang Xilin was the was the target of severe persecution, including beatings, imprisonment and torture. The film examines the body and soul of a man scarred by a life of suffering, who is yet still capable of deep and sincere compassion.

With excerpts from his symphonies, Wang revisits some of the horrifying events that still live on in his memory and which are testimony to an era that saw the dehumanization of the entire Chinese nation.

The film is a France, U.S., U.K. co-production between Gladys Glover, WIL Productions, Louverture Films and Goodman Gallery.

Wang Bing also has feature-length “Jeunesse,” an examination of the small-town youth who work in China’s factories, which is set to play as the only documentary in Cannes’ main competition.

“Wang Bing is without any doubt one of our contemporary cinema masters. His unique way of filming China, travelling around the provinces, looking for unheard voices of the past and the present, has been celebrated and rewarded worldwide for the past 20 years. Yet with ‘Man in Black, Wang Bing is proposing a new facet of his work,” said Maria Ruggieri, head of sales and acquisition at Asian Shadows. “In a strong mise en scène that mixes theater, opera and cinema, Wang Bing gives the stage to another master, Wang Xilin. The encounter results in a unique musical piece, that shows and recall the difficulties of being an artist in China.”

Wang Bing and Asian Shadows have a long track record of collaboration. “Man in Black” is the sixth film to be represented by the company, following: “Three Sisters” (named best film of the Orrizonti section at Venice in 2012); “Alone,” which played at the 2013 Rotterdam festival; “Til Madness Do Us Part” (out of competition at Venice in 2013; “Ta’ang” (Berlinale Forum 2016); and “Mrs Fang” (winner of the Golden Leopard at Locarno in 2017).

“We have been working with Wang Bing for a decade [and are still] amazed by his dedication to his films and the strength of his vision. We are delighted to continue the journey at his side and hope that the unique selection this year in Cannes of two of his films, will convince distributors and audiences that if they haven’t yet seen a film by Wang Bing, now is the time to discover him,” said Ruggieri.

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