Bastards gives birth to Brats

Wang Ming, 26, one of the 10 post-80s Chinese featured in Zhang Yuan's  photo exhibition Unspoiled Brats. Photos by Zhang yuan for China Daily  

Director Zhang Yuan's latest project, a photo exhibit with video interviews, takes a look at youth angst. Chen Nan and Brad Webber report

In 1993, a little-known filmmaker made a lively movie about youth angst called Beijing Bastards and created a storm.

The movie fused documentary and dramatic styles, gathered Chinese rock pioneers such as Cui Jian, Dou Wei and Zhao Danian, and earned director Zhang Yuan international attention.

The 46 year old sits in a renovated warehouse, in Beijing's 798 Art District, to talk about his latest project, Unspoiled Brats, a photo exhibition conceived as a sequel to the rock spirit of Beijing Bastards.

Zhang says there's more to the story, and Unspoiled Brats opens a new chapter in the timeless examination of youth. It will help mainstream audiences understand the world of alternative youth better, he says.

"When I did the movie, I was in my 20s, like Cui and the other rockers We shared the same restlessness, confusion, and enthusiasm. Now, decades later society has changed," Zhang says.

"I was curious about today's young kids and kept wondering about what they are thinking and what they are doing."

Part of the so-called "sixth generation of Chinese film makers" Zhang has lent his artistic talent to photography in portraying 10 Chinese born after the 1980s.

Their living conditions, ideas about life and their dreams are put into focus through photographs and accompanying videos.

As opposed to Beijing Bastards, in which all the actors were Zhang's friends, those in Unspoiled Brats were discovered through an online casting call.

"I posted a notice on my Twitter account asking for people born after the 1980s to share their stories," Zhang says.

He barred candidates who worked for State-owned enterprises, government offices or big companies. He wanted individuals with a restless heart, "the more restless, the better".

Within a few weeks, he got nearly 300 replies and auditions began in January last year. After listening to their stories, Zhang selected 18 people and filmed the process.

His subjects include musicians, models, artists, bodyguards and the unemployed.

Zhang and his team explored their lives and conducted in-depth interviews. They will also have roles in his future films.

"Restlessness is a characteristic of young people from any generation. At the beginning, I thought today's young people have better living conditions and a satisfied attitude toward life, but I was wrong," Zhang says.

"I laughed and cried with those young people during the process of photo taking. Their stories shocked and touched me."

Director Zhang is known for his interest in marginalized  groups. Duan Lianyi / China Daily

Even if they defy conventions, his subjects are a confident lot, true to themselves.

Zhang's photographs, taken with motion picture film, are poignant, with vivid coloration and stunning use of light. The soft focus on some lends them the quality of an oil painting.

Those in front of the lens include a tattooed man who has had more than 20 different jobs; a Buddhist monk who uses singing and blogging to gain a wider audience for his religion; an art student who volunteered to help Sichuan earthquake victims; and a lesbian couple.

One of them, Qin Yuke, a 30-year-old Beijinger, says the photographs and video expose "the most fundamental parts of my life".

In his video profile, Qin tells how he underwent facial reconstruction "to generate a golden ratio face" and create an "appearance to face the unknown future".

Qin, who attended the public opening of the show wearing a fedora to conceal the spider web of tattoos across his forehead, says he is happy with the pictures.

"Sometimes we should put our feelings in front of the public," he says.

Video interviews replace the captions, which typically accompany photographs at an exhibition, and Zhang says the vignettes were the best way to tell the subjects' stories.

"They are eager to express themselves. Their facial expressions and body language are beautiful," he says. "Though they have different pressures and struggles in their lives, I can still capture their hopes and beliefs."

Guo Xiaoyan, chief curator of UCCA, says the show's message has been deeply felt by visitors.

"Zhang's work provides a sincere description and expression of young people's life experiences in this changing world," Guo says.

A graduate of Beijing Film Academy, Zhang's work has consistently focused on youth culture and marginalized groups, such as homosexuals and the disabled.

His early films, Mama (1992), Beijing Bastards (1993) and East Palace, West Palace (1996) were praised for their groundbreaking vision, though most were banned after release.

Still, Zhang doesn't like the word "marginalized", which he claims is itself a form of prejudice.

"Cui Jian was a 'marginalized' man in Beijing Bastards, but since society has changed he has became an icon of the country," Zhang says.

Some critics say he has immersed himself too much in sub-cultures and bring up his arrest on drug charges in January 2008.

He bristles when asked what, if anything, he has learned from that experience, insisting that it was a private matter.

"I made my choice, which didn't influence my passion for filming and photo taking," he says.

"Everyone makes their own choice of life, which deserves respect ... When you look at these 'marginalized young people', you will see they are a real part of society, which is full of conflicts and surprises. That's why I like them and I want more people to like them."

Zhan Yuan's movies will be screened regularly in conjunction with his photo exhibition through April 11 at UCCA, No 4 Jiuxianqiao Lu, in the 798 Art District, Chaoyang district, Beijing. 8459-9269 or 8459-9387.