Art College 1994, dir. Liu Jian

OPIS WYDARZENIA

Against the background of reforms opening China to the Western world, a group of college students live in full swing as they take their first steps into adulthood, where love and friendships are intertwined with artistic pursuits, ideals and ambitions. Caught between tradition and modernity, they now have to choose who they want to become. Filmmaker and painter Liu Jian combines stylised modern illustrations with a passion for art and life. Suffused with a dark offbeat humour, his work depicts the hopes and artistic dreams of an entire generation as it passes into adulthood. People, events and styles blend with the urban and winter landscape of a country undergoing rapid change.

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Festivals 

– Annecy International Animated Film Festival, France;

– Berlin International Film Festival, Germany;

– Sydney Film Festival, Australia;

– Warsaw International Film Festival, Poland;

– La Roche-sur-Yon International Film Festival, Vendée, France;

– New York Asian Film Festival, USA;

– Tokyo International Film Festival, Japan;

– Edinburgh International Film Festival, Scotland, Great Britain;

– Film Fest Gent, Ghent, Belgium;

– Future Film Festival, Great Britain;

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Liu Jian

Liu Jian (China, 1969) majored in Chinese Painting and graduated from the Nanjing Art Institute in 1993. His works from the area of modern art were presented in China and abroad. He began working on animations in 1995 and founded Le-joy Animation Studio in 2007. His first feature animation, Piercing 1, screened in numerous film festivals, was awarded as the Best Animated Feature Film at the 4th Asia Pacific Screen Awards.  In 2017, his feature animation film Have A Nice Day premiered in the Berlin Film Festival competition before being screened in more than 50 festivals worldwide. Liu Jian currently teaches animation filmmaking at the China Academy of Art. His latest production, Art College 1994, premiered in the festival competition in Berlin 2023. 

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Filmography 

2023 – Art College 1994 – comedy, drama; 

2017 –  Have a Nice Day – comedy, crime; 

2011 –   Look at This Man  – short;  

2011 –  Face – short; 

2011 – Chaos & Order – short; 

2010 – Piercing – crime, drama, animated;