JI FENG ZHON DE MA (SEASON OF THE HORSE)

China/2005/Mongolian & Mandarin dialogue with English subtitles/Colour/35mm/105 mins

In the vast Mongolian steppes, home to horsemen and herdsmen, a stubborn herdsman, Wurgen (played by the film’s writer, director and star Ning Cai, a well-respected actor in China), clings on to traditional ways – symbolised by his beloved old horse, which his wife, Yingjidma (Na Renhua), wants to sell in order to send their young boy to school. She goes to work in the city, he finds he can no longer graze his animals where he used to and ultimately has to sell his horse as an attraction in a noisy discotheque.

“Season of the Horse dramatises the problems of nomadic farmers as the government tries both to urbanize their region and to maintain grasslands that are gradually turning into desert. This dilemma is dramatised with beautiful simplicity and striking visual moments. A small gem of a film, Ning Cai’s modestly scaled feature is a touching and beautifully realised vision of the consequences of modernisation, full of ironic observation about a soulless future that contrasts with a traditional ‘simplicity’ that can never return.” – Simon Field

Director(s) :

Ning Cai

NING CAI was born in 1963 in Horqin, Mongolia. He graduated as an actor from the Shanghai Drama Academy in 1986, won acclaim for his stage performance in Black Stallion and has received the Plum Blossom Award, China’s top dramatic prize for theatre. He graduated in directing from the Beijing Film Academy in 1998 and was named Best Actor in China’s prestigious Golden Rooster film awards, for his performance in Grasslands (2002).
Crew : Huo Binghua(Producer), Lin Liang Zhong(Cinematographer), Zhang Jianhua(Editor), Chang Lantian(Main Cast), Wulantug (Composer)
Format : Colour/35mm
Running Time : 105 mins
Country : China
Programme : Cinema of Asia
Venue : Mall of the Emirates - CineStar 8, Mall of the Emirates - CineStar 8, Mall of the Emirates - CineStar 10, Mall of the Emirates - CineStar 10
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