Dong is a 2006 documentary film

Documentary film

Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...

 by Chinese director, Jia Zhangke

Jia Zhangke

Jia Zhangke is a Chinese film director. He is generally regarded as a leading figure of the "Sixth Generation" movement of Chinese cinema, a group that also includes such figures as Wang Xiaoshuai and Zhang Yuan....

. It is the companion piece to Jia's Still Life, which was released concurrently although Dong was reputedly conceived of first. The film, which runs a relatively short 66 minutes, follows the artist and actor Liu Xiaodong

Liu Xiaodong

-Education:Liu studied at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing and received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in oil painting in 1988. In 1995 he was awarded a Masters of Fine Art in oil painting at the same university. From 1998...

 as he invites Jia to film him while he paints a group of laborers near the Three Gorges Dam

Three Gorges Dam

The Three Gorges Dam is a hydroelectric dam that spans the Yangtze River by the town of Sandouping, located in the Yiling District of Yichang, in Hubei province, China...

 (also the subject of Still Life) and later a group of women in Bangkok

Bangkok

Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom...

. The film was produced and distributed by Jia's own production company, Xstream Pictures

Xstream Pictures

Xstream Pictures is a Chinese production company based out of Beijing and Hong Kong that was founded by filmmakers Jia Zhangke, Chow Keung, and Yu Lik-wai. Formed in 2003, the company's first production was Jia's own The World...

, based out of Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

 and Beijing

Beijing

Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

.

Dong was screened at the 2006 Venice International Film Festival

63rd Venice International Film Festival

The 63rd Venice International Film Festival, held in Venice, Italy, was opened on 30 August 2006 with Brian De Palma's The Black Dahlia and was closed on 9 September 2006...

 as part of its "Horizons" Program, and as part of the 2006 Toronto International Film Festival

2006 Toronto International Film Festival

The 2006 Toronto International Film Festival ran from September 7 to September 16, 2006. Opening the festival was Zacharias Kunuk and Norman Cohn's The Journals of Knud Rasmussen, a film that "explores the history of the Inuit people through the eyes of a father and daughter."In a press release...

's "Real-to-Reel" Program.

Dong was filmed in HD

High-definition video

High-definition video or HD video refers to any video system of higher resolution than standard-definition video, and most commonly involves display resolutions of 1,280×720 pixels or 1,920×1,080 pixels...

 digital video

Digital video

Digital video is a type of digital recording system that works by using a digital rather than an analog video signal.The terms camera, video camera, and camcorder are used interchangeably in this article.- History :...

.

Relationship with Still Life

Filmed at the same time as Jia's fiction film, Still Life, Dong also shares the same setting (the Three Gorges area of central China) and in certain instances, the same shots. Han Sanming

Han Sanming

Han Sanming is a Chinese actor, known for his roles in films directed by Jia Zhangke. It is believed that he is related to to the director. Initially, he was seen only in small roles or cameos, but was then cast in one of the lead roles, as a coal miner looking for his wife and daughter, in...

, one of the leads in Still Life, also appears (in character) within Dong as do other characters from that film.

The film, given its shorter length and improvised feel was overshadowed immediately by Still Life, which would go on to win the 2006 Golden Lion

Golden Lion

Il Leone d’Oro is the highest prize given to a film at the Venice Film Festival. The prize was introduced in 1949 by the organizing committee and is now regarded as one of the film industry's most distinguished prizes...

 at the Venice Film Festival

Venice Film Festival

The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...

.

In contrast, Dong generated far less publicity, prompting one critic to deride it as a "minor addition" to Jia Zhangke's canon.