Zhang Yibai (born 1963, Chongqing

Chongqing

Chongqing is a major city in Southwest China and one of the five national central cities of China. Administratively, it is one of the PRC's four direct-controlled municipalities , and the only such municipality in inland China.The municipality was created on 14 March 1997, succeeding the...

, China

People's Republic of China

China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

) is a Chinese

Chinese people

The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People with Han Chinese ethnicity ....

 film director

Film director

A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...

.

Directorial career

Zhang began his career in television

Television

Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...

 and music video

Music video

A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...

s before directing his debut, Spring Subway

Spring Subway

Spring Subway is a 2002 Chinese romance film directed by Zhang Yibai and starring Xu Jinglei and Geng Le. Sixth Generation director Zhang Yang also plays a role. The film represents a relatively new genre in China, the artistic "commercial film" with its international urban sensibilities designed...

in 2002.

Zhang, like many other modern Chinese directors, has focused primarily on life in modern Chinese cities. Spring Subway, for example, follows its protagonist as he wanders through Beijing's subway

Beijing Subway

The Beijing Subway is a rapid transit rail network that serves the urban and suburban districts of Beijing municipality. It is owned by the city of Beijing and has two operators, the wholly state owned Beijing Mass Transit Railway Operation Corp., which operates 12 lines, and the Beijing MTR...

 system, while the mystery-thriller Curiosity Killed the Cat follows its characters through the central China boomtown

Boomtown

A boomtown is a community that experiences sudden and rapid population and economic growth. The growth is normally attributed to the nearby discovery of a precious resource such as gold, silver, or oil, although the term can also be applied to communities growing very rapidly for different reasons,...

 of Chongqing

Chongqing

Chongqing is a major city in Southwest China and one of the five national central cities of China. Administratively, it is one of the PRC's four direct-controlled municipalities , and the only such municipality in inland China.The municipality was created on 14 March 1997, succeeding the...

 (also Zhang's hometown).

Zhang's next two films, 2007's The Longest Night in Shanghai

The Longest Night in Shanghai

The Longest Night in Shanghai is a 2007 Chinese/Japanese film produced by Japan's Movie Eye Entertainment and directed by Chinese director Zhang Yibai. It is a rare collaboration between China and Japan....

and 2008's Lost, Indulgence have seen the director's exposure and successes extending increasingly overseas. Longest Night, starring Zhao Wei

Zhao Wei

Zhao Wei is a mainland Chinese film actress and pop singer. Audiences sometimes refer to her by her English name, Vicki Zhao...

, constitutes one of the first China-Japan coproductions, while Lost was selected to premiere at New York City's Tribeca Film Festival

Tribeca Film Festival

The Tribeca Film Festival is a film festival founded in 2002 by Jane Rosenthal, Robert De Niro and Craig Hatkoff in a response to the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the consequent loss of vitality in the TriBeCa neighborhood in Lower Manhattan.The mission of the festival...

 in 2008.

Filmography

Year	English Title	Chinese Title	Notes
2002	Spring Subway Spring Subway Spring Subway is a 2002 Chinese romance film directed by Zhang Yibai and starring Xu Jinglei and Geng Le. Sixth Generation director Zhang Yang also plays a role. The film represents a relatively new genre in China, the artistic "commercial film" with its international urban sensibilities designed...	开往春天的地铁
2005	About Love About Love About Love is a 2005 film.Three stories are told, respectively set in Tokyo, Taipei, and Shanghai. The first two stories are about a Japanese person and a Taiwanese person. The last one is set in Shanghai with a story about a Japanese man and a Chinese woman. Some of the characters can speak...	关于爱	Directed segment "Shanghai"
2006	Curiosity Killed the Cat Curiosity Kills the Cat (film) Curiosity Kills the Cat is a 2006 Chinese thriller film directed by Zhang Yibai. The film is set in the director's home city of Chongqing. Produced by China Vision Group and Eagle Spirit Management, Curiosity Kills the Cat stars Hu Jun, Liao Fan, as well as veteran Hong Kong actress Carina Lau...	好奇害死猫
2007	The Longest Night in Shanghai The Longest Night in Shanghai The Longest Night in Shanghai is a 2007 Chinese/Japanese film produced by Japan's Movie Eye Entertainment and directed by Chinese director Zhang Yibai. It is a rare collaboration between China and Japan....	夜上海	Chinese-Japanese coproduction
2008	Lost Indulgence Lost Indulgence Lost Indulgence is a 2008 Chinese film directed by Zhang Yibai and written by Zhao Tianyu...	秘岸
2011	Eternal Moment Eternal Moment Eternal Moment is a Chinese romantic drama film directed by Zhang Yibai and starring Xu Jinglei, Li Yapeng and Chapman To.The film is a sequel to the television drama, Cherish Our Love Forever , which was also directed by Zhang...	将爱

External links

• Zhang Yibai at the Chinese Movie Database