“A New Old Game”
Courtesy of Parallex Films
Chinese sales company Parallax Films has secured a string of offers for director Qiu Jiongjiong’s 2021 Jury Prize-winning historical drama at Locarno A new old game. The acclaimed Chinese independent film has sold to France’s Carlotta Films, Japan’s Katsuben Film Club and Singapore’s Cineaste Production House for distribution in all Southeast Asian territories except Indonesia and Vietnam. All three companies are planning theatrical releases for the film later this year.
Based in Shenzhen, Qiu is both a filmmaker and a well-known contemporary artist. His work as an artist has been exhibited worldwide, and his cinematic experiments with cinematic language and documentary techniques have earned him a reputation as one of China’s most important independent filmmakers.
Loosely based on the life of the director’s grandfather, A new old game begins when the top clown performer in a famous theater troupe dies and is welcomed into the Underworld. As he relives his vivid memories one last time before entering the afterlife, 50 years of art, struggle and love play out against the backdrop of 20th century China’s turbulent history. The film has an emotional immediacy but uses ironically detached visual methods, including a theatrical style of tableau cinematography with overtly colorful and playful sets and supernatural fantasy sequences.
Qiu’s reputation has been growing steadily in recent years. In early 2024, both the University of Chicago and the University of Hong Kong held his film retrospectives. London’s Garden Cinema and Berlin’s CiLENS have similar series of screenings planned for later this year.
Qiu recently announced his next feature, Fuxi: Joy in Four Chapters. The project won the Project D Award at the Hong Kong Asian Film Financing Forum in March.
Based in Beijing, Parallax Films is the international film sales and distribution brand of Midnight Blur Films, specializing in global distribution of quality Chinese films and international film festival publicity.
