coming August 18, 2020 on DVD & Streaming
In Imperial China, two opera singers risk their lives to perform for the Emperor in Beijing and redeem the reputation of their troupe.
Yue Jiu, the most famous opera singer in all of Imperial China, is expelled from the capital city for vulgarity. He heads south, where he encounters Wang Runsheng, a promising young opera singer for the Chuntai Troupe. When the Emperor invites all of China’s opera troupes back to the capital city for a celebration, Yue Jiu and Runsheng are forced to choose between their reputations, their safety, and their love of opera.
DIRECTOR BIO:
Enter the Forbidden City is directed by Hu Mei (胡玫 ), one of China’s most preeminent female filmmakers. After a brief stint as an actress, she studied directing at the Beijing Film Academy, where she graduated in 1982. Along with her fellow classmates Chen Kaige and Zhang Yimou, Hu Mei pioneered the filmmaking movement that has since come to be known as the "Fifth Generation" of Chinese cinema. Her 1997 television series Yongzheng Dynasty was met with wide commercial success and critical acclaim in China, launching her prolific career. Other television shows include The Emperor Han Wu in 2005, and Qiao’s Grand Courtyard the year after. Hu Mei’s most recent film, Confucius, stars Chow Yun Fat and was released worldwide in 2010. Enter the Forbidden City is the seventh feature film that Hu Mei has directed, and is scheduled to be released in the United States in 2020.
PRODUCTION NOTES:
Enter the Forbidden City is based entirely on historical events and figures from the Qing Dynasty, the period in which Peking Opera first began to flourish in Imperial China. The film was developed by Hu Mei over a period of six years, and was shot within China at a cost of fourteen million United States dollars. No sets were designed for the film, which is shot entirely on location, although over 200 hand tailored costumes were created in order to replicate Peking Opera clothing from the Qing Dynasty. Enter the Forbidden City took two years to film, before wrapping production in 2018.