By Chen Yi
As the night falls, "The Chinese Pilot" is played on the outdoor screening platform of Jinchao Lane 8 Square at the intersection of Wujin Road and North Sichuan Road. “I really like this relaxing atmosphere, enjoying the breeze in the summer evening, chatting with my family and friends while watching a movie. I feel very relaxed", someone says
Outdoor Screening Arouses the Public’s Memory
Since the launch of "Screening Activities of Shanghai International Film and TV Festival for Benefiting People" in Jinchao Lane 8, Bingang Commercial Center of Hongkou District on June 6, until June 20, one excellent film will be shown at the open square of Jinchao Lane 8 at 19:00 every night. There are not only cinema blockbusters that are closely related to the pulse of the times, such as “Great Shanghai”, “The Chinese Pilot”, “The Bravest”, but also overseas masterpieces, such as "Contratiempo", " Kikujiro No Natsu " and "What We Did on Our Holiday", which meet the diversified and personalized cultural needs of the citizens. According to the organizers, almost every outdoor screening is full.
This year's screening activities for benefiting people uses the latest laser projector for the first time, which can show the best visual effect of the films with various colors in the open air. In addition to strict identification check, temperature measurement, health code check and other epidemic prevention measures at the entrance of the screening site, there is a transparent ceiling covering the entire auditorium and projection platform, with summer drinks and mosquito repellent supplies, so that the audience can enjoy a more comfortable viewing experience.
"In the past, the open movie was just pulling a piece of cloth, which was not as advanced as it is now, but the atmosphere and feeling were very cordial." Jinchao Lane 8 open screening brings the neighborhood together in Shanghai Lane, evoking the memories of childhood and youth of many citizens. The century-old historic buildings behind the screening platform are interwoven with light and shadow, which awakens the indissoluble bond between Wujin Road and the outdoor film. As early as 1924, Shanghai's first formal summer outdoor film opened on Wujin Road.
Several "Firsts" Witness Beginning of Film
In 1897, the first film screening in the history of China was held in the Astor House (now China Securities Museum) in Hongkou. Since then, the film has entered China. In 1908, Antonio Ramos, a Spanish businessman, founded China's first cinema on Zhapu Road, Hongkou Active Theater Park (the current Hongkou Theater), which became the birthplace of China's film industry. In 1914, the Victoria Cinema became the first audio cinema with wax plates. In 1926, the Pantheon Theater became the first real sound cinema. In 1936, the Shanghai Grand Theater became the first cinema to show Soviet films... Hongkou has numerous "Firsts" in the history of Chinese film. In the 1940s and 1950s, there were 31 cinemas, 46 film companies, 3 film schools, 3 film newspapers and magazines, 1 professional film bookstore and 1 Shanghai Institute of Drama and Film in Hongkou, which had a half of the film industry in Shanghai. There are a lot of movie venues around North Sichuan Road, which is so-called "crossing the river to see a movie" by Shanghainese. In Shikumen of North Sichuan Road, there were also brilliant film personnel such as Cai Chusheng, Hu Die, Ruan Lingyu and Zhou Xuan, who have written a legendary chapter of Chinese film and Shanghai-style culture.
The Screening Activities for Benefiting People Strengthens Revolutionary Features
Hongkou District, as one of the important areas for the excavation and publicity project of the birthplace of the Communist Party of China in Shanghai, has unique red cultural resources and deposits. The venue of the event, Jinchao Lane 8, Hongkou Bingang Commercial Center, is located in the red cultural and ecological demonstration area on North Sichuan Road, around which there are 57 red cultural sites. It is one of the areas with the largest number of red cultural sites in Hongkou and Shanghai.
Hongkou organically combined the red culture with the gene of "film". At the launching ceremony of "Screening Activities for Benefiting People" in Jinchao Lane 8, the fourth episode of the documentary "Greater Shanghai", that is “The Birthplace of Red Revolution”, was broadcasted upon selection, in which, there is Hongkou Wharf as the place where the Work-study-in-France started and the five martyrs of the Left Wing League, all of which are closely related to Hongkou. As early as March this year, Hongkou has launched the left wing film exhibition themed "Setting Sail with Original Intention of Red Film", in the form of film party lessons, to create a variety of forms of party history learning platform for the public to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Party.
According to reports, Jinchao Lane 8 is expected to open in the fourth quarter of this year. Its north square has been built into a cultural corridor opened to the public. Next to it, an independent building belonging to the Bingang Commercial Center will be used as the historical and cultural exhibition hall of Hongkou District. Three independent buildings will be adjacent to each other and a new independent building of about 12,000 square meters will be used as the Shanghai Literature Museum.
An official from Hongkou said that Hongkou would take the "Screening Activities for Benefiting People" as an important part of implementing the achievements of the Party history learning and education, and doing practical things for the people. Hongkou would send world-class film and television masterpieces to the business circles and communities, to invite the general public to experience the cultural charm of red blocks. Meanwhile, it would take the "Screening Activities for Benefiting People" as an opportunity, to let the public have a glimpse of the unique style: the integration of the old and the new, and the dialogue in the times.