Director Li Yu had already tangled with censors in China with her independent documentary Sisters. She does so again with her focus on three young lesbian women in Fish and Elephant. Xiao Qun works at Beijing Zoo as an elephant keeper while her lover Xiao Ling runs a clothes stall in an indoor market. Their relationship comes under fire, however, with the arrival of Qun's divorced mother who, unaware that her daughter is gay, tries to set her up with a prospective husband. Further complicating matters is the appearance of Qun's ex-girlfriend JunJun, now wanted by the police after killing her abusive father. The director Li Yu uses an entirely non-professional cast and everyday surroundings to give the film a realistic edge. Fish and Elephant is the first feature film ever made in China about the emotional and sexual relationship between two women. Li Yu was born on December 2, 1973 in a small town in Northern China. On graduation from college as a Chinese Literature major, she excelled in being one of the top ten TV hosts in China. In 1997 she turned to documentary filmmaking and began a career as a writer-director at China's national TV network, CTTV. Her first independent documentary Sisters (1999), about the fate of a pair of twins in China, won critical acclaim abroad, but was banned, preventing Li Yu from attending a festival in France for which her film had been selected. Fish and Elephant is her first feature film.
Recieved from amamedia.org
filmography
Director:
Ping guo (2007)
... aka Lost in Beijing (International: English title)
Hong yan (2005)
... aka Dam Street (International: English title)
Jin nian xia tian (2001)
... aka Fish and Elephant (International: English title)
Writer:
Ping guo (2007)
... aka Lost in Beijing (International: English title)
Hong yan (2005)
... aka Dam Street (International: English title)
Editor:
Jin nian xia tian (2001)
... aka Fish and Elephant (International: English title)
Recieved from IMDB.com