http://www.bjreview.com AUGUST 1, 2019 BEIJING REVIEW 45
CULTURE
to perform, the young Chang’an girls packed
in the parade are no different from today’s idol-
chasing fans. Except they wear flowing high-
waisted dresses in vivid colors and delicate
hair ornaments. Being extras they don’t have
any lines, yet they have individual features and
hairstyles. Cao gives painstaking care to the
nameless and ordinary people who lived in
Chang’an.
“The only protagonist of this show is
Chang’an: It’s not just a concept but home to
thousands of people, including the two detec-
tives,” Cao said. “The ordinary people are as
entitled to this city as the two detectives.”
His goal is to recreate a day in Chang’an, an
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history. Striving to show details as much histori-
cally accurate as possible, he and his team took
seven months to set up the scenes and design
the props before they started shooting. From
the armor of the patrol to special ancient clocks
to measure time, all the props can be traced in
historical records and were handmade for this
drama, according to the director.
“It is a tribute to China’s tradition and a cul-
tural journey back to this great period,” a viewer
on Viki wrote.
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lowing entertainers, traders, food vendors and
disguised assassins in an open-door market and
the story begins to unfold gradually. Cao, who
was a cinematographer himself, sets the tone
for the entire story in the first few seconds. “I
wanted to give the audience the impression
that Chang’an is an open and diverse city,” he
said.
Despite the crisis looming, known to only
a few, it is an ordinary day for Chang’aners. The
two detectives’ investigation is only one thread
of the story. Based on the novel with the same
name by Ma Boyong, Cao seeks to portray a
vivid and inclusive Chang’an, which is also his
hometown.Chinese story on camera
Chinese movie directors and playwrights have
long been searching for ways to break the cul-
tural barrier and tell Chinese stories to the world.
The success of The Longest Day in Chang’an
proves that the distinct culture in ancient China
is not an obstruction but a bridge to connect
with foreign audiences. Modern viewers can still
identify with the philosophy and values woven
into the story.
Cao thinks Chinese TV dramas telling stories
of court love and palace politics are outdated
and distanced from the audience’s life. Only
when the characters are nuanced and human-ized can the story be empathetic and touching.
In The Longest Day in Chang’an, every little
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her character. Telling stories of ordinary Chinese
people that resonate with the audience might
be the way to communicate with the world.
“The Longest Day in Chang’an is a step in
my plan to tell Chinese stories to the world,”
Cao said. “After depicting the splendor of the
Tang Dynasty, I am looking into several scripts
that tell stories of today’s China.”
His ambition is to differentiate Chinese dra-
ma from the TV shows in the rest of the world.
“I don’t want to imitate any country’s pro-
duction. Chinese drama has to build upon our
rich culture and Chinese people’s everyday life,”
Cao said. QCopyedited by Sudeshna Sarkar
Comments to [email protected]Cao Dun, director of The Longest Day in Chang’an,
speaks to Beijing Review in Beijing on July 24WEI (^) YA
O
FIL
E
A still from The Longest Day in Chang’an
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