Wang Bing

Director & actor · born 16 November 1967 · Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China

Wang Bing (Chinese: 王兵; pinyin: Wáng Bīng; born 16 November, 1967; Xi'an) is a Chinese documentary director, often referred to as one of the foremost figures in documentary film-making. Wang is the founder of his own production company, Wang Bing Studios, which produces most of his films. He began his career as an independent filmmaker in 1999. Discovered in 2003, "West of Tracks", an enormous documentary work of more than 9 hours, has garnered great success internationally. In addition to his feature documentaries, he is also active in video installation, fiction film and photography. His movie on Chinese labour camps, "The Ditch", was included in the 67th Venice Film Festival (2010) as the film sorpresa. His movie "Youth (Spring)" was selected to compete for the Palme d'Or at the 76th Cannes Film Festival (2023).

Tie Xi Qu, Wang's 9 hour epic documentary of industrial China, was considered a major success. Tie Xi Qu went on to win the Grand Prix at the Marseille Festival of Documentary Film and was shown for the first time in Spain at the Punto de Vista International Documentary Film Festival. Wang's film Fengming, a Chinese Memoir, premiered at both Cannes and Toronto in 2007. Crude Oil premiered at the 2008 Rotterdam Film Festival. Since then, his films became a staple at every prestigious international film festival. 2017's Mrs. Fang was awarded the Golden Leopard at the 70th Locarno Festival.

Where to start: I Come From Ikotun.