We are pleased to announce the ninth CIFA Screening and Research Seminar, titled ‘The Contested Modernisation – Seeing through A Faux Ancient Blueprint’. We will screen Zhou Hao’s documentary The Chinese Mayor 中国市长 a.k.a. Datong 大同 (2015), which records a radical urban renewal of Datong, the fallen capital city of China more than a thousand years ago, initiated by a controversial mayor Geng Yanbo. It has triggered intense arguments across China and the West, concerning the authenticity of heritage, the prospects of resource-depleted and polluted cities, and ethical conflicts caused by demolition and relocation, etc.
The screening will take place from 2:30 pm to 5 pm on Wednesday 29 October, then followed by a 60-minute post-screening discussion of the film and related research theme. You are encouraged to join us in person at the CIFA Space (Old Library Building, Room 2.23), or alternatively online (discussion session only) via our Microsoft Teams channel at https://shorturl.at/mwr8Z.
This seminar will be chaired by Zhou Jun, a PhD Candidate from the School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape, Newcastle University. Jun’s current research represents the borderscape between mainland China and Hong Kong as a transformative interface between the state and the local. He is interested in the production and use of built environments and their interpretations through different media.
Topics in discussion include but not limited to:
- The strategy of heritage conservation, and its conflicts with using and appropriating traditions;
- The trend of branding the city through restoring ancient scenes in recent urban China;
- Documentary-making (and its way of thinking), especially the experience of recording and getting in touch with officials.