# Lou Ye

Lou Ye (Wade–Giles: Lou Yeh), born 1965, is a Chinese screenwriter-director who is commonly grouped with the "Sixth Generation" directors of Chinese cinema. In June 2018, Lou was invited to become a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

## Career

Born in Shanghai, Lou was educated at the Beijing Film Academy. In 1993, he made his first film Weekend Lover, but it was not released until two years later, having its world premiere at the International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg where it received the Rainer Werner Fassbinder Award. Between completion and premiere of Weekend Lover he made and released Don't Be Young, a thriller about a girl who takes her nightmares as real, in 1994. Lou, however, did not gain international prominence until his third film, the neo-noir Suzhou River. That film dealt with questions of identity and proved quite controversial upon its release in China. Upon its release, international audiences praised Suzhou River, which several critics felt evoked Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo, particularly in how both films focus on a man obsessed with a mysterious woman.
Lou—along with actress Nai An—founded the independent production company Dream Factory in 1998, which would go on to produce most of Lou's films.
In 2003 Lou released Purple Butterfly starring Zhang Ziyi. The film is a tale of revenge and betrayal taking place during the Japanese occupation of Shanghai, with a complex narrative structure borrowing heavily from film noir traditions.
Lou's next film, Summer Palace (2006), a story of two lovers in the backdrop of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, again brought Lou into conflict with Chinese authorities, resulting in a five-year ban for both him and his producer. In order to circumvent the ban, his next film, Spring Fever, was shot surreptitiously in Nanjing and registered as a Hong Kong-French coproduction to avoid censors. The film was shown in competition at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival where writer Mei Feng won the Best Screenplay Award.

### Censorship in China

Lou Ye's films have proven controversial in their content, and often deal with issues of sexuality, gender, and obsession. Government censors banned his first film Weekend Lover for two years, while his breakout film Suzhou River was banned (with Lou receiving a 2-year ban from filmmaking) but has since been authorized in China.
Later, after Lou submitted Summer Palace to the 2006 Cannes Film Festival without approval from Chinese censors, he was banned from film-making again, this time for five years. The film itself was also banned, though according to Lou this was because it was not up to the SARFT's standards for picture and sound quality.
Lou also had to re-edit his film The Shadow Play for two years before he was granted a distribution license in mainland China. The film's plot centers on the investigation of a corruption scandal, inspired by real events in Xiancun. It also touches upon the issue of forced evictions of urban villages in Guangzhou during China's economic reform.

## Filmography

| Year | English title | Chinese title | Notes |
| 1994 | Don't be young | 危情少女 | |
| 1995 | Weekend Lover | 周末情人 | |
| 2000 | Suzhou River | 苏州河 | |
| 2001 | "In Shanghai" | 在上海 | Documentary short, 16m |
| 2003 | Purple Butterfly | 紫蝴蝶 | |
| 2006 | Summer Palace | 頤和園 | |
| 2009 | Spring Fever | 春风沉醉的夜晚 | Best Screenplay Award at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival Golden Horse Award for Best Film Editing |
| 2011 | Love and Bruises | 花 | |
| 2012 | Mystery | 浮城谜事 | Asian Film Award for Best Film |
| 2014 | Blind Massage | 推拿 | Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution at the 64th Berlin International Film Festival Golden Horse Award for Best Narrative Feature Asian Film Award for Best Film |
| 2018 | The Shadow Play | 风中有朵雨做的云 | |
| 2019 | Saturday Fiction | 兰心大剧院 | |
| 2024 | An Unfinished Film | 一部未完成的电影 | 2024 Cannes Film Festival Special Screenings Golden Horse Award for Best Narrative Feature |

## Awards and nominations

| Award | Year | Category | Film | Result |
| Asian Film Awards | 2013 | Best Director | Mystery | Nominated |
| Asian Film Awards | 2013 | Best Screenwriter | Mystery | Won |
| Asian Film Awards | 2015 | Best Director | Blind Massage | Nominated |
| Berlin International Film Festival | 2014 | Golden Bear | Blind Massage | Nominated |
| Cannes Film Festival | 2003 | Palme d'Or | Purple Butterfly | Nominated |
| Cannes Film Festival | 2006 | Palme d'Or | Summer Palace | Nominated |
| Cannes Film Festival | 2009 | Palme d'Or | Spring Fever | Nominated |
| Cannes Film Festival | 2012 | Prix Un Certain Regard | Mystery | Nominated |
| Cannes Film Festival | 2024 | L'Œil d'or | An Unfinished Film | Nominated |
| China Film Director's Guild Awards | 2015 | Director of the Year | Blind Massage | Won |
| Festival du Film de Paris | 2000 | Grand Prix | Suzhou River | Won |
| Gijón International Film Festival | 2019 | Best Director | Saturday Fiction | Won |
| Golden Horse Awards | 2012 | Best Director | Mystery | Nominated |
| Golden Horse Awards | 2012 | Best Original Screenplay | Mystery | Nominated |
| Golden Horse Awards | 2014 | Best Director | Blind Massage | Nominated |
| Golden Horse Awards | 2018 | Best Director | The Shadow Play | Nominated |
| Golden Horse Awards | 2024 | Best Director | An Unfinished Film | Won |
| International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg | 1996 | Special Award in memoriam Rainer Werner Fassbinder | Weekend Lover | Won |
| International Film Festival Rotterdam | 2000 | Tiger Award | Suzhou River | Won |
| TOKYO FILMeX | 2000 | Grand Prix | Suzhou River | Won |
| TOKYO FILMeX | 2024 | Audience Award | An Unfinished Film | Won |
| Venice Film Festival | 2011 | Giornate degli Autori Award | Love and Bruises | Nominated |
| Venice Film Festival | 2019 | Golden Lion | Saturday Fiction | Nominated |
| Vienna International Film Festival | 2000 | FIPRESCI Prize | Suzhou River | Won |