Old and New China Impress

Re-enacting a self inflicted human eye gouging might seem like a tall order but the gruesome incident was just one of several of the more unusual items for an NHNZ film crew to capture on a recent trip to China.

Led by US-based director and producer Steven Talley the crew spent just under four weeks in China filming two Man Made Marvel programs. China’s Forgotten City will take viewers on an incredible journey to the ancient city of Xian while Giant Buddha tells the remarkable story behind the crafting of a 70m high statue of a Buddhist monk.

The shoot saw them travel from Xian, 900km south west of Beijing, to Leshan 2.5 hours south east of Chengdu. For Steve, who has directed or supervised 10 programs from NHNZ’s ever increasing China catalog, the trip provided an opportunity to rekindle old acquaintances as well as form new ones.

The crew consisted of NHNZ senior China operations manager Felix Feng, cameraman Curtis Rodda, field sound operator Brent Nazaroff and CICC producer Weina Kong. While Steve was delighted to welcome his former teacher and Otago University expert archaeologist Charles Higham back on set, he was equally impressed by his first encounters with Chinese-American archaeologist Agnes Hsu and Dunedin-based graphics artist Kylie Robinson. “At times it felt more like a group of old friends traveling around China,” he muses.

When it came to filming re-enactments, the crew headed to Wuxi, two hours drive from Shanghai in an area known for its beautiful lakes and an historical theme park featuring a CCTV production centre. There they found a ready supply of professional actors and props vital to recreating pivotal moments in the construction of both the Giant Buddha and the ancient city of Xian.

Steve was pleasantly surprised to be assigned a CCTV director he had worked with at Wuxi in 2004 and attributes the man’s professionalism with achieving several challenging scenes including the eye gouging, a drowning and a cremation!

Another highlight was a side trip taken to Jiajiang (known as Thousand Cliff Buddhas) to interview an expert archaeologist by a cliff featuring an impressive collection of Buddhist carvings. It is believed that one of the characters was used as the template for the Giant Buddha.

After witnessing significant changes to Chinese society in recent years, the location made a lasting impression with the well travelled director. “China has undergone remarkable growth over the past decade but at Jijiang, I felt the timelessness of China. To me, it captured the ancient spirit of this remarkable country,” he says.

Juxtaposed against the timelessness of Jijiang and the deeply spiritual presence of the Giant Buddha at Leshan was the modern day city of Xian. “It’s one of the most international and sophisticated cities in China today featuring beautiful modern architecture, inspired landscaping and amazing restoration of ancient buildings.”

While Forgotten City places the spotlight on Xian at the height of the Tang Dynasty, Steve believes that today’s architects, urban planners and archaeologists have inherited a visionary approach to their work. “They are not simply recreating the past but are trying to understand the lost beauty of ancient Xian. New projects reflect that greatness and are inspired by the architecture of the forgotten city.”

Man Made Marvels China’s Forgotten City and Giant Buddha are co productions being made by NHNZ with CICC and Discovery.