This thesis explores the global-local interplay among three key players, which are Hollywood, the Chinese government, and Chinese film industry, by analyzing representations of China and Chinese culture in three kinds of modes of film cooperation between Hollywood and China in the era of globalization. Drawing on both the analysis of three factors respectively and the elaboration of tripartite push-and-pull, a spectrum of film collaboration has been built to find out how the leveraging powers work, indicating that the images of China in selected films manifest a shared cultural identity that is hybridized and market-friendly. By further discussing China’s position in the global competition, it reveals China’s ambition to brand itself as a global media power instead of a media capital.

In this dissertation, I considered five representative images of childhood that the Fifth Generation filmmakers created throughout a thirty-five year period of post-Maoist social transition in China since the beginning of the market reform and opening policy in 1978. To look at evolving childhood through their films is to position the construction of childhood under the prism of the most prominent and controversial cinematic transformation. On the one hand, the Fifth Generation’s shift towards incorporated production, theatrical narration, sentimental style, and generally conservative ideology, signals and constitutes their transition into the paradoxes of “market-socialism;” on the other hand, it maps out the fluctuation and signification of three discourses of capitalism, socialism and Confucianism through evolving images of the child and childhood. I expect this original work that bridges Chinese film studies with childhood studies to unfold a thorough and dynamic scroll, through which I can tap into China’s social transition toward authoritarian neoliberalism, and reveal the discursive mechanism where propaganda of communist regime and re-mobilized Confucian values negotiate and compete with global capitalist orders over the construction of childhood. This dissertation claims that the significance of childhood lies in its capability to fight against a homogenized and hostile environment as both a fundamental humanist domain, and a political, critical and imaginative weapon in commercialized Chinese society.

295 pages / My dissertation addresses two major issues in Chinese contemporary film and TV studies: the first is the proliferations of new forms of subjectivities and the state’s attempt to regulate them via the construction of an ideal citizenship on the film and TV screen; the second is to develop an approach to understand the political economy of screen culture (yingshi wenhua), as well as freedom and control in post-1989 China. My project investigates key contemporary state-sponsored (zhuxuanlü) and state-criticized/banned screen products as a way to explore socialist values advanced by the Chinese Communist Party, as well as the ways in which and the extent to which individuals are able to challenge them. The ways in which my project contributes to the fields of film and TV studies in China are fourfold. First, close readings of selected films and TV dramas inform us of three emergent forms of subjectivity that were previously theorized as a synthesized sublime subject. Second, I conceptualize qualities of the on-screen socialist spirit that the state uses to counteract the three new forms of subjectivity and maintain its superiority. Third, by discussing the state’s intervention and control on production and consumption of screen products, I reveal the state’s vested interests and individuals’ execution of agency in popular culture. This emphasis on state-individual interactions challenges the current focus on TV and film as merely a profit-oriented industry; it also unravels conflicted ideologies in screen products and questions the understanding of popular culture as mainstream culture. Fourth, by achieving the above tasks, my research exposes that the state’s tolerance of its citizens’ partial freedom is for the purpose of political stability.

This thesis redefines the Sixth Generation of Chinese film by examining the characteristics of some young directors’ films from the perspective of theme, form and production mode, essentially, from the perspective of the relationship between these directors and their times. I suggest that the most important condition in the construction of the concept of the Sixth Generation and the Sixth Generation film is the ideological rebellion against the government after the events of 1989. I hold the opinion that the Sixth Generation has adopted a more commercial outlook after the end of the 1990s, and explore reasons of this change from the perspectives of economy, culture and individual existence.

This thesis redefines the Sixth Generation of Chinese film by examining the characteristics of some young directors’ films from the perspective of theme, form and production mode, essentially, from the perspective of the relationship between these directors and their times. I suggest that the most important condition in the construction of the concept of the Sixth Generation and the Sixth Generation film is the ideological rebellion against the government after the events of 1989. I hold the opinion that the Sixth Generation has adopted a more commercial outlook after the end of the 1990s, and explore reasons of this change from the perspectives of economy, culture and individual existence.

The commercialization and global transformation of the Chinese film industry demonstrates that this industry has been experiencing drastic changes within the new social and economic environment of China in which film has become a commodity generating high revenues. However, the Chinese government still exerts control over the industry which is perceived as an ideological tool. They believe that the films display and contain beliefs and values of certain social groups as well as external constraints of politics, economy, culture, and ideology. And, ironically, the films censored in China often gain great fame outside of China becoming worldwide blockbusters. This study will look at how those films are banned by the Chinese film censorship system through analyzing their essential cinematic elements, including narrative, filming, editing, sound, color, and sponsor and publisher. The study will also analyze how the combination of government control and market forces influence the Chinese film industry and its production.

<p>  </p> <p>This dissertation enriches the field of Comparative Literature by examining the trauma narratives of Chinese women in wartime through a cross-cultural and cross-medium lens. It focuses on their experiences as they are articulated in a variety of texts and visual media, in the process offering an exploration of the intersection between gender, trauma, and war. By incorporating theoretical frameworks from Western trauma studies into an analysis of Chinese and Asian contexts, the study further contributes to Comparative Literature by fostering an intercultural dialogue. This unique approach uncovers shared patterns of human suffering and resilience, providing new insights into the universality and particularity of trauma representation. The dissertation extends the boundaries of Comparative Literature by examining the influence of gender on the construction and reception of trauma narratives. It also gives a novel contribution by addressing broader social and political issues both in the context of China, Asia, and globally. The four chapters examine the portrayal of women’s experiences produced generations after the war, focusing on the following topics, respectively: the witness of sexual violence, the challenges of representing feminine pain, repetition of traumatic memory, and the complexity of individual and collective experiences in relation to wartime traumas. By analyzing mostly novels, as well as films and testimonies, the dissertation emphasizes the importance of considering both historical records and shared personal memories, as well as the role of artistic expression in fostering empathy and understanding. This research offers a valuable contribution by illuminating the enduring and complex impact of war on women’s lives. Furthermore, it provides a strong foundation for future studies, ultimately contributing to a more nuanced understanding of the representation of traumatic experiences of individuals and communities affected by trauma. </p>

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Si de nombreuses études occidentales portent sur le cinéma chinois contemporain, les écrits occidentaux consacrés aux films de la première moitié du 20t: siècle sont presque inexistants. Cette recherche propose une réflexion sur un champ d'étude méconnue en France qu'est le mélodrame cinématographique chinois durant la période républicaine (1911-1949). Elle envisage une réévaluation sur les films souvent qualifiés de « réalistes» et de « révolutionnaires ». Les œuvres mélodramatiques chinoises possèdent de multiples facettes: son style stéréotypé (la victime, le traître, le misérabilisme et le manichéisme), sa nature hybride (influence occidentale et héritage chinois), et ses messages contradictoires (conservateurs pour certains, révolutionnaires pour d'autres). En dépit de son caractère propagandiste, le mélodrame apparaît comme étant l'un des genres les plus appréciés par le peuple chinois et les intellectuels. / Many western film scholars have strong interest to the Chinese contemporary movie, but, rarely they devotes to the films of the first half of the 20s century. This study proposes a reflection on a field of study that is the Chinese film melodrama during the Republican period (1911-1949), a field of study which is utterly neglected in France. It envisages a revaluation on the movies often called "realist" and "revolutionary". Chinese melodramatic films possess multiple faces: its stereotyped style (the victim, the traitor, the miserabilism and the Manichaeism), its hybrid nature (Chinese heritage and western influences), and contradictory messages (conservative for some people, revolutionaries for others). Despite its propagandistic character, melodrama is considered as one of the most popular gender by both the Chinese people and intellectuals.