Asian Cinema – serie

Asia produces more films than any other part of the world. With chapters on Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Korea, Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Japan, the book presents the most authoritative assessment of contemporary Asian cinema available. Each chapter describes the cultural aspects of popular film production, analyzing key films in the context of the national, the regional and the global. Topics covered include: film theory and Asian cinema, popular film genres, major industry figures, the "art film", connections between the state and commercial interests, cultural policies, representations of national identity, trends in international co-production, transnational and diasporic dimensions of Asian filmmaking and viewing, the politics of language choice, the impact of emerging technologies on filmmaking practice, and modes of exhibition. This book is ideal for students, scholars, and anyone interested in popular culture and Asian films in a changing world.

Asia produces more films than any other part of the world. With chapters on Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Korea, Mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Japan, the book presents the most authoritative assessment of contemporary Asian cinema available. Each chapter describes the cultural aspects of popular film production, analyzing key films in the context of the national, the regional and the global. Topics covered include: film theory and Asian cinema, popular film genres, major industry figures, the "art film", connections between the state and commercial interests, cultural policies, representations of national identity, trends in international co-production, transnational and diasporic dimensions of Asian filmmaking and viewing, the politics of language choice, the impact of emerging technologies on filmmaking practice, and modes of exhibition. This book is ideal for students, scholars, and anyone interested in popular culture and Asian films in a changing world.

Shyam Benegal is one of India's major film directors. A career spanning more than forty years includes documentaries and television programs as well as over twenty feature films. Benegal's influences range from Satyajit Ray to Guru Dutt and Bollywood cinema more generally. He has worked with - indeed launched the careers of - many of the Bombay film industry's major stars, such as Shabana Azmi, Om Puri, Smita Patil, Naseeruddin Shah and Amrish Puri. Despite this, throughout his career, Benegal's engagement with 'Bollywood Babylon' has been highly individualistic. From his first feature film, Ankur, to recent work like Zubeidaa, Benegal has always combined social analysis with aesthetic pleasure. Making films in Hindi has enabled Benegal to reach the largest possible Indian audience. These lively and engaging interviews cover Benegal's life and work and, in doing so, present a history of Indian cinema.