2018 Essays

Xie Caizhen

Wei, S. Louisa

Caizhen Xie is regarded by several existing sources as the first female director of Chinese cinema who worked in China. (This is, of course, with Marion E. Wong in mind as the first Chinese woman to direct a film anywhere.) As an actress, Caizhen also starred in Dan Duyu’s 1925 film Little Master. Prior to this, Caizhen had co-starred with leading actress Pearl Ing in Dan’s “philosophy film” Some Girl (1925). While Pearl played a country woman named Purity, Caizhen played one of her egos: Vanity. Her performance was praised by a critic using the pen name of Aiyun (17).