A new film, "The Chanting Willows," by Dai Wei is a story about emotional entanglement between two girls from a Shaoxing opera troupe and a painter in the 1990s, showing the development and beauty of the art form.

"The Shaoxing opera elements, as well as props from Chinese traditional culture, such as the Chinese fan and ink wash paintings, all contributed to the poeticism in this film," the director said at the premiere of the film in Beijing on March 4. She added that she hoped these elements would give the audience a feeling of romance.

Shaoxing opera is an important feature throughout the film, showing how the art and its artists are struggling to survive in modern China. It presents 11 Shaoxing opera episodes, spanning 20 minutes of the film's total runtime, showing the beauty of the opera, but it also serves another function: When filming these opera episodes, the film's creatives realized they needn't use narration since the deep meaning and expression was included in these episodes. In addition, they proved more engrossing than the previous monologues.

This film is adapted from the novel "West Lake in Love" by writer Wang Xufeng, laureate winner of China's prominent Mao Dun Literature Award. The story, also exploring the subject of "the third gender," takes place at the "Warblers in the Willow Waves," one of the 10 famed scenic spots of the West Lake in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. 

It bears some resemblance to the previous Chinese classic drama film "Farewell My Concubine" (1993) by Chen Kaige, which is also about opera performers' tragic love story. But as executive producer Zheng Dasheng pointed out, "The Chanting Willows" is told through the perspective of a female director, examining her entangled love and feelings.

Actress Wang Yang plays the role of protagonist Chui Tiao, one of the opera performers in the troupe. As a native of Zhejiang, Wang has been influenced by Shaoxing opera since she was a child. In two months, she learned 11 classic Shaoxing opera episodes, spending all her time studying and practicing, fulfilling an almost impossible task.

"I fell in love with this role immediately. When I met the director (in the film), I told her I have waited 10 years to play this role. I am Chui Tiao. Her artistic pursuit, passion, and obsession are the same as mine," Wang said.

The other leading actress, Kan Xin, who plays Yin Xin in the film, is a new performer. "The role's character is very different from me. She knows what she wants. She's brave and very realistic. It was a challenge for me to play such a role," Kan said.

The male protagonist, Gong Yushan, an introverted and melancholic Chinese painter, is played by Zheng Yunlong. This is his first big screen performance, and formerly had only been engaged in various stage drama and musical performances. "When doing this film, I was 30. That was the time when I wanted to try something else," Zheng said. He went on to win the best new actor award for his performance in "The Chanting Willows" at 2021 Chinese American Film Festival in Los Angeles.

"The Chanting Willows" has won praise after screenings in various film festivals and events, and was the entry competing for main competition of the Golden Goblet Awards at the 2021 Shanghai International Film Festival. The film was released in China on March 5. 

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