One of the biggest films in China's cinematic history featuring a dream cast of 83 A-list actors will be released in September two weeks before the 60th year anniversary of the People's Republic of China (PRC).

Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Zhang Ziyi, John Woo and Ge You are among the monster cast starring in Founding a Country (Jianguo Daye, tentative title).

Set in 1949, the film revolves around the establishment of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the country's top political advisory body.

Most big-name actors volunteered their services and waived their usual massive fees. The stars' passion for the project not only comes from patriotism, but also from respect for director Han Sanping (pictured), who leads China Film Group, the most powerful film company in China.

Han co-directs the 134-minute film with mainland director Huang Jianxin.

Han and Huang will make a 190-minute edition for the TV release later, which includes more stars.

(China Daily July 7, 2009)