MCLC: Beijing Independent Film Fest shut down

[Denton, Kirk]

MCLC LIST
From: Scott Myers <smyers at uchicago.edu>
Subject: Beijing Independent Film Fest shut down
***********************************************************

Dear all,

Some of you have heard that the 11th Beijing Independent Film Festival,
set to begin at 3pm local time today, August 23rd, has been shut down
before it even began. Artistic director Wang Hongwei and administrator Fan
Rong were arrested (later released), and there have been threats made to
the Li Xianting Film Fund about tearing down fences, cutting off
electricity, etc. Below is my translation of posts from Li Xianting's
Weixin account over the last few days (original link below). The
translation was performed hastily; please forgive any imperfections. I'll
be in Songzhuang later today and will be able to find out what actually
takes place at 3 pm.

Best,

Scott Myers

From the Weixin account of Mr. Li Xianting: “Memorandum regarding
suspension of the 11th Beijing Independent Film Festival”

Aug 18 2014: Posters and time schedules for the opening of The 11th
Beijing Independent Film Festival have been posted online. The police set
up watch outside my home and outside the Li Xianting Film Fund.

Aug 19 2014: In the afternoon some officials came to the Li Xianting Film
Fund, saying that the festival was to be stopped. They also named two
films that they wanted to see. The Ministry of Education, Administration
of Trade and Commerce, Tax Administration and other agencies also came to
ask questions.

Aug 20 2014: At 10 in the morning, Xiaobao village leaders came to my home
and told me that their superiors had ordered that the Film Fest be shut
down. They did, however, agree that the Festival could be moved to Yanjiao
in Hebei province and take place there. At 11 pm, more officials came to
my home to advise me to shut down the Fest.

August 21 2014: Li Xianting Film Fund reps went to Yanjiao and reserved a
venue space at the Huifu Hotel.

August 22 2014: Around noon, the Xiaobao village committee leader came to
say that we had booked hotel rooms in Songzhuang, but that higher
authorities had ordered us not to. The Li Xianting Film Fund staff members
who had booked the hotels came back and said that the hotel would no
longer let us register to stay there. At 1:30 pm, the Songzhuang police
came and apprehended Li Xianting Film Fund Artistic Director Wang Hongwei
and administrator Fan Rong. As of 6 pm, they had not yet been released. At
the police station, Wang Hongbao took two phone calls:

1)	A person claiming to be from the Songzhuang local government work
safety committee called and said: “The fence in your yard is pressing up
against fuel pipes; you have to tear it down before the 31st.”

2)	The hotel we had reserved in Yanjiao (Huifu Hotel) called and said:
“Higher authorities from the Public Security Bureau have instructed us not
to let your film festival be held at our hotel.”

The police station said that Wang Hongwei and Fan Rong had to sign a
statement agreeing to call off the Festival before they would be released.
Wang Hongbao and Fan Rong were forced to sign the statement and at 6:37
pm, the two of them were released. After that, a Li Xianting Film Fund
staff member received notice from the festival venue in Songzhuang that
starting tomorrow the electricity at the Li Xianting Film Fund will be cut.

In the afternoon the Exit-Entry Administration came to the Li Xianting
Film Fund to ask about foreign filmmakers that the Fund would be hosting.

Link to the Chinese here:
http://mp.weixin.qq.com/s?__biz=MjM5NzEyMDgwMQ==&mid=200494325&idx=1&sn=ced
a03bcdfa7c81deb46026644d56bfb&scene=2&from=timeline&isappinstalled=0#rd