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IMDbPro

Yimou Zhang

  • Director
  • Writer
  • Producer
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
Yimou Zhang
A Westerner finds refuge with a group of women in a church during Japan's raid of Nanking in 1937. Posing as a priest, he attempts to lead the women to safety.
Play trailer2:33
The Flowers of War (2011)
4 Videos
32 Photos
Yimou Zhang was born on 14 November 1951 in Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. He is a director and writer, known for Hero (2002), House of Flying Daggers (2004) and Curse of the Golden Flower (2006). He has been married to Ting Chen since December 2011. They have three children. He was previously married to Hua Xiao and Hua Xie.
BornNovember 14, 1951
  • More at IMDbPro
    • Contact info
    • Agent info
    • Resume
BornNovember 14, 1951
IMDbProStarmeterSee rank
  • View contact info at IMDbPro
    • Won 2 BAFTA Awards
      • 193 wins & 179 nominations total

    Photos32

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    Known for

    Hero (2002)
    Hero
    7.9
    • Director
    • 2002
    Takeshi Kaneshiro, Andy Lau, and Ziyi Zhang in House of Flying Daggers (2004)
    House of Flying Daggers
    7.5
    • Director
    • 2004
    Gong Li and Chow Yun-Fat in Curse of the Golden Flower (2006)
    Curse of the Golden Flower
    7.0
    • Director
    • 2006
    Gong Li in Raise the Red Lantern (1991)
    Raise the Red Lantern
    8.1
    • Director
    • 1991

    Credits

    Edit
    IMDbPro

    Director



    • Jing Zhe Wu Sheng
      • Director
      • In Production
    • Cliff Walkers 2
      • Director
      • Pre-production



    • Minghao Chen, Yaowen Liu, Xuanfei Chen, Yongdai Ding, Wei Fan, Shan Qiao, Hewei Yu, Yi Zhang, Li Ma, Binlong Pan, Jiayin Lei, Xiao Wang, Xiaochuan Li, Liying Zhao, Ye Gao, and Alan Aruna in Article 20 (2024)
      Article 20
      6.9
      • Director
      • 2024
    • Guoli Zhang, Hewei Yu, Dongyu Zhou, and Jiayin Lei in Under the Light (2023)
      Under the Light
      6.0
      • Director
      • 2023
    • Full River Red (2023)
      Full River Red
      6.4
      • Director
      • 2023
    • Beijing 2022: XIII Paralympic Winter Games (2022)
      Beijing 2022: XIII Paralympic Winter Games
      TV Series
      • Director
      • 2022
    • Beijing 2022: XXIV Olympic Winter Games (2022)
      Beijing 2022: XXIV Olympic Winter Games
      7.0
      TV Mini Series
      • Director
      • 2022
    • Snipers (2022)
      Snipers
      6.3
      • Director
      • 2022
    • Cliff Walkers (2021)
      Cliff Walkers
      6.5
      • Director
      • 2021
    • Haocun Liu, Wei Fan, and Yi Zhang in One Second (2020)
      One Second
      7.1
      • Director
      • 2020
    • Pattern China
      TV Series
      • general director
      • 2019
    • China in Variety
      TV Series
      • general director
      • 2019
    • Colorful China
      TV Special
      • general director
      • 2019
    • Li Sun and Chao Deng in Shadow (2018)
      Shadow
      7.0
      • Director
      • 2018
    • Matt Damon in The Great Wall (2016)
      The Great Wall
      5.9
      • Director
      • 2016
    • Leon Lai, Bingbing Fan, and Chun Wu in Lady of the Dynasty (2015)
      Lady of the Dynasty
      4.3
      • co-director
      • 2015
    • Stories Through 180 Lenses (2014)
      Stories Through 180 Lenses
      6.4
      Short
      • Director
      • 2014

    Writer



    • Full River Red (2023)
      Full River Red
      6.4
      • Writer
      • 2023
    • Snipers (2022)
      Snipers
      6.3
      • written by
      • 2022
    • Cliff Walkers (2021)
      Cliff Walkers
      6.5
      • written by
      • 2021
    • Haocun Liu, Wei Fan, and Yi Zhang in One Second (2020)
      One Second
      7.1
      • Writer
      • 2020
    • Li Sun and Chao Deng in Shadow (2018)
      Shadow
      7.0
      • screenplay by (as Zhang Yimou)
      • 2018
    • The Bright Red Lanterns Hung High (2008)
      The Bright Red Lanterns Hung High
      7.6
      Video
      • libretto
      • 2008
    • Beijing 2008: Games of the XXIX Olympiad (2008)
      Beijing 2008: Games of the XXIX Olympiad
      8.0
      TV Mini Series
      • creator
      • 2008
    • To Each His Own Cinema (2007)
      To Each His Own Cinema
      6.7
      • Writer (segment "En Regardent le Film")
      • 2007
    • Gong Li and Chow Yun-Fat in Curse of the Golden Flower (2006)
      Curse of the Golden Flower
      7.0
      • Writer
      • 2006
    • Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles (2005)
      Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles
      7.3
      • story
      • 2005
    • Takeshi Kaneshiro, Andy Lau, and Ziyi Zhang in House of Flying Daggers (2004)
      House of Flying Daggers
      7.5
      • Writer
      • 2004
    • Hero (2002)
      Hero
      7.9
      • screenplay
      • 2002
    • Gong Li in A Soul Haunted by Painting (1994)
      A Soul Haunted by Painting
      6.6
      • Writer
      • 1994

    Producer



    • The Third Party
      • executive producer
      • Post-production
      • Short
    • Zhu Jue
      • executive producer
      • In Production
      • TV Series



    • The First Shot (2024)
      The First Shot
      8.2
      TV Series
      • executive producer
      • 2024
    • My People, My Homeland (2020)
      My People, My Homeland
      6.4
      • general Executive Producer
      • 2020
    • Wisdom Tooth (2019)
      Wisdom Tooth
      6.1
      • producer
      • 2019
    • Suddenly Seventeen (2015)
      Suddenly Seventeen
      6.4
      • producer
      • 2015
    • Gong Li and Chow Yun-Fat in Curse of the Golden Flower (2006)
      Curse of the Golden Flower
      7.0
      • producer
      • 2006
    • Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles (2005)
      Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles
      7.3
      • producer
      • 2005
    • Takeshi Kaneshiro, Andy Lau, and Ziyi Zhang in House of Flying Daggers (2004)
      House of Flying Daggers
      7.5
      • producer
      • 2004
    • Hero (2002)
      Hero
      7.9
      • producer
      • 2002
    • Chien-Lien Wu in Dragon Town Story (1997)
      Dragon Town Story
      7.3
      • producer
      • 1997
    • Gong Li, Rosamund Kwan, and Ray Lui in The Great Conqueror's Concubine (1994)
      The Great Conqueror's Concubine
      6.6
      • producer
      • 1994
    • Gong Li in A Soul Haunted by Painting (1994)
      A Soul Haunted by Painting
      6.6
      • executive producer
      • 1994

    • In-development projects at IMDbPro

    Videos4

    Streaming Passport to China
    Clip 4:35
    Streaming Passport to China
    U.S. Version
    Trailer 2:33
    U.S. Version
    U.S. Version
    Trailer 2:33
    U.S. Version
    A Woman, a Gun, and a Noodle Shop
    Trailer 1:55
    A Woman, a Gun, and a Noodle Shop
    Hero
    Trailer 1:45
    Hero

    Personal details

    Edit
    • Alternative names
      • Zhang Yimou
    • Born
      • November 14, 1951
      • Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
    • Spouses
        Ting ChenDecember 2011 - present (3 children)
    • Children
      • Mo Zhang
    • Other works
      Agricultural worker. (1971-1978) Worked in a textile plant in Shaanxi.
    • Publicity listings
      • 5 Interviews
      • 3 Articles

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      He was fined $1.2 million for having 3 kids, which violated China's family-planning laws at the time. Two years later, the family planning law was repealed and people are no longer fined.
    • Quotes
      For thousands of years, there's been a tradition of teaching us in China to think in terms of the collective experience, so we are rarely able to act in accordance with personal desires or emotions. Now young people, especially under Western influences, have become much more interested in themselves and their own values.
    • Trademarks
        Often works with the actress Li Gong
    • Nickname
      • Lao MouZi, loosely meaning "old schemer/strategist"

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