Bu Wancang (July 1, 1900 – December 30, 1973), also known by his English name Richard Poh, was a prolific

Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...

film director A film director or filmmaker is a person who controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfillment of that Goal, vision. The director has a key role ...

and

screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

active between the 1920s and the 1960s. He was born in

Anhui Anhui is an inland Provinces of China, province located in East China. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze and Huai rivers, bordering Jiangsu and Zhejiang to the east, Jiang ...

Career

Originally a member of the Shanghai cinema scene, Bu worked for several studios before becoming a major director for the

Mingxing Film Company The Mingxing Film Company ( zh, c=明星影片公司, p=Míngxīng Yǐngpiàn Gōngsī), also credited as the Star Motion Picture Production Company, was a production company active in the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China bet ...

. By 1931, Bu moved to Mingxing's rival, Lianhua, where he directed such films as '' Love and Duty'' (1931) and ''

The Peach Girl ''The Peach Girl'', also known as ''Peach Blossom Weeps Tears of Blood'', is a 1931 silent film written and directed by Bu Wancang. The cast included some of the major movie stars of the periods including the Korean-born actor Jin Yan and the a ...

'' (1931) (both with actress

Ruan Lingyu Ruan Lingyu (born Ruan Fenggen; April 26, 1910 – March 8, 1935), also known by her English name Lily Yuen, was a Chinese silent film actress. One of the most prominent Chinese film stars of the 1930s, her exceptional acting ability and suicid ...

). As the war with Japan intensified Bu made several films with subtle patriotic themes, most notably 1939's '' Mulan Joins the Army''. Once Japanese control over Shanghai was complete, however, Bu was eventually forced to make several propaganda films for the occupiers, notably ''

Eternity Eternity, in common parlance, is an Infinity, infinite amount of time that never ends or the quality, condition or fact of being everlasting or eternal. Classical philosophy, however, defines eternity as what is timeless or exists outside tim ...

'' in 1943. After the war, he was ostracized by his colleagues for these films, causing him to move to Hong Kong in 1948 where he continued to make films until his retirement.

Filmography

As cinematographer

As director

External links

*
Bu Wancang
at Hong Kong Cinematic
Bu Wancang
at the Chinese Movie Database {{DEFAULTSORT:Bu Wancang Film directors from Anhui Screenwriters from Anhui Hong Kong film directors 1900 births 1973 deaths Chinese silent film directors People from Chuzhou 20th-century Chinese screenwriters