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Guo Fan (; born 15 September 1980), credited as Frant Gwo in Latin script, is a Chinese filmmaker. Gwo debuted as a director in 2011 with the film ''Lee's Adventure'', and then directed the box-office hit ''
My Old Classmate ''My Old Classmate'' () is a 2014 Chinese coming-of-age drama film directed by Frant Gwo and starring Zhou Dongyu and Lin Gengxin. It tells of the romance between two deskmates spanning across 20 years. The film was released on April 25, 2014. C ...
'' in 2014. In 2019, he directed China's first big-budget science fiction film, ''
The Wandering Earth ''The Wandering Earth'' () is a 2019 Chinese science fiction film directed by Frant Gwo, loosely based on the 2000 short story of the same name by Liu Cixin. The film stars Wu Jing, Qu Chuxiao, Li Guangjie, Ng Man-tat, Zhao Jinmai and Qu ...
'', which became one of the highest-grossing Chinese films of all time, garnering national acclaim. Its sequel, ''
The Wandering Earth 2 ''The Wandering Earth 2'' () is a 2023 Chinese science fiction action-adventure film directed and co-written by Frant Gwo, and starring Andy Lau, Wu Jing and Li Xuejian. The film is a prequel to the 2019 film ''The Wandering Earth'', which is ...
'', was first released in China globally on 22 January 2023.


Early life

Frant Gwo was born Guo Fan on 15 December 1980 in
Jining Jining () is a former capital of Shandong. Is a prefecture-level city in southwestern Shandong province. It borders Heze to the southwest, Zaozhuang to the southeast, Tai'an to the northeast, and the provinces of Henan and Jiangsu to the no ...
,
Shandong Shandong is a coastal Provinces of China, province in East China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River. It has served as a pivotal cultural ...
, China. During his early childhood, he developed an interest in painting, and in 1983, he studied at the Jining Municipal Bureau of Expression. In 1987, Guo enrolled at the Experimental Primary School in Jining, Shandong. Four years later, in 1991, he won the championship in the National Children's Calligraphy and Painting Competition. Gwo went on to study at Jining No. 13 Middle School in 1993 and Jining No. 1 High School in 1995 before entering
Hainan University Hainan University (HainanU or HNU) is a provincial public university in Haikou, Hainan, China. It is affiliated with the Province of Hainan, and co-funded by the Hainan Provincial People's Government, the Ministry of Education, and the Ministry o ...
in 1998 to study law. Beginning in 2000, Gwo spent much of his time creating
manhua () are Chinese-language comics produced in Greater China. Chinese comics and narrated illustrations have existed in China throughout its history. They are usually graphic and can be written for a myriad of genres, including romance, fanta ...
comics and
graphic design Graphic design is a profession, academic discipline and applied art that involves creating visual communications intended to transmit specific messages to social groups, with specific objectives. Graphic design is an interdisciplinary branch of ...
. Instead of pursuing a legal career after graduation, he began working for the Asian Music Center program of China Travel Television in 2002 as a program packaging supervisor in
Hainan Hainan is an island provinces of China, province and the southernmost province of China. It consists of the eponymous Hainan Island and various smaller islands in the South China Sea under the province's administration. The name literally mean ...
. He later worked for Republic Culture Media Ltd. in Beijing. After seeing
James Cameron James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is a Canadian filmmaker, who resides in New Zealand. He is a major figure in the post-New Hollywood era and often uses novel technologies with a Classical Hollywood cinema, classical filmmaking styl ...
's '' Terminator 2: Judgment Day'' in theatres in the 1990s, Gwo was inspired to pursue a career as a sci-fi movie director. In 2009, he entered
Beijing Film Academy Beijing Film Academy (BFA; zh, first=s, s=北京电影学院, labels=no) is a municipal public college in Beijing, China. It is affiliated with the City of Beijing and co-funded by the Beijing Municipal People's Government, the National Radio ...
to study film management.


Career

In 2002, he graduated from the university with a bachelor's degree in law, and after graduation, he worked in the "Asia" column group of China Tourism Satellite TV as a program packaging supervisor in Hainan. In 2007, the graphic design work "Are you hot?" won the Gold Award in the Peace Organization "+gettyimages" Global Public Service Advertising Design World Competition; in the same year, he worked for Gonghe Culture Media (Beijing) Co., Ltd. In 2010, Gwo began making his first film, ''Lee's Journey'' (李献计历险记), which was theatrically released in 2011. In 2014, his second feature film, ''
My Old Classmate ''My Old Classmate'' () is a 2014 Chinese coming-of-age drama film directed by Frant Gwo and starring Zhou Dongyu and Lin Gengxin. It tells of the romance between two deskmates spanning across 20 years. The film was released on April 25, 2014. C ...
'', was released. It was a box office hit, earning 470 million yuan in China and winning multiple awards, including the Committee Special Award at the 21st Beijing College Student Film Festival. In 2016, Gwo was chosen to direct ''
The Wandering Earth ''The Wandering Earth'' () is a 2019 Chinese science fiction film directed by Frant Gwo, loosely based on the 2000 short story of the same name by Liu Cixin. The film stars Wu Jing, Qu Chuxiao, Li Guangjie, Ng Man-tat, Zhao Jinmai and Qu ...
'', China's first big-budget science fiction film, based on a short story by the
Hugo Award The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon) and chosen by its members. The award is administered by th ...
-winning author
Liu Cixin Liu Cixin (, pronounced ; born 23 June 1963) is a Chinese computer engineer and science fiction writer. In English translations of his works, his name is given as Cixin Liu. He is sometimes called "''Da'' Liu" ("Big Liu") by his fellow sc ...
. The film was released by
China Film Group Corporation China Film Group Corporation (CFGC) is the largest, most influential film enterprise in the People's Republic of China, owned by the Central Propaganda Department of the Chinese Communist Party. According to ''Forbes'', it is a state monopoly ...
on 5 February 2019, the Chinese New Year's Day. It was a major box-office hit, grossing US$700 million worldwide, including US$691 million in China. The film became China's second highest-grossing film of all time, though it was surpassed later the same year by the animated fantasy film '' Ne Zha'', and again in 2021 by the comedy film '' Hi, Mom''. It is currently China's fifth highest-grossing film of all time. A sequel to ''The Wandering Earth'' was announced in 2019 following the film's success. Gwo is still the director of ''
The Wandering Earth 2 ''The Wandering Earth 2'' () is a 2023 Chinese science fiction action-adventure film directed and co-written by Frant Gwo, and starring Andy Lau, Wu Jing and Li Xuejian. The film is a prequel to the 2019 film ''The Wandering Earth'', which is ...
'', and the film was first released in China globally on 22 January 2023, the New Year's Day of the Chinese New Year (the Year of the Rabbit).


Stylistic and cultural influences

Gwo has cited Western sci-fi movies including Christopher Nolan's '' Interstellar,'' Stanley Kubrick's '' 2001: A Space Odyssey'', and
James Cameron James Francis Cameron (born August 16, 1954) is a Canadian filmmaker, who resides in New Zealand. He is a major figure in the post-New Hollywood era and often uses novel technologies with a Classical Hollywood cinema, classical filmmaking styl ...
's ''
Terminator 2 ''Terminator 2: Judgment Day'' is a 1991 American science fiction action film directed by James Cameron, who co-wrote the script with William Wisher. Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, and Robert Patrick, it is the sequel to ''Th ...
'' as major inspirations for his career as a sci-fi movie director and particularly in his work on ''The Wandering Earth''. When making ''The Wandering Earth,'' Gwo kept the Chinese audience in mind first, and built upon themes that would be most familiar to Chinese audiences, such as the filial dynamic between father and son. Gwo views the plot of ''The Wandering Earth'' itself to be a representation of Chinese cultural values, pointing out that when faced with an extraterrestrial threat, the heroes choose to find a way to take the whole Earth out of danger, embodying Chinese collective values of community and homeland, rather than searching for a new home on their own, as would be the more 'American', individualist approach. Gwo took special care in designing the sci-fi aesthetics of ''The Wandering Earth,'' keeping in mind China's historical lack of an industrial revolution when designing the colors and technological structures seen in the film. His on-screen interpretation of the advanced technological setting of the film has been compared to a '
Trojan Horse In Greek mythology, the Trojan Horse () was a wooden horse said to have been used by the Greeks during the Trojan War to enter the city of Troy and win the war. The Trojan Horse is not mentioned in Homer, Homer's ''Iliad'', with the poem ending ...
' to entice Western audiences, which then compels the audience to consider themes that are more common to Chinese storytelling and cinema, such as social togetherness and solidarity.


Filmography


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gwo, Frant 1980 births Living people Film directors from Shandong People from Jining Beijing Film Academy alumni Hainan University alumni