Li Pingqian (1902 – 18 November 1984), also known as Jack Pingqian Li, was a Chinese filmmaker who directed over 100 films in his career in mainland China and Hong Kong. He is probably best known for his works with actresses

Gong Qiuxia Gong Qiuxia, also romanized as Kung Chiu-hsia (4 December 1918 – 7 September 2004) was a Chinese actress and singer. By the 1940s, she became one of the seven great singing stars.Baidu.Baidu" ''Gong Qiuxia.'' Retrieved on 28 April 2007. Bio ...

and Xia Meng, who each starred in more than a dozen of his films. Moreover, his 1964 Huangmei opera film ''Three Charming Smiles'' starring Chen Sisi was a huge hit in China.

Life

Li was born in

Hangzhou Hangzhou, , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ; formerly romanized as Hangchow is a sub-provincial city in East China and the capital of Zhejiang province. With a population of 13 million, the municipality comprises ten districts, two counti ...

and was originally given the name Chunchou. He moved to Shangai in the 1920s to begin a career in filmmaking after leaving Hujiang University in 1919, where he studied sociology but did not graduate. In 1924, he co-founded Shenzhou Film Company with Wu Xuchang. The company went bankrupt in 1927 and Li joined

Tianyi Film Company Tianyi Film Company (), also called Unique Film Productions, was one of the "big three" film production companies in pre-Second World War Republic of China. Founded in Shanghai in 1925 by the Shaw (Shao) brothers led by Runje Shaw (Shao Zuiweng ...

. He eventually moved on to

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 ...

, until that was destroyed by Japanese bombardments during World War II. In the 1950s, Li moved to Hong Kong and became directing Cantonese films for companies such as Yonghua and

Great Wall Film Company Great Wall Film Company () was one of the first Chinese film production companies based in Shanghai, China, in the 1920s. History The company was founded by Mei Xuechou (梅雪俦) and Liu Zhaoming (刘兆明) in the 1920s. The company's first k ...

. Many of Li's earlier works are lost.

Filmography

As actor

As director

In popular culture

In the 2008 Chinese TV series ''Zhao Dan'' (赵丹), Li Pingqian is portrayed by actor Meng Jun (孟俊).

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Li, Pingqian 1902 births 1984 deaths Hong Kong film directors Film directors from Zhejiang Screenwriters from Zhejiang Chinese male silent film actors Male actors from Hangzhou Writers from Hangzhou Chinese silent film directors 20th-century Chinese screenwriters