First China-Kazakhstan co-production depicting Chinese musician to be released

The first co-production by China and Kazakhstan will be released on May 20, which has drawn attention from Chinese and foreign media.

The movie titled Musician represents a rarely known experience of famous Chinese composer Xian Xinghai (1905-1945), who spent several years in Kazakhstan during the Second World War.

The creation of the movie is attributed to 2013 when the heads of state of the two countries met and talked about the friendship between Xian and a Kazakh musician during the war times. In June 1941, Xian Xinghai was forced to stay in Kazakhstan on his way back to China from the Soviet Union as a Chinese warlord in Xinjiang blocked the way. There Xian was sheltered by the Kazakh musician and completed several philharmonic works.

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"One of the scenes depicts Xian Xinghai running to the fence at the border, but is stopped by the barbed wire. He points at the other side of the fence, saying that is my China, my home is there. But he is helpless and even desperate because he could not return home, to his country, although they are just there. What a tragedy it is!" said Hu Jun, who plays Xian in the movie.

The filming of Musician started in September 2013. The Chinese side was responsible for the funding and production of the movie, while the Kazakh side was responsible for the script and art design. The production lasted for four years, and the crew shot in China's Yan'an City, Russia's St. Petersburg, and Almaty in Kazakhstan.

"Xian Xinghai made tremendous contributions to our nation. We should never forget this musician who used music to inspire the people simultaneously in both the eastern and European theatres to fight fascism during the anti-fascist war and made significant contributions," said Shen Jian, chief producer of the movie.