Arthur Jones (film director)
Arthur Jones | |
|---|---|
 Arthur Jones, talking at NYU in 2021 | |
| Born | 25 October 1973 |
| Occupation(s) | Film director, producer |
| Years active | 2006-present |
Arthur Benjamin Jones (born 25 October 1973) is a British film director and producer.
Biography[edit]
Jones was born in Doncaster, England. He studied English literature at the University of Cambridge. He arrived in China in 1996, and has been based in Shanghai since then. From 1998 to 2000, he was the first editor of the city magazine That's. From 2001 to 2007, he was China correspondent for Variety magazine and a noted expert on the Chinese film industry.[1]
In 2006, he co-directed with his brother Luther Jones, the feature documentary A Farewell Song,[2] about a group of retired traditional Chinese musicians who reunite to perform and record outside of the state-backed music industry. The film was backed by Channel 4 BRITDOC Foundation.
Between 2007 and 2012, he made a series of documentaries about cultural landmark events in Shanghai, including films about the Shanghai Special Olympics (2007) and the Shanghai World Expo (2012).
In 2013, the Jones brothers co-directed The Poseidon Project, about the search for a British submarine, lost off the coast of China in 1931. Featuring the work of explorer/researcher Steven Schwankert, it won Best Documentary Feature at the Pennine Film Festival 2014.[3]
In 2021, Arthur Jones directed The Six (film), a feature documentary about the six Chinese survivors of the Titanic disaster. The film was executive produced by James Cameron and released in cinemas across China and on television worldwide to wide acclaim. It won the Special Jury Award at the Beijing International Film Festival (2022] and the Audience Award at Vancouver Film Festival (2021).[4][5]
Jones has also directed television documentary series for international broadcasters including the China sections of Flatpack Empire for the BBC, and "Ancient China from Above" for National Geographic Channel.[6][7]
He was on the jury for the documentary section of the Shanghai International Film Festival in 2020, and will be on the jury for short documentaries at Beijing International Film Festival in 2024. He is a regular featured speaker at film events across China.[8]
Filmography[edit]
| Year | English title | Chinese title | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | A Farewell Song | 阳关三叠 | |
| 2013 | The Poseidon Project | 海神号事件 | |
| 2021 | The Six | 六人 | |
| 2024 | The Morning Sky is Black and White | 早晨的星空有黑色有白色 |
References[edit]
- ^ "Arthur Jones". Variety. July 2007. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
- ^ "A Farewell Song =" (PDF). China Review. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 April 2015.
- ^ Ryall, Julian (3 June 2013). "Families of HMS Poseidon victims angry at 'desecration' of graves". The Telegraph. London. Retrieved 15 October 2013.
- ^ "A Century After the Titanic Sank, a Film Tries to Rescue 6 Survivors' Stories". The New York Times. 21 August 2021. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
- ^ Frater, Patrick (24 March 2021). "True Story of China's Titanic Survivors, Executive Produced by James Cameron, Heads to Cinemas". Variety. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
- ^ "Flatpack Empire". IMDB. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
- ^ "纪录片《星空瞰华夏》（第二季）将用先进技术手段复原秦陵地宫等恢弘场景". Sohu (in Chinese). Retrieved 29 March 2024.
- ^ "Jury for 24th Shanghai International Film Festival Golden Goblet Award Announced". SIFF. Retrieved 29 March 2024.