Zhang Ziyi is one of my favorite actresses, her acting is always great to watch, she fights very well and always chooses great movies, how can i not like her. Some of my favorite movies including Zhang are Hero, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, House Of The Flying Daggers, Rush Hour 2 and The Banquet.
Selected Filmography
2000:Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
2001:Rush Hour 2
2002:Hero
2004:House of Flying Daggers
2005:Memoirs of a Geisha
2006:The Banquet
2012:The Grandmasters
Background
Zhang was born and raised in Beijing, to Zhang Yuanxiao, an accountant and later economist, and Li Zhousheng, a kindergarten teacher. She is very close to her older brother, Zhang Zinan. Zhang began studying dance when she was 8 years old; subsequently, she joined the Beijing Dance Academy by her parents' suggestion at the age of 11. While at this boarding school, she noticed how mean the other girls were to each other while competing for status amongst the teachers. Zhang disliked the attitudes of her peers and teachers so much that, on one occasion, she ran away from the school. At the age of 15, Zhang won the national youth dance championship and began appearing in television commercials in Hong Kong.
In 1996, Zhang entered China's prestigious Central Academy of Drama (regarded as the top acting college in China) at the age of 17.
Movie Career
1999–2002
At the age of 19, Zhang was offered her first role in Zhang Yimou's The Road Home, which won the Silver Bear award in the 1999 Berlin Film Festival.
She rose to further fame in 2000 with her role as Jen (Chinese version: Yu Jiao Long) in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, for which she won several awards in the Western world, such as Chicago Film Critics Association Awards, Toronto Film Critics Association Awards and Independent Spirit Awards. Zhang's first appearance in an American movie was in Rush Hour 2. In the movie, her character's name is “Hu Li”, which is Mandarin Chinese for “Fox”.
Zhang then appeared in Hero (2002), with her early mentor Zhang Yimou. This was a huge success in the English-speaking world and was nominated for an Oscar and a Golden Globe award in the category of Best Foreign Language Film.
2003–2006
She then signed on to film an avant-garde drama, Purple Butterfly (2003), which competed in the 2003 Cannes Film Festival. Zhang went back to the martial arts genre in House of Flying Daggers (2004), which earned her a Best Actress nomination from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. In 2046 (2004), directed by Wong Kar-wai, starring many of the best-known Chinese actors and actresses, Zhang was the female lead and won the Hong Kong Film Critics' Best Actress Award and the Hong Kong Film Academy's Best Actress Award.
Showing her whimsical musical tap-dancing side, Zhang starred in Princess Raccoon, directed by Japanese legend Seijun Suzuki, who was honored at the 2005 Cannes Film Festival. She then accepted the lead role of Sayuri in the film adaptation based on the international bestseller Memoirs of a Geisha. Controversy arose in Japan and China about having a Chinese woman portray a Japanese geisha. For this film, she was reunited with her 2046 co-star Gong Li and with Crouching Tiger co-star Michelle Yeoh. For the role, Zhang received a 2006 Golden Globe Award nomination, a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination and a BAFTA nomination.
Zhang has also been known to sing, and was featured on the House of Flying Daggers soundtrack with her own musical rendition of the ancient Chinese poem, Jia Rén Qu (佳人曲, The Beauty Song). The song was also featured in two scenes in the film.
On 27 June 2005, it was announced that Zhang had accepted an invitation to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), placing her among the ranks of those able to vote on the Academy Awards. She then appeared as Empress Wan in The Banquet (2006), a film set in the Tang Dynasty.
2007–present
Ziyi at the premiere of Dangerous Liaisons, in the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival.
Zhang provided the voice of Karai in TMNT (2007). She later starred in Forever Enthralled (2008) and appeared in The Horsemen (2009) with Dennis Quaid.
In January 2010, it was announced she had plans to produce a film adaptation of Snow Flower and the Secret Fan; however, it was announced that she had turned down the role due to a busy schedule.
In July 2010, plans were revealed for a live-action version of the Chinese folk tale of Hua Mulan, previously popularized by Disney through their 1998 animated movie. The film was to be directed by Jan de Bont, and would star Zhang as the titular heroine. Shootings were scheduled to begin in September 2010, but ultimately did not commence due to insufficient financial resources. The current status of the project is unknown.
Zhang has been cast in the role of Lin Huiyin in a 2011 film.
Along with Aaron Kwok, Zhang stars in an AIDS-themed film Love for Life premiering on 10 May 2011.
In September 2011, the Chinese-Korean co-production of the film Dangerous Liaisons (Weixian Guanxi) begins, where Zhang will star next to Cecilia Cheung and Jang Dong-gun. Zhang is reported to earn 20 million RMB (approximately $3.5 million) for her role, in an adaptation of the French novel ‘Les Liaisons Dangereuses', narrating Shanghai of the 1930s. The film is expected to be released in late 2012. She is currently filming and producing Chinese language romantic comedy entitled “My Lucky Star”.
Also on the way is The Grandmasters, released in December 2012, Zhang teams up with Tony Leung in the movie, the action is choreographed by legendary director Yuen Woo ping.
Awards
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards
2001 – Most Promising Actress
Golden Bauhinia Awards
2001 – Best Supporting Actress for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Golden Rooster Awards
2004 – Best Actress for Mo li hua kai (Jasmine Women)
Hong Kong Film Awards
2005 – Best Actress for 2046
Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards
2005 – Best Actress for 2046
Huabiao Film Awards
2005 – Best Actress for House of Flying Daggers
2005 – Best Actress for Forever Enthralled
Hundred Flowers Awards
2000 – Best Actress for The Road Home
Independent Spirit Awards
2001 – Best Supporting Female for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
MTV Movie Awards
2001 – Best Fight for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Versus entire bar)
Shanghai International Film Festival
2008 – Outstanding Contribution to Chinese Cinema
Toronto Film Critics Association Awards
2000 – Best Supporting Performance, Female for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Young Artist Awards
2001 – Best Young Actress in an International Film for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Source:Wikipedia
