Chen Shi-zheng
Chen Shi-zheng is a China-born, New-York based director, internationally renowned for his innovative and provocative staging of operas as diverse as Monteverdi's Orfeo, Wagner's The Flying Dutchman and Tang Xianxu's The Peony Pavilion. He most recently conceived, wrote anddirected a stage production of Monkey: Journey to the West, executed in collaboration with creators of the virtual rock band Gorillaz currently on tour. Mr. Chen makes his film directorial debut with Dark Matter. As a child in Changsha, Hunan during the Cultural Revolution, he was taken under the wing of traditional funeral singers, who were among some of the great masters of Chinese opera. He became a leading young opera actor, performing until his mid-20's in many productions throughout China. He simultaneously recorded albums of folksongs and contemporary pop. Chen Shi-zheng won the Feature Film award at The Sundance Film Festival in 2007 for Dark Matter