Following the online publication of my film on the 1995 New Year’s rituals in Gaoluo, a screening in the village itself prompted a version with Chinese subtitles, on which I worked with the diligent Feng Jun.

It is far from a literal translation of my English script—I was keen to adapt it to reflect the idiom and way of thinking of the Gaoluo villagers. So rather than the terminology of urban academia, we incorporated local vocabulary like lao guiju 老规矩 (“the old rules”: tradition), dangjia 当家 (“boss”), jiahuo 家伙 (percussion), wentan 文坛 (“civil altar”: vocal liturgy), and songjing 送经 (“escorting the scriptures”). In many ways I find it preferable to the English text—since the original English voiceovers are intact, it’s worth watching even for those not dependent on the translation.

The Chinese version is now available both (in China) on the CDTM website (follow this link) and on my YouTube channel (alongside the English version):

And do browse the posts under Gaoluo in the top Menu! Click here for thoughts arising from presenting the film at SOAS; here for an intriguing Chinese review; and here for a screening in Leiden along with my film on the Li family Daoists.

With many thanks to Wei Xiaoshi!