China Has Chosen Sheo Ao’s ‘Dead To Rights’ For Its Submission To The 98th Academy Award Of Best International Feature Film

Sheo Ao’s Dead to Rights has been chosen as China’s submission for the category of Best International Feature Film of the 98th Academy Awards. 

The feature was directed by Shen Ao from a script by Xu Luyang, Zhang Ke, and himself, and is set during the 1937 Nanjing Massacre, with the film being inspired by its true events. Dead to Rights centers around Postman A Chang, played by Detective Chinatown’s Liu Haoran, “who assumes the identity of a photo developer developed to survive the Japanese occupation.” A Chang works from “within the walls of a Japanese-controlled studio,” as he secretly refuges soldiers and civilians from China “in an act of quiet resistance.”

Dead to Rights, produced by Fu Ruoqing and Wang Yibing, was originally released in theaters on July 25th. Niu Vision Media and Echelon Studios released the film in US theaters on August 15th. Its China opening has grossed beyond RMB 3 billion, equivalent to $415 million US dollars. The feature has led the domestic box office for sixteen days straight over the summer. 

China has earned two Academy Award nominations in the International Feature category to date: Zhang Yimou’s Ju Dou, released in 1991, and Hero, released in 2003. Last year, China submitted the documentary “The Sinking of the Lisbon Maru” by Fan Li, which was eliminated by the Academy “for not meeting language requirements.” The Academy Award International Feature shortlist will be released on December 16th, and the five final nominees will be announced on January 22nd.