On June 12, the movie "Dog Array" held its "Start Again" premiere in Beijing. Director Guan Hu, producer and chief producer Liang Jing, and leading actor Eddie Peng attended the post-screening exchange event together.

After winning the "Un Certain Regard Best Film" and "Dog Palme d'Or Jury Prize" at the 77th Cannes International Film Festival, "Dogs" has been widely anticipated by domestic audiences. The film will be released nationwide on June 15.

Guan Hu, Eddie Peng, Liang Jing

Talking about his feelings about this trip to Cannes, Guan Hu said that he is more nervous when facing domestic audiences now. "At the Cannes International Film Festival, I was like a little fanboy, seeing Coppola, Wim Wenders and other leading directors who were at the top of my university life. I think Cannes gives film practitioners a high level of respect, and this sense of honor will turn into a kind of strength to help us overcome various difficulties in the future."

In the movie "Dog Array", Peng Yuyan plays Erlang, who was imprisoned for manslaughter. After being released on parole, he returned to his hometown, but found it difficult to integrate into society. Erlang joined the dog-beating team to make a living. Because of an unexpected car accident, Erlang saved a black dog, and the fate of the two was connected. An ordinary person "abandoned by society" and a stray dog "stigmatized by the world", two incompatible souls resonated in each other's loneliest moments, redeeming each other and becoming inseparable life partners.

Stills from Dog Race

"Dog Array" is the first collaboration between Eddie Peng and director Guan Hu. In order to match the "real" and "rough" texture of the film, Eddie Peng took the initiative to ask the makeup artist to shave his hair short, leaving only 3 mm, on the second day of joining the crew. Combined with his dark skin color and sun spots that are very characteristic of the Northwest, he used the "most subversive" image to enrich Erlang's rough, wild and taciturn temperament.

After filming was completed, he adopted three stray dogs in the film, including the "leading" black dog Xiao Xin. "They changed my outlook on life and the world, which is also what the film has brought me. I brought Xiao Xin to Cannes this time, and I didn't expect it to win the 'Dog Palme d'Or'. After returning to my home from Cannes, Xiao Xin started to ignore me. It became arrogant and a little bit proud. I plan to help it review the script when it is filming in the future, and I will be proud of it." Liang Jing smiled and added, "After each scene on the set, Peng Yuyan often asked the director how he performed. The director told him that he was watching the dog. The director focused more on the dog, so Xiao Xin won the award this time."

Eddie Peng

"From the beginning to the end, we did not regard this black dog as a pet, but an independent life. In the film, Erlang and the black dog went from confrontation to mutual assistance and finally awakening each other, which is actually the whole process of the movie. It is a bit like a double starring role." In Guan Hu's opinion, the black dog Xiao Xin looks very sharp. "It is like a knife, very powerful, not easy to be tamed by humans, and it is definitely not a pet. It can form a confrontation with Erlang, which is very important."

Guan Hu

The cows in "Bullfighting", the ostriches in "Mr. Six", and the white horses in "Eight Hundred", the images of animals are not uncommon in Guan Hu's previous works, and they have also become a kind of code to interpret the deep meaning of the director's works. "Dogville" is the director Guan Hu's return to animal-themed creation after 15 years after the highly rated movie "Bullfighting". This time he is facing hundreds of stray dogs, as well as tigers, peacocks, venomous snakes, camels, etc. This scale of animal actors is unique in the history of Asian films, which has brought unprecedented challenges to the creative team.

"Dogs" won the "Dog Palme d'Or Jury Award"

Liang Jing said: "Many kinds of animals appeared in Guan Hu's previous films, but this time the number is particularly large. The hundreds of dogs on the set almost equal the number of on-site staff. We spent a lot of time and effort on taking care of them. We built a three-acre kennel for them and invited more than 20 professional dog trainers. In this movie, the audience will see the deep emotions between dogs and humans. Just like in our family, Guan Hu and his dog often stare at each other silently."

At the premiere, director Jia Zhangke, who also gave a wonderful performance in the film, shared his feelings, "People and dogs warm each other in the desolate land of the northwest, and the vitality bursting out of them is touching. Director Guan Hu returned to his original intention this time, and the film has a very pure observation and expression of human nature."

Group photo of the main creators

As a long-time friend of director Guan Hu, actor Huang Bo said that he was first touched by the film's sharp texture and strong emotions. "In Dog Array, you can still see the director's familiar film language, which is actually in his soul and bones. After so many years of experience, these film languages are no longer a display of technology, but are immersed in his artistic expression itself. The only thing I feel sorry for is Eddie Peng. He didn't ask me about (the difficulty of filming animal scenes) before filming. When we were filming Bull Fighting, we had NGs 137 times in one take."

At the end of "Dog Array", there are two subtitles: Dedicated to those who are on the road again; this film is dedicated to my father (Guan Hu's father, the famous actor Guan Zongxiang, died on January 13, 2023). "Everyone will feel a kind of power in this movie, and it's the same for me. I made this movie because I wanted to start again, not stay in the comfort zone, not stay in that array, hope that life will change, hope that the animality in the body will be awakened, and hope that our dreams will always be on the road. In the process of growing up, each of us is gradually dusted and loses that kind of courage, and wants to be stable, and movies have a kind of reminder function." Guan Hu said at last.