Joan Chen wants to direct film about contemporary Shanghai
(Agencies)
Updated: 2005-02-28 14:22

Joan Chen in "The Last Emperor" [File photo]

Chinese actress and director Joan Chen, who played the opium-addicted empress in the Oscar-winning "The Last Emperor," says she wants to direct a film about contemporary Shanghai, a newspaper reported Monday.

"I've written a script and I'm going to try directing again," Chen was quoted as saying by the South China Morning Post.

"I can't say what the story's about yet, but the movie will be set in contemporary Shanghai," Chen reportedly said. "I found that there are movies about Shanghai in the 20s and the 30s but not much that is contemporary."

Chen directed the 1999 art-house film "Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl," a sad tale about a city girl sent out to the countryside during China's chaotic Cultural Revolution. She has also directed the 2000 movie "Autumn in New York," starring Richard Gere and Winona Ryder.