{ "id": "epvsbz22sk", "slug": "the-story-of-ermei", "title": "The Story of Ermei", "updated": "2026-11-01", "topic_path": [ { "id": "culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture" }, { "id": "culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.drama-biographical", "label": "Drama and biographical films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.drama-biographical" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.drama-biographical.drama-films-1990s", "label": "Drama films 1990s", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.drama-biographical.drama-films-1990s" }, { "id": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.drama-biographical.drama-films-1990s.drama-films-early-1990s", "label": "Drama films early 1990s", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/topics/culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.drama-biographical.drama-films-1990s.drama-films-early-1990s" } ], "geo": [ { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.drama-biographical", "label": "China · 2001 to 2020: Drama and biographical films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.drama-biographical", "path": [ { "id": "geo.chn", "label": "China", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001", "label": "China · 2001 to 2020", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture", "label": "Arts and culture", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance", "label": "Screen and stage", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen", "label": "Film and television", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films", "label": "Films and standalone screen works", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works", "label": "Individual films by title and year", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works" }, { "id": "geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.drama-biographical", "label": "Drama and biographical films (individual works)", "api_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/api/v1/geo/geo.chn.t2001.culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.drama-biographical" } ] } ], "excerpt": "The Story of Ermei (Jingzhe, 惊蛰) is a 2003 Chinese drama by Wang Quanan about a 20-year-old peasant girl who flees an arranged marriage, works in a town, and returns; it won the 2003 Golden Rooster Award for Best Actress. Distinct from Ermo (1994).", "snippet": "The Story of Ermei (Jingzhe, 惊蛰) is a 2003 Chinese drama by Wang Quanan about a 20-year-old peasant girl who flees an arranged marriage, works in a town, and returns; it won the 2003 Golden Rooster Award for Best Actress. Distinct from Ermo (1994).", "node": "culture.performance.screen.films.films.individual-works.drama-biographical.drama-films-1990s.drama-films-early-1990s", "markdown": "# The Story of Ermei\n\n**The Story of Ermei** (original title *Jingzhe*, 惊蛰) is a 2003 Chinese drama film directed, written, and edited by Wang Quanan, about a young peasant woman who flees an arranged marriage to work in a town and then returns to her village to go through with it.[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei) The film runs 115 minutes on color 35 mm and was produced by Beijing Silk-Road Productions.[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei)\n\n| Key fact | Detail |\n|---|---|\n| Original title / year | *Jingzhe* (惊蛰), China, 2003[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei) |\n| Director | Wang Quanan (born 1965), who also wrote the screenplay and edited the film[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei) |\n| Running time / format | 115 minutes, color, 35 mm[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei) |\n| Cast | Yu Nan, Yan Li, Liu Yanbing, Shi Xiaoxia[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei) |\n| Key crew | Cinematography Lutz Reitemeier; music Zhang Yang; producers Yan Yiyun and Wang Quanan[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei) |\n| Award | Won the 2003 Golden Rooster Award in China for Best Actress[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei) |\n| Festival | Forum of Independents competition, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, 2004[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei) |\n\n## Spoilers\n\n### Plot\n\nThe film is set in contemporary northern China and follows Ermei, a naive 20-year-old peasant girl. Her grandfather is near death, and hoping to stage a funeral that looks respectable, the family resolves to purchase a cypress coffin, yet cypress proves beyond their means. Ermei's father cuts down his own cypress tree and is penalized with a hefty fine. The family arranges to marry Ermei to a villager named Zhang Suo, who is willing to pay the fine.[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei)\n\nErmei flees the village to look for her friend Maonu, who is working in a \"hair salon.\" After getting a job in a restaurant, Ermei finds that Maonu in reality works as a prostitute. Disappointed with life in town, Ermei returns to her village, having determined to follow through with her arranged marriage.[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei)\n\nAccording to the [Karlovy Vary](https://www.edgepedia.org/karlovy-vary) program, the film offers a portrait of contemporary Chinese life, laying bare both the misery and despair of the countryside and the moral decay and corruption of urban settings, yet it also conveys how strong and enduring the [Chinese people](https://www.edgepedia.org/chinese-people) are.[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei)\n\n## Director\n\n**Wang Quanan** (born 1965) graduated from the Beijing Film Academy in 1991 and then worked at Xian Film Studio, where he wrote several screenplays. In 1999, *Lunar Eclipse* (*Yue Shi*) marked his debut as a director; the film screened at more than twenty festivals around the world and took home the Critics Award for Best Picture at the 2000 Moscow festival. His filmography lists *Lunar Eclipse* (2000) and *The Story of Ermei* (*Jingzhe*, 2003).[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei)\n\n## Festival screening and reception\n\nThe film screened in the Forum of Independents competition at the 2004 Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, where the program singled out the lead performance, calling it \"a powerful portrayal of life in present-day China featuring a remarkable main actress.\"[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei) In China, *Jingzhe* won the 2003 Golden Rooster Award for Best Actress.[1](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei)\n\n## A similarly named earlier film\n\nThe title invites confusion with *Ermo* (二嫫), a 1994 mainland Chinese drama directed by Zhou Xiaowen, which is a different film by a different director.[2](https://www.dianying.com/en/title/em-1994) *Ermo* stars Ai Liya, Liu Peiqi, Ge Zhijun, and Zhang Haiyan, and follows an industrious noodle maker in the northern province of Hebei who becomes determined to earn enough money to buy a television set bigger than her neighbor's.[2](https://www.dianying.com/en/title/em-1994) • [3](https://search.worldcat.org/title/53811541) To raise the money she also sells blood, and when she finally brings home the largest television in the county she falls ill herself.[4](https://ent.sina.com.cn/m/2008-06-18/19252065989.shtml?from=wap) The film premiered at the Locarno International Film Festival in August 1994 and screened at the Toronto festival that September; Chinese records credit it with the festival's Grand Prize of the jury and other honors, and it received a Golden Rooster Award nomination for Best Actress in 1995.[5](https://baike.sogou.com/m/fullLemma?lid=771003) Both films belong to the same tradition of mainland Chinese rural women's drama, but *Jingzhe* (2003) concerns an arranged marriage and migration to a town, while *Ermo* (1994) centers on consumer desire and a television set.\n\n## References\n\n1. [The Story of Ermei (Jingzhe), Karlovy Vary International Film Festival programme archive](https://www.kviff.com/en/programme/film/4/830-the-story-of-ermei)\n2. [Ermo (1994), Chinese Movie Database](https://www.dianying.com/en/title/em-1994)\n3. [二嫫, WorldCat](https://search.worldcat.org/title/53811541)\n4. [农村题材电影展：《二嫫》1995, Sina Entertainment](https://ent.sina.com.cn/m/2008-06-18/19252065989.shtml?from=wap)\n5. [二嫫, Sogou Baike](https://baike.sogou.com/m/fullLemma?lid=771003)\n\n---\n*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Drama and biographical films (individual works) › Drama films 1990s › Drama films early 1990s*\n\n*Initially written Oct 3, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*\n\n*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*\n\nLicense: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license\n", "same_as": [], "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/the-story-of-ermei", "markdown_url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/the-story-of-ermei.md", "license": { "name": "Edgepedia Community License 1.0", "url": "https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license", "summary": "Free with credit, commercial use included. AI training is open to everyone. For other uses, organizations over USD 100M in revenue or 100M monthly users license separately.", "spdx": "LicenseRef-Edgepedia-Community-1.0" }, "credit": "\"The Story of Ermei\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/the-story-of-ermei. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "credit_md": "\"[The Story of Ermei](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-story-of-ermei)\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), [https://www.edgepedia.org/the-story-of-ermei](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-story-of-ermei). [Edgepedia Community License 1.0](https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license).", "credit_html": "\"The Story of Ermei\", Edgepedia (EdgeChat), https://www.edgepedia.org/the-story-of-ermei. Edgepedia Community License 1.0.", "speakable": "The Story of Ermei is a 2003 Chinese drama by Wang Quanan about a 20-year-old peasant girl who flees an arranged marriage, works in a town, and returns; it won the 2003 Golden Rooster Award for Best Actress." }