Xu Xinfu

Xu Xinfu (; 1897 8 May 1965) was a Chinese director and producer. Born in Jiangyin, Jiangsu, he moved to Shanghai for schooling. In 1921, he became involved in the production of Yan Ruisheng, considered the first feature-length film in mainland China. Over subsequent decades, he was involved with numerous films with Shanghai-based companies, mostly Mingxing. Towards the end of the Chinese Civil War, he travelled to Taiwan on a filmmaking project; when his backer pulled funding, he sold his own property to fund the production of. Xu remained active in Taiwan through the 1950s, with his film Women in the Army submitted to the 1954 Southeast Asian Film Festival.

Biography Early career Xu was born in Jiangyin, Jiangsu, in 1897. He attended school at the Collège Saint Ignace in Xujiahui, graduating in 1920. With Gu Kenfu and he established a film studies group. In 1921, Xu was involved in the production of Ren Pengnian's film Yan Ruisheng. Working with Gu Kenfu and Chen Shouzhi , he adapted the notorious murder case into what has been identified as the first feature-length film produced in mainland China. while the latter co-directed with Wang Yu was submitted to the inaugural Southeast Asian Film Festival in Tokyo in 1954. In the 1950s, Xu took several office roles. He was the director of the 's Taichung office, remaining in that role after the corporation was merged with the Taiwan Film Company to form the Central Motion Picture Corporation. He also took several consulting roles. Films he completed later in the 1950s included Sun Moon Lake and Sword of the Lone Star in the Cold Night (both 1956). Xu died in Hong Kong on 8 May 1965.

Analysis Writing for the Encyclopaedia of China, Sun Chengjian describes Xu as pioneering the detective genre in Shanghai cinema. Plot elements such as gangsters, police, and spies were used to cultivate a sense of suspense, something that was emulated by Xu's peers.

Partial filmography

Yan Ruisheng (, 1921) Battle Exploits (, 1925) Three Swords of Love (, 1931) Who is the Hero? (, 1931) Blood Debt (, 1932) The Uprising (, 1933) The Classic for Girls (, 1934) Passionate and Loyal Soul (, 1935) The Disappearing Corpse (1937) The Pearl Tunic (, 1938) Butterfly Love Flower (, 1938) The Radio Station Murders (, 1939)

Charlie Chan Smashes an Evil Plot (, 1941) Gunshots in a Rainy Evening (, 1941) Clairvoyance (, 1942) Pink Bomb (, 1947) Shadows in an Ancient House (, 1948) Beauty's Blood (, 1948) Charlie Chan Matches Wits With the Prince of Darkness (1948) (, 1950) Never to Part (, 1951) Women in the Army (, 1952) Sun Moon Lake (, 1956) Sword of the Lone Star in the Cold Night (, 1956)