NPR made me very happy today! On Fresh Air they have a piece about my most favorite working filmmaker, China’s Jia Zhangke.  Critic John Powers discusses the extraordinary Still Life and Jia’s work in general.

Jia is amazing, as Powers says, “It’s always hard to foresee how the future will judge today’s artists, but I do feel confident predicting one thing. In 100 years, people will still be interested in the films of Jia Zhangke, and I’m not sure I can say that about Twilight or Slumdog Millionaire.”

I would write more but think instead you should just takepart and listen to the piece.

Also, I’ve written about Jia a lot here on TakePart, so if you are in a reading mood, check out these pieces:

Jia Zhangke Tackles History, Memory and Workers

Jia Zhangke’s “The World” : Olympic Film Recommendation CHINA

Still Life, Images of a Changing China

*photo from marcokalmann’s flickr account