27 Jun– It was revealed that Gong Li's "Painting Soul" (also known as "A Soul Haunted by Painting") was the latest classic film to be restored by Jaeger-LeCoultre as part of its film restoration partnership with the Shanghai International Film Festival (SIFF). The 1994 movie, helmed by Huang Shuqin and adapted from a novel by Shi Nan, stars Gong as Chinese artist Pan Yuliang - the first Chinese woman to paint in Western style. The restoration, which was aided by Huang's son, filmmaker Zheng Dasheng, rectified and improved many errors including degradation and blinking issues, as well as other elements including image contrast and painting texture, according to Malaysia Tatler.
The 1986 Jiang Wen-starrer "Hibiscus Town" was another title that was restored at the recent SIFF. Prior to "Painting Soul" and "Hibiscus Town", other classic movies that were also given similar treatment include John Woo's "A Better Tomorrow" and the Anita Yuen-starrer, "C'est La Vie, Mon Cheri".