Being a Jury is more Nerve-wracking than Being a Contestant

Golden Wedding, the work of Zheng Xiaolong\'s and eventual winner of the Magnolia Award, was a big success at the last Shanghai TV Festival. Now, just one year later, Zheng has gone from festival contestant to jury chairman. When asked how he felt about his new post, the acclaimed director of Four Generations Under One Roof, Stories From the Editorial Board and Expectation, unexpectedly told us that he felt nervous. "The job is very stressful. It is really difficult to evaluate and select works that meet our artistic standards while still appealing to the audience."

Zheng watches all works submitted several weeks before the festival opens, and he confided to us that he thoroughly appreciated My Regiment Commander & My Regiment and Lurk, two early favorites for the festival awards. "Generally speaking, all the works this year are of high quality." He revealed nothing, however, when we pressed him further.  "I cannot tell you anything more right now." 

Zheng also realizes that because he is not the final decision maker, his personal favorite may not actually win. The final decision will be made by the  Jury Panel.  "We in the Jury Panel will first discuss and come up with the specific evaluating standards. My responsibility is to organize the discussion but not to give the final decision." As the jury chairman, his most important task is to collect and weigh different opinions. What happens if the jury panel cannot come to a consensus? "Then I guess the minority should be subordinate to the majority. The final result will depend on how the vote goes."

Last year Zheng\'s works was judged by others, but this year he will judge others\' works as the jury chairman.  He\'s still getting used to his new role. "I was actually more relaxed at the same time last year. I never expected to win so many awards, so my biggest worry was just preparing my speech for the TV Festival seminar."  With so much more responsibility this year, Zheng\'s exponentially more anxious for the start for the festival. "The working pressure is there. On the one hand, you\'ve got to see how each series stands on its own.  And on the other, you have to find a balance between picking the highest quality films and those that are most popular with the audience. It\'s not an easy job. I\'ve already got butterflies in my stomach." So what will the nervous jury chairman\'s eventual award list look like? It seems we\'ll have to wait until the closing ceremony to find out.