Assignment No. 1: Copying the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion One Thousand Times

About This Movie

Assignment No. 1 is this intriguing documentary that really captures the essence of dedication and the repetitive nature of artistic creation. Qiu Zhijie's five-year endeavor to replicate Wang Xizhi’s Lantingxu is almost meditative; you see each stroke of the brush, and it’s a slow reveal of how writing transforms. The ink starts off crisp and sharp but gradually becomes this dense, almost formless mass of black, which is striking. The pacing can feel drawn out, but that’s part of its charm—it's about the journey of creation rather than a traditional narrative. The atmosphere is quiet, contemplative, inviting you to reflect on art’s impermanence and the act of copying as a form of reverence. It’s fascinating how the text becomes illegible, challenging what we think about meaning in art.

Documentary on calligraphy and artExplores themes of repetition and meaningUnique visual transformation of text