By John Sexton

Beijing Olympic opening ceremony supremo, Zhang Yimou, may have raised eyebrows among overseas fans with remarks made to China's Southern Weekend newspaper on August 14. The director of movie hits like Raise the Red Lantern and House of Flying Daggers praised North Korean mass entertainments and hinted that trades unions would make it difficult for Western countries to match the clockwork precision of the Beijing ceremony.

"I used to joke with the performers saying, we are second best in the world. The North Koreans are number one. They are so orderly. Traditional, orderly movements create beauty," Zhang told the popular Guangdong newspaper.

"I once directed an opera in the West. What a hassle! We only worked four and a half days a week; there were twice daily coffee breaks, no overtime was allowed, and they would tolerate no discomfort at all, because of people's rights." he said.

"They have all sorts of organizations, trades unions. We work hard and train rigorously. The equivalent of a week's training here takes them a month".

At a press conference after the opening ceremony, Zhang said Beijing's four opening and closing ceremonies, for the Olympics and Paralympics, would cost less than the opening ceremony of the 2006 Asian Games in Qatar. "Of course they [Qatar] are very rich because of oil. We can have a good Olympics and still save money."

Chinese bloggers have speculated that Zhang Yimou was paid around 20 million yuan (US$2.92 million) for preparing the Olympic ceremonies but he has denied the allegation.

(China.org.cn August 22, 2008)