In China, fans and media outlets have claimed Zhao’s Golden Globe win as their own. But the “Nomadland” director’s background defies national and cultural borders.
Chloé Zhao made history on Sunday when she became the first woman of Asian descent to win a Golden Globe for best director. She is now considered a front-runner for an Oscar.
In China, fans and media outlets were celebrating, claiming Zhao as one of their own. Social media was awash with hashtags that referred to her as “China’s first Golden Globe winner.” “The pride of China!” proclaimed the Global Times tabloid.
But the celebratory mood was quickly dampened by questions over Zhao’s nationality and whether China could claim her victory as theirs.
Zhao was born in Beijing but went abroad for school at age 15. In an interview, she told Vogue that she felt “constricted” by the culture in China.
On the Chinese internet, people latched onto past interviews that the Nomadland director gave, in which she described feeling out of place in China and called the U.S. her home.
“I wanted to strip away all the identities I’d built up, to go somewhere where nobody knew who I was so I could figure out who I am.”
Commenters responded with the kind of pent-up nationalist sentiment now commonplace on sites like Weibo.
“She complains that she felt ‘limited’ by China’s political climate and that she was full of political consciousness,” wrote one commenter. “Now she wants to use her awards halo to demonstrate her superiority in China?” (Nomadland has been approved for release in China.)
(Read more: Why ‘The Farewell’ flopped in the Chinese box office, despite winning a Golden Globe)
Perhaps it’s best not to credit Zhao’s win to the achievements of any one country, place, or culture, but to the enduring tenacity of an individual who has spent her life navigating different worlds.
Zhao was raised in Beijing but went to boarding school in the U.K. and came of age in L.A.’s Koreatown. She claims Wong Kar-wai and Hollywood Westerns as her inspiration. Her film is about nomads who trade the stability of a home for the freedom of life on the road—a sentiment with which Zhao can certainly relate.
In that sense, it’s hard for any one country to claim the director as their own. I’ll end with a quote she gave to Vogue on why she made Nomadland: “I wanted to strip away all the identities I’d built up,” she said, “to go somewhere where nobody knew who I was so I could figure out who I am.
“When you get carried away by life in China or New York, you stop being sure whether you’re living the life you want to live or just the life you stumbled into.”
I think we can all relate to that.
This quick take was originally published in the Goldthread newsletter. To stay on top of the latest China trends, subscribe here.
