Film tribute to a music hero

Xian Xinghai is known in China for his work, Yellow River Cantata.

Shen, who also heads the weekly TV program World Film Report, then assigned reporters to study Xian, who's known in China for his masterpiece, Yellow River Cantata.

Then, through interviews, including meetings with Baykadamov's niece and Xian's daughter, he learned more about the musician and his work.

In May 1940, Xian was sent by the Communist Party of China to the former Soviet Union to compose scores for the documentary, Yan'an and the Eighth Route Army.

But the start of the Soviet Union's Great Patriotic War against Nazi Germany in 1941 made it difficult for Xian to return to China. He was stranded in Almaty, suffering poverty and sickness.

Baykadamov then helped Xian, providing him with a home, despite not knowing his true identity since Xian was then using an alias.

Xian then developed a sort of father-daughter relationship with Baykadamov's niece, then a primary school student, who taught him the local language.

Speaking about the movie, Shen says: "For them (the niece and Xian's daughter, both of whom are around 80 years old now), Composer is not only a movie but also a chance for them to see the person they both deeply love on the silver screen."