Experts in the News | Miller Center

How China is Changing the Way Hollywood Makes Movies

In this episode of The Negotiation, we speak with Aynne Kokas, Associate Professor of Media Studies at the University of Virginia., and author of the award-winning book "Hollywood Made in China." We cover a lot of ground in this 30-minute episode talking about the major players in the China cinema ecosystem, Hollywood’s tendency to self-censor to make sure they are kosher with the PRC, and whether this influences the types of movies getting funded or even the writing and casting. Naturally, we turned our attention to the release of Mulan in Chinas theatres this weekend and talk about the tepid response it received there and why, as well as any impact the impending ban on TikTok or WeChat might have on the movie industry in China.

Aynne Kokas

'The Hardest Job in the World: The American Presidency'

Join renowned journalist John Dickerson for a conversation about his new book, The Hardest Job in the World: The American Presidency, moderated by Miller Center Director Bill Antholis. In this eye-opening book, Dickerson writes about presidents in history such as Washington, Lincoln, FDR, and Eisenhower, and in contemporary times—LBJ, Reagan, Bush, Obama, and Trump—to show how a complex job has been done and why we need to reevaluate what we expect from them once they are in office.

William Antholis

Moderators Hold the Center of Debate Stage

Jim Lehrer holds the record for moderating 12 presidential debates. In 1996 and 2000, the late anchor of the “PBS NewsHour” moderated all three debates. “Some of the tips that Jim Lehrer had, for example, if somebody says, ‘I've got a seven-point plan for that.’ He would say, ‘Well, give me your first three points,” said Mary Kate Cary, a senior fellow at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center, where she saw Lehrer lead a workshop on moderating debates. Cary said Lehrer explained that “if you ask a long and complicated question, you will get a long and complicated answer.”

Mary Kate Cary

US-China Relations: Where We're Headed, with Evan A. Feigenbaum

Evan A. Feigenbaum is vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he oversees research in Washington, Beijing and New Delhi on a dynamic region encompassing both East Asia and South Asia. He is also the 2019-20 James R. Schlesinger Distinguished Professor at the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia. Initially an academic with a PhD in Chinese politics from Stanford University, Feigenbaum’s career has spanned government service, think tanks, the private sector, and three major regions of Asia.

Evan Feigenbaum

JFK: Coming of Age in the American Century, 1917-1956

Barbara Perry moderates a discussion for the National History Center about Fredrik Logevall's new book

Barbara Perry

Imagined as a Blockbuster in China, ‘Mulan’ Fizzles

“The way the villains are discussed, the placeless-ness of the west of China, the sumptuousness and the perfection of the imperial city — there’s this rewriting in order to fit a very specific imperial narrative,” Aynne Kokas, the author of “Hollywood Made in China,” said in a telephone interview. “Hollywood has a very illustrious history of making faceless, Turkic villains itself, so it’s almost the perfect collaboration.”

Aynne Kokas