According to Chinese media, veteran actor Tang Guoqiang has recently attracted attention for his diligence and hard work at the age of 73.
Not only filming for variety shows, Duong Quoc Cuong also participates in the short film race that is booming in China.
At the end of February, the actor appeared at the opening ceremony of the short film about Nazi spying "Vo danh gia chi quang". Duong Quoc Cuong dressed simply, a dark coat paired with a black vest, jeans and a baseball cap, looking very approachable.
He also spontaneously read a fun poem right at the scene, with the content: "Spring comes early in Hengdian, new vertical screen filming begins".
Vo danh gia chi quang" is set in Shanghai in the 1930s, revolving around intellectual battles in the intelligence world, secret lists disputes and conflicts of trust between clans.
Compared to familiar motifs in short films such as the story of "love" or "reversing fate", this work has a clearer historical and political color.
Duong Quoc Cuong does not play the main role, but is the father of the character played by young actor Luu Tieu Huc. His experience is considered an important source of supplementation for the acting system of short films.
However, Tang Guozhang was once a famous face of Chinese cinema, famous for the role of soldier Zhao Yongsheng in "Little Flower", to Zhuge Liang in "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" (1994), then Emperor Yongzheng in "The Yongzheng Dynasty" - all roles are classified as classics.
Therefore, his entry into the short film market at the age of over 70 has caused controversy.
A part of the audience said Duong Quoc Cuong "cannot maintain his reputation in his old age", taking on all jobs for money. But there are also people who defend him, saying that veteran actors trying their hand in new fields are not worthy of condemnation.
Audiences also recalled Duong Quoc Cuong's previous views on short films. He once frankly criticized that short films today "overly focus on attracting attention, but ignore rationality and authenticity", which made him feel very regretful.
Currently, Duong Quoc Cuong is filming short films again, so he is ridiculed by many people.
But according to the media, this was just his point of view from a year ago. Duong Quoc Cuong has changed his perspective as the short film develops and is very different from before.
He compares long films to marathons, while short films are like a 100-meter sprint for young people. According to him, the pace of short films is very fast, there is no fixed pattern, even the difficulty is higher, because actors must in extremely short time express the core of the character just through a few scenes. Older people in the industry like him should also "learn how to run after young people".
Roles are not divided into large or small, the heart is great, the stage is big," this is Duong Quoc Cuong's current attitude. Even, he proposed that short films need to be combined with AI technology, using technology to support content.
The media analyzed that at the age of 73, Duong Quoc Cuong still decided to act in short films for many reasons.
The most speculative is "for the family". Duong Quoc Cuong's two children both have defects: the eldest son has congenital visual impairment; the second son suffers from scoliosis, and also has difficulty hearing and language.
The illness of his two sons is like a "money-burning machine", creating economic pressure on Duong Quoc Cuong.
Besides, other opinions suggest that Tang Guozhang really sees the enormous potential of short films. According to data, the scale of the short film (micro-drama) market in China in 2025 has exceeded 70 billion RMB.
Not only him, many other famous artists have also participated such as Liu Xiaoqing, Jet Li, Zhou Tao, Zhou Shimou, Wu Gang...
More importantly, short films are undergoing a transformation from "running after traffic" to "pursuing quality".
Audiences are tired of unreasonable content and awkward acting, and are starting to want truly quality performances. The participation of experienced actors like Duong Quoc Cuong partly fills that gap.
