First Sino-Kazakh film portrays last years of famed musician

Although Hu had limited knowledge about Xian's last years, he quickly started to dive into the story. And his parents were even more excited about their son's new big-screen incarnation. His father, Hu Baoshan, a singer with the People's Liberation Army arts troupe, told him that he should take the film as a great honor as Xian's music has influenced generations of Chinese.

Xirzat Yahup, who directs The Composer, had previously helmed Flower, a film recounting the legendary story of an ethnic Kazakh singer in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

"But The Composer is a more challenging job. We spent two years shooting scenes taking place in different seasons across three countries: China, Kazakhstan and Russia," he says.