United Artists presents the newest film from acclaimed Chinese filmmaker CHEN Kaige, best known in the West for such award-winning historical epics as the Oscar nominated FAREWELL MY CONCUBINE, TEMPTRESS MOON and THE EMPEROR AND THE ASSASSIN. TOGETHER has been selected as the Closing Night film of Los Angeles' Visual Communications Asian American Film Festival. It will have its New York premiere at the Tribeca International Film Festival and will be released by United Artists in New York and Los Angeles on May 30, followed by a national release.

A stirring new drama about the power of music, TOGETHER tells the story of Xiaochun, a talented young violinist from a provincial town who ventures to Beijing to further his opportunities, but who soon discovers that life in the brutally competitive world of classical music may not be for him. With his widowed father (LIU Peiqi) protectively by his side, the shy teen (TANG Yun, a real-life violin prodigy) encounters in Beijing a world unlike one he has ever known. After being rejected by a famed musical school due to bureaucratic snafus, he comes under the tutelage of two vastly different teachers-one, a reclusive but talented professor (WANG Zhiwen,) guides his gifted pupil toward a deeper understanding of how to play with feeling; the other, a savvy autocratic mentor famous for forging young talents into musicians of international renown, is played by CHEN Kaige himself. While pursuing his studies, Xioachun also experiences his first love, focusing his attentions on his hip, older, gold-digging neighbor, Lili, (a hilarious turn by Chen Kaige's real-life actress-wife, CHEN Hong).

A score by composer ZHAO Lin combines the best of East and West, mingling subtle Chinese strains with Western classical music to great effect. New York-based violinist Chuan Yun Li appears on the film soundtrack (Milan Records) and makes a cameo in the film as a young violinist destined for wide acclaim. After a successful early career in China, Chuan Yun Li moved to New York to study at the Juilliard School with Dorothy Delay and Itzhak Perlman.

TOGETHER marks CHEN's return to the more intimate, character-driven dramas -- like KING OF THE CHILDREN, THE BIG PARADE and YELLOW EARTH -- that established him as one of the most important "Fifth Generation" Mainland Chinese directors. But for all its warmth, humanity and sense of humor, the film also provides a subtle socio-political critique of contemporary China, which is pursuing modernization with a vengeance while sometimes forsaking the traditional importance of the family and the rich cultural heritage that made it one of the world's greatest civilizations.

For music press inquiries or to schedule interviews with director CHEN Kaige or violinist Chuan Yun Li, please call Milina Barry or Matthew Lyons at Milina Barry PR: 212.420.0200.

For film press inquiries, please call Sophie Gluck & Associates at 212.595.2432.

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