Audiences often attribute the success of a film and television work to the efforts of the leading actors, but the red flowers must be matched by the green leaves, and the wonderful performances of the supporting actors cannot be ignored.
She is the grandmother of Minglan in " Do you know whether it should be green, fat, red and thin ", and is Fan Xian's grandmother in "Celebrating More Than Years". Although
doesn't have many roles, it adds more details to the protagonist.
Her career as an actress was not smooth. She only won the Best Actress Award at the age of 52, and most of the roles she received since then were supporting roles.
Her marriage was not a perfect one, and she missed the best opportunity to become a mother.
has played many roles such as mothers, grandmothers, and grandmothers, but in reality she has no children.
A play makes an actor, this sentence is a wise saying in the film and television industry.
However, 90% of actors are not so lucky. Some have not even played the leading role many times in decades. They can only rely on their persistence, skills and perseverance to become known to the audience little by little.
Cao Cuifen is one of these actors.
In 1944, Cao Cuifen was born in a small alley in Shanghai.
Parents are not rich people and cannot give their children a wealthy life. What they can give is a sincere heart and selfless love.
Cao Cuifen, who grew up surrounded by love, is cheerful and lively, bringing a lot of happiness to the entire alley. Many neighbors like to touch her head and affectionately call her "Little Pistachio".
Old Beijing has a rich cultural atmosphere. You can often hear people humming ditties when walking on the streets. You can also see street folk artists dancing on the spot when they come to the theater.
The little Cao Cuifen was fascinated by what she saw. Her parents also liked culture and art very much, but their hobbies cannot be used as food. Compared with living, these are not important.
Her father held Cao Cuifen and walked towards home. The little girl lay on her father's shoulder, her eyes full of yearning.
Cao Cuifen is talented in art. When she saw others performing on the street, she would hum and imitate them for her mother when she got home.
The child's voice is immature and his body is a little clumsy. The performance brought out a bit of comedy, making the mother laugh.
Cao Cuifen was annoyed by the laughter and said several times that she would never perform for her mother again, but it didn't take long for her to run back to her mother.
Unknowingly, the imprint of performing arts on Cao Cuifen's heart became deeper and deeper, but her parents were not aware of it at this time.
After attending school, the school often held various activities. Cao Cuifen actively participated in them, leaving her presence on almost every stage.
Many students will be very nervous when standing on the stage and don’t know where to look.
But Cao Cuifen is different. She enjoys the feeling of the audience's gaze. Sometimes she even makes eye contact with the audience, which is like a duck in water.
The more she performed, the more Cao Cuifen wanted to learn art. However, at that time, the thinking of the older generation had not changed. They felt that learning art was just a means to please others.
Cao Cuifen was afraid that her parents would also have this idea, so she hesitated to express her feelings to them.
Especially her grades are not bad. If she proceeds step by step, she will be admitted to a good university in the future.
Will parents agree to give up a bright road and choose a path that leads to nowhere?
Unexpectedly, the parents did not object immediately, but had a profound exchange.
Speaking of which, half of the reason why Cao Cuifen likes acting is due to her parents' genes.
My parents also liked romance when they were young, but later lost to reality and buried this feeling deep in their hearts.
They understand this love, after all, they have also been throbbing with it, but this is not a trivial matter, it is related to the future direction of their daughter's life, and it cannot be decided by just a word of love and a long time.
Cao Cuifen did not make a hot-headed or impulsive decision.
She learned that Beijing Film Academy had a preparatory class. After being admitted to this preparatory class for a period of professional study, she could officially transfer to an undergraduate degree.
Seeing that her daughter is fully prepared, it is difficult for a parent to say anything except "agree".
In 1960, 16-year-old Cao Cuifen was successfully admitted to the preparatory class of the Performance Department of Beijing Film Academy. After
received two years of professional acting knowledge, she officially entered the undergraduate class to study. However, learning acting is not an easy task. Not only must she improve her acting skills, but she must also train her body.
Even if Cao Cuifen has good talent, she still faces great difficulties - her appearance is slightly ordinary compared to others.
This is a point that makes Cao Cuifen very hurt.
She also knew that her appearance was not an advantage, so she worked hard to hone her acting skills.
But the result was not what he had imagined. Cao Cuifen got into trouble and became negative.
What brought Cao Cuifen back to normal was Tan Tianqian. They met in the preparatory class and later worked together to enter the undergraduate program. The two formed a deep friendship.
In order to relieve Cao Cuifen's negative emotions, Tan Tianqian often took her out to play. This friendship gradually deteriorated as they got along day after day, and the seeds of love began to sprout.
Cao Cuifen can get out of her negative emotions. The company of her boyfriend is only one aspect.
What's more important is that she figured out a truth : Although her appearance is relatively ordinary and she may not be good at playing a heroine, a film and television work is not supported by the protagonist alone, there are also some supporting characters who are also shining.
What Cao Cuifen enjoys is the process of acting. What she likes is the identity of an actor, not the protagonist.
Every actor should work hard towards the goal of becoming the protagonist, but it does not mean that he cannot act if he cannot become the protagonist. This is putting the cart before the horse.
After thinking about this clearly, Cao Cuifen quickly adjusted her mentality.
In 1966, Cao Cuifen officially graduated from the Beijing Film Academy, which was also the year she married Tan Tianqian.
The love at that time was very pure. When two people fall in love, they will spend their whole lives together.
Unfortunately, it didn't take long for the ordinary and happy life to catch up with the special period, and both of them went to the countryside to receive labor education.
Cao Cuifen was assigned to Yu County and planted rice for many years. Don't look down on this experience, it will help Cao Cuifen a lot in the future.
In 1973, Cao Cuifen and her husband finally returned to Beijing, and they worked together at Beijing Film Studio.
Coincidentally, the movie " " is recruiting roles, and a rural woman character "Sister-in-law Yonggui" has not yet found a suitable person.
After many years of farm work, no one understands the state of rural women better than Cao Cuifen, so she decisively signed up for the audition.
The tribulations of the past have polished the gem of Cao Cuifen to crystal clear. Her performance made the director shine and he said on the spot: "She is the one."
Cao Cuifen thus started a new starting point for her acting career.
During the 17 years from 1973 to 1990, Cao Cuifen participated in many movies, but they all appeared in supporting roles.
Just as she had worried before, her appearance was not outstanding, and since she was in her thirties or forties, it would be even more difficult for her to become a starring role.
Cao Cuifen is not sad. She feels that she is very satisfied to continue working in her favorite entertainment industry.
's tepid status lasted until she cooperated with Zhang Yimou .
In 1991, the casting process for "Raise the Red Lantern " directed by Zhang Yimou began, and Cao Cuifen also participated.
The first meeting between the two was not pleasant. When Zhang Yimou saw her at first sight, he thought she was too ordinary. How could such an ordinary face be on the big screen?
Zhang Yimou also bluntly said : "You can't be popular with your looks."
At this time, Cao Cuifen was already 46 years old, and she was past the age where she would storm out and leave the table just because of a single word.
She calmly said to Zhang Yimou : "Director, how about you watch my performance and then decide."
If you take a look, you won't lose anything. At most, you will waste a few minutes. Zhang Yimou motioned for her to start performing.
As soon as Cao Cuifen entered the state, she seemed to be a different person, her aura immediately lifted, making people stare at her involuntarily.
Zhang Yimou watched her performance intently. At the end, he patted his thigh and immediately rushed to her to ask when he could join the group.
Cao Cuifen has the strength, Zhang Yimou has the vision, and with the cooperation of Gong Li, He Saifei, and others, "Raise the Red Lantern" became a hit as soon as it was released, and Cao Cuifen's career went to the next level.
Film appointments continued. Cao Cuifen did not expect that this would happen to her. What surprised her even more was that she finally got the opportunity to star in the film.
In 1995, the movie " Orphan Tears " in which she starred was released to rave reviews. The audience did not hesitate to applaud and gave sincere praise to the actress who was over fifty years old.
In 1996, Cao Cuifen won the "Best Actress" award at the 2nd China Film Huabiao Awards for "Orphan Tears".
She was already 52 years old that year. Although her achievement came later, it finally came. Cao Cuifen's long-awaited dream came true.
In 2005, Cao Cuifen played the role of the mother-in-law in " Seven Nights " starring Jiang Qinqin.
later played the role of mother-in-law in "Six Sisters of Yimeng".
Later, most of the roles Cao Cuifen received were either mother-in-law or aunt.
Cao Cuifen is older, and she is very Buddhist-like when filming.
Most of the roles she plays are grandmothers and mother-in-law. She doesn't have many roles, but she is the highlight of the work.
Her most popular role in recent years is the role of the grandmother in "Do You Know Should Be Green, Fat, Red and Slim" with Zhao Liying .
Zhao Liying starred as her granddaughter, and the two had many rivalry scenes in the play.
As we all know, Zhao Liying's acting skills are among the best among actresses born in 1985. This time she partnered with teacher Cao Cuifen and contributed many wonderful scenes.
The most impressive thing is the scene where she sends her granddaughter Minglan to get married.
vividly demonstrated a grandmother's reluctance and hope that her granddaughter could live a happy life, moving countless people to tears.
Her appearance made the role of Old Mrs. Sheng fuller and contributed to the success of this TV series.
In the TV series, Mrs. Sheng is full of descendants, but in real life, Teacher Cao Cuifen has no children.
It’s not that she doesn’t like children or that she doesn’t want to have children, it’s just that she misses the opportunity to have children every time due to various reasons.
When she and her husband Tan Tianqian returned to Beijing after completing their labor education, they wanted to create a love affair between them, but they happened to meet Cao Cuifen in a movie.
If you want to have a child, you must give up the movie "War in the South".
finally made a new start in his career. Cao Cuifen didn't want to give up this opportunity, and Tan Tianqian didn't want to delay his wife's development, so they had to put the plan on hold for the time being.
Later, Cao Cuifen's career continued to rise, and her husband also had his own movies to shoot. The two of them spent less time together and separated more, and even if they wanted to have children, they never had the chance.
Until the two of them are in their 40s, they will really have no chance if they don't have children. Cao Cuifen has great risks in getting pregnant and having children at this age, but she still wants to give it a try.
Therefore, the two agreed to fully prepare for pregnancy after filming "Orphan Tears". Unexpectedly, it was not her who had the problem this time, but her husband Tan Tianqian.
During the filming of "Orphan Tears", Tan Tianqian fell seriously ill.
Originally, Tan Tianqian didn't want to disturb his wife's filming, thinking it was just a minor illness that would be cured in a few days, but as a result, he was sent to the hospital as soon as he was delayed. When
learned the news, Cao Cuifen was filming in Shanxi, which was far away from Beijing. She couldn't abandon the entire crew willfully and delay everyone's progress, so she didn't go back.
It was not until three months later that she finally completed all her work before she returned to Beijing eager to return.
A serious illness tortured her husband so much that he was reduced to a human shape and reduced to just skin and bones. Cao Cuifen was heartbroken and shed tears on the spot.
On the contrary, the sick husband comforted Cao Cuifen: "Why are you crying? The doctor said everything is fine. Just rest for a while."
Before, she could not stay with her husband because of work, but now that she is home, she can say nothing. Refuse to leave again.
She put her work on hold and decided not to work until her husband recovered.
As people get older, what they fear most is getting sick, especially serious illnesses, which can damage a person's fundamentals.
Tan Tianqian is already quite old. Coupled with this serious illness, it will be good if his body can basically recover. As for giving birth to a child, there is really no way.
However, Cao Cuifen doesn't particularly care. Having children depends on fate. Maybe she and her husband are destined not to have children in this life.
In the end, the two of them accepted the reality and supported each other through this life, which was probably not bad.
By 2022, Teacher Cao Cuifen will be 78 years old.
What makes people happy is that her body is still very healthy and strong.
also participated in the filming of the TV series "Mature Years" in September last year.
Looking back on her ups and downs life, there are high moments and low valleys and cliffs.
She overcame one difficulty after another with her passion, and finally presented these characters to us.
Although Teacher Cao Cuifen has no children, most of the roles she plays as mother-in-law, grandma or mother are very emotional.
Whether it is Mrs. Fan who was "kissed to unlock her eyebrows" by her grandson in "Celebrating More Than Years", or Mrs. Sheng who domineeringly protects her granddaughter in "Do You Know Is She Should Be Green, Fat, Red and Slender", Teacher Cao Cuifen's performance every time Every detail is taken care of, but it can touch people's hearts inadvertently.
She is a simple and down-to-earth veteran actress, who adheres to a meticulous attitude to figure out the role no matter how big or small it is.
She has not played any gorgeous roles in her acting career, but she has given soul to every role.
