R

u

o

r

a

n

P

e

i

Ruoran Pei graduated from Jinan University with a bachelor’s degree in film directing and later received a master’s degree in intercultural cinema studies from the University of Pennsylvania. 

She is currently pursuing a PhD in History at SOAS University of London. A multilingual speaker with a background in film and communication, Ruoran also works as a curator and photographer. From the perspective of Cantonese regional history and gender studies, she explores the history of the zishunü women in the Pearl River Delta of Guangdong, China. Ruoran wrote the script for the historical dance drama The Last Zishunü based on the archetypal story of the unmarried filial daughters in Southern Guangdong, and has filmed and recorded interviews related to the last generation of this women’s group. 

Ruoran has accumulated over ten years of experience in the dissemination of Chinese language and culture through volunteering. She has traveled to Bulgaria to teach Chinese to Bulgarian high school students as a cultural volunteer for AIESEC China. Additionally, she possesses curatorial experience in East Asian cultural studies and was the sole external curator for Penn's art history program. 

She collaborated with a team of doctoral students to organize a successful exhibition of contemporary Japanese art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. She has also accumulated a year of experience working in the East Asian Collections of the University of Pennsylvania Library. She successfully completed the Harvard Business School online program, which requires a background check for admission, by passing the offline exam. 

Ruoran's doctoral research employs historical documentation and cultural heritage to explore the development of women's power and contemporary feminist thought, offering novel perspectives and methodologies for public engagement with regional and gender history through cultural communication and performing arts. She has utilized her proficiency in audio-visual media to contribute to numerous cross-border collaborations on Lingnan folk culture projects, demonstrating a commitment to enhancing the artistic diversity of these endeavors. 

During her doctoral studies, Ruoran engaged extensively with folklore and folk culture, conducting substantial field research and folk visits with numerous experts and scholars from the China Folk Literature and Artists Association. She participated in significant efforts to protect intangible heritage culture by rescuing and documenting it, integrating her interdisciplinary academic background in film, media, and historical studies. 

She believes that the purpose of studying history is not only to engage in discourse with scholars within the field, but also to disseminate public awareness about the research subject and the narratives associated with it. 

Ruoran Pei. Cinematic Style, Female Figure and Ideology in Lou Ye's Art Films. Art and Performance Letters (2023) Vol.Vol. 4: 30-37.     

Spinster Sisterhoods and Bing Yu Hall: An Exploration of the rise and fall of the culture of Spinster Sisterhoods and its historical significance to the current society. Chinese Literature and Art,2018(02):144-146.

Before long, Ruoran hopes to develop new academic cooperative topics. The following topics are of particular interest: the study of overseas Chinese diaspora;the study of migrants and their derivative cultures in the context of urban integration in the Pearl River Delta Economic Circle

• A Place Is a Sanctuary: Zishunü Sisterhoods of the Bingyutang (Pure and White Residence) 
• "Sense of Place": Contemporary Japanese Prints Exhibition (promo video)  
• A Place is Printed: Japanese Woodcut Print Demonstration with Daniel Heyman (demo video)
• Short Film "Le Temps de La Jeuness" 
• Short Film “The Dreamers”
• Short Film “A Busy Day”