Xie Fang, one of the first big movie stars of New China, passed away at 89 in a Beijing hospital on Thursday, sparking widespread mourning.

Born in Wuhan in Central China's Hubei province in 1935, Xie exhibited artistic talent at a young age and joined a local artistic troupe as an actress in 1951.

In 1959, after developing her onstage skills, Xie distinguished herself from other actresses in a nationwide casting to portray Lin Daojing, a young woman who transforms from a timid student to a resolute revolutionist in Song of Youth, a film adapted from writer Yang Mo's best-selling novel of the same name. The film became a massive success, with Lin's iconic attire — a blue qipao and white scarf — setting a trend among female audiences.

During an early interview with China Central Television, Xie recalled attending two rounds of auditions for the role. The filming took almost six months, and 400 scenes — two-thirds of the scenes — featured her character. Director Cui Wei required that the role blend artistic temperament with revolutionary fervor.

With the blockbuster paving her way to the silver screen, Xie joined the Beijing Film Studio in 1963, acting in over 50 movies and TV series spanning more than half a century. Her most notable works include Early Spring (1963), Two Stage Sisters (1964) and The Second Handshake (1980).