From The Asian Pacific Post:
Gong Li (巩俐)grew up in Jinan, the capital of Shandong Province. She was accepted to the Beijing Central College of Drama（中央戏剧学院） in 1985 and graduated in 1989.
She was still a student there when Zhang Yimou chose her in 1987 for the lead role in his first film as a director, Red Sorghum, which was awarded the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival.[full text]
