In "Farewell My Concubine" Cheng Dieyi was played by Yin Zhi when she was a child.

Yin Zhi was born in 1976 in a five-generation opera family. He grew up learning opera from his parents in the alleys of Beijing. When he was in kindergarten, he sang opera when others sang. In elementary school, he drew opera when others did. For New Year's cards, he drew facial makeup. But Yin Zhi studied from Laosheng.

When filming the movie "Farewell My Concubine", Yin Zhi was only 16 years old. He was still studying opera at the Beijing Opera School at that time. Because he looked similar to Leslie Cheung, he was spotted by Chen Kaige. In the movie "Farewell My Concubine", the image of young Cheng Dieyi as "Little Douzi" has been deeply rooted in the hearts of the audience.

Extended information:

Because he was born in a Peking Opera family, Yin Zhi’s parents were very opposed to him becoming an actor. “I switched from Peking Opera to this, and I struggled for a while. But still Well, my parents’ attitude towards me is: It’s up to you to decide what’s suitable for you. Basically, I struggled for a while and finally stuck to my own ideas.”

In 1996, Yin Zhi once thought about becoming a monk and went to Wutai Mountain to experience life. However, he was strongly opposed by his family and failed to achieve his wish. After that, he took the college entrance examination and entered the directing major of the China Academy of Opera. In the observation class of his sophomore year of college, Yin Zhi understood his performance of "Farewell My Concubine" for the first time under the hot gazes of the classmates around him.

Reference: Baidu Encyclopedia - Yin Zhi