Abstract: As one of the contemporary emerging directors, Li Ruijun's works focus on a large number of "thing" narratives, including animals, plants, objects, landscapes, places and so on. As a whole, these "things" mainly present three narrative functions: things used
as symbols, referring to culture and characters, thus speaking the mind of the director; things used as agents, directly acting on the behaviors of characters and conflicts, thus promoting the narrative progression; things empowered with narrative halo, revealing the property of objects to build a narrative aesthetics that everything is living, everything is connected, and people are viewed by things, thus alerting the world. Li Ruijun's films endow "things" with the status of subject in the present time of "the turning of things", actively explores the relationship between people and“ things", and enlighten how to present "things" in films.

Key words: "thing" narrative, Li Ruijun, symbol, agent, halo