Upon his return to China, Li made his first non-documentary film, the critically acclaimed
Blind Shaft (2003). The film's bleak story of two murderous con-men plying their trade in China's dangerous mines proved a major success in the international film festival circuit. Critics particularly noted how Li’s background in documentaries showed through in the film's
Cinéma vérité and
Italian neorealist style, in particular Li's use of handheld cameras and an ambient sound soundtrack. In China, however, the film’s critical eye toward the notoriously dangerous mining industry proved controversial and
Blind Shaft was banned by the Beijing Film Bureau. However, neither the precise reasoning nor the length of the ban was made known to Li. After his ban, Li Yang split his time between
Hong Kong and Germany and gave at least one interview where he claimed, Despite his worries, the ban was eventually lifted and Li was allowed to begin work on his follow up to
Blind Shaft. Entitled
Blind Mountain (2007), it debuted at the
2007 Cannes Film Festival in the
Prix un certain regard competition and was one of only three Asian films vying for an award at the prestigious event. Like Li's previous film,
Blind Mountain turns a sharply critical eye towards another one of China's continuing social problems, this time the illegal selling of women for marriage.
Blind Mountain also shares the same realistic style as
Blind Shaft as seen in the latter film's cast of mostly non-professional actors and its use of
diegetic music. ==Awards and nominations==