In 1991, as China undergoes sweeping socio-economic changes that drive many to leave their rural villages in pursuit of work in the cities, 10-year-old Chuang, the third child of his family, must remain in the village due to family plans. Against the backdrop of modernization, as the advent of technology reshapes their traditional way of life, cycles of births, deaths, marriages, and funerals reveal the enduring weight of tradition and the pressures of balancing familial responsibilities with a rapidly changing world.
Huo Meng
He was born in Taikang, Henan Province, China in 1984. He first studied law at the Communication University of China before embarking on a master’s degree in cinema at the same institution. In 2018, he made his first fiction feature ‘Crossing the border – Zhaoguan’, which won the Pingyao International Film Festival Fei Mu Award for Best Director, the Fajr International Film Festival Best Asian Director award, and a Best Director nomination at the Golden Rooster Film Festival. Selected by director Jia Zhang-ke, the film was screened at the 70th Berlinale as part of the ‘On Transmission’ special program. His second feature film, Living the Land’ (2025), won him the Silver Bear for best director at the Berlin Film Festival.
DIRECTOR
Huo Meng
SCREENPLAY
Huo Meng
CINEMATOGRAPHY
Guo Daming
EDITOR
Huo Meng
SOUND
Li Tao
MUSIC
Wan Jianguo
PRODUCTION
Zhang Fan, Zhu Xi, Zhai Miaomao, Liu Yi, Li Xinran
PRODUCTION COMPANY
Shanghai Film Group, Phoenix Legend Films, Floating Light (Foshan) Film and Culture, Bad Rabbit Pictures, Lian Ray Pictures
CAST
Wang Shang, Zhang Yanrong, Zhang Chuwen, Zhang Caixia, Yang Kaidong, Wan Zhong, Liu Hongai, Cao Lingzhi
