寒假 | Winter Vacation

An ordinary village in Northern China, the last day of the winter vacation. Four idle, aimless adolescents gather at Zhou Zhixin’s home, a friend who lives with his father, brother and nephew. Like most contemporary teenagers, these youths want to enjoy their last day of holiday and simply hang out in this place where nothing ever seems likely to happen. Their conversations are desultory and they sometimes seem to argue for argument’s sake. One of them, Laowu, talks frankly with his girlfriend about how teenage love might affect their studies, while Laobao questions school’s value and relevance to real life.

Directed by Hongqi Li | Starring : Jinfeng Bai, Lei Bao, Hui Wang, Ying Xie, Naqi Zhang | Presented at Locarno Film Festival, Vancouver Film Festival, London Film Festival, Mar del Plata Film Festival, Thessaloniki Film Festival, Rotterdam Film Festival, Hong Kong Film Festival, Wisconsin Film Festival, Melbourne Film Festival, San Sebastian Film Festival

黄金周 | Routine Holiday

A father takes his son to observe an empty field, and then to visit a neighbour, who is soon visited by other reticent characters, including a man who is a little violent, and another next-door neighbour who has fallen ill. Between haunting periods of silence reminiscent of Beckett’s existential plays, the characters discuss why they are alive. Then one of them decides to slap the other in the face. The little boy, however, is less interested in the forlorn adults around him than in the strange contents of his bucket. Poet and novelist Li Hongqi’s new movie takes a voyeuristic and melancholy glimpse into the suburban lives of his characters to cast light on a quiet thread of restlessness that connects us all.

Directed by Hongqi Li | Starring : Yang Bo, Xiao He, Duo Yu | Presented at Pusan Film Festival, London Film Festival