A drama spanning two decades at the New Zealand Chinese Film Festival

A film by acclaimed independent director Jia Zhangke is making its national premiere ahead of its official release in China at the opening of the New Zealand Chinese Film Festival on Sunday.

Captured by the tideswhich captures significant changes in Chinese society in footage shot over more than two decades in a non-linear manner, has been selected for the main competition of this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

The Palme d’Or contender is made up of 22 years of footage from Jia’s previous work. It is scheduled to be released in China over a period of 22 days, on November 22.

The film follows a working-class woman named Qiao Qiao (played by Zhao Tao) as she travels from a small town in northeastern China to reunite with a former manager with whom she had a relationship in a personal journey of growth, awakening and transformation.

The 111-minute screening includes popular musical references from the past two decades.

“We are delighted that Captured by the tides will be the opening film of the third New Zealand Chinese Film Festival,” the organizer said, adding that he hoped audiences would find their own interpretation of it.

A total of seven Chinese-language films will be screened in festival cinemas until November 24.

All screenings have Chinese and English subtitles, making them accessible to English-speaking and Mandarin-speaking audiences.

“A Glimpse of the Heart”

Bo He, founder of the New Zealand Chinese Film Festival, has been promoting Chinese-language films for more than a decade.

He, commonly called “Bobo” by the Chinese community, has long strived to promote intercultural dialogue within the country’s diverse communities through cinema.

To that end, the 45-year-old has taken steps to improve film quality and audience engagement at the festival.

Originally from the province of Sichuan, the founder of the festival has been passionate about cinema since his childhood.

He says he was inspired by the way Captured by the tides documents the reforms experienced by a generation of Chinese over more than two decades.

Throughout this period, the film addresses themes of family, homeland and immigration.

As Zhao gives no lines in the script, the film engages the audience in a silent dialogue across time and space.

“(It’s) a glimpse into the world, a glimpse into the heart, and a never-ending reflection,” he says.

He says the first three years of the festival were difficult, with many working pro bono and collaboratively.

Tian Gan is proud to oversee the content selection, planning and overall execution of the festival.

Putting together titles that focus on certain themes is always a challenge, Gan says, but one she’s overcome.

“We hope to bring to New Zealand works that truly reflect the transformation and cultural essence of contemporary China, providing Eastern and Western audiences with a pure cinematic experience that transcends language and race,” reads a written blurb. by Gan on the official festival website.

“When the bonds of our common human destiny expand, these moments of cultural understanding, fusion and universal love will naturally occur.”

Other films to watch

The titles selected for the festival were all created from the point of view of a woman or by creators in line with this year’s theme: “woman in flow”.

The cord of life

Qiao Sixue’s debut film was produced by famous actress Yao Chen and guided by an experienced cinematographer.

The story centers on a mother with Alzheimer’s disease and her son, exploring the deep relationships we have with our parents and our homeland through a deeply spiritual narrative.

The cord of life was nominated for Best Asian Future Film at the 2022 Tokyo International Film Festival.

Send me to the clouds

Send me to the clouds follows Sheng Nan (played by Yao Chen), an independent and ambitious woman in search of true love while facing life’s challenges alone. At a crossroads of life and death, she reconciles with the world on her own terms through repeated cycles of hope and despair.

The film is a landmark work in pioneering female-centered Chinese cinema. It won the Critics’ Award for Best Screenplay at the 2020 Dublin International Film Festival and the Annual Newcomer Award at the 2023 Shanghai Film Critics’ Awards.

Famous director Teng Congcong is expected to participate in a question-and-answer session after the screening of this film.

Like the winds, like the weeds

After years of separation, Xiaomei has distanced herself from her past and her hometown of Cangshan, working as a domestic helper in Shanghai while caring for her mother, who has dementia, and her rebellious teenage son.

Following the many difficulties she encounters in a foreign city, she decides to return to her hometown, only to discover that it has been renamed.

Zhang Fan Like the winds, like the weeds is a story of survival: a mother fleeing her present, an elder forgetting her past and a child wondering about the future.

Have fun

Kang Bo’s Have fun starts with a couple – Luo Yu (played by Xiao Yang) and Bai Hui (played by Song Jia) – who are in a period of reflection before their divorce.

Working in their jobs as lawyers and doctors, the two men become embroiled in a court case involving the custody of an embryo. As the end of their reflection period approaches, they begin to gain new perspectives on themselves, their marriage, and their family.

Wave Sonata

Ma Xue’s Wave Sonata follows three individuals who cross paths in a peaceful seaside town pursuing different dreams. The lure of an idyllic surfing lifestyle brings them together, but beneath the surface, the surf shop owner harbors a hidden secret.

Football on the roof

Fei Yu Football on the roof takes place in a remote village deep in the mountains of Yunnan. It follows the story of two young sisters searching for their mother and a drunken fruit seller who join forces to form a rooftop soccer team against all odds. Driven by their dreams, they fight to change their destiny and ultimately become stronger through their shared journey.

The New Zealand Chinese Film Festival runs from November 17 to 24. For more information, visit official website.