Xue yun

Absence
As Han Jiangyu focuses his attention on the dead fish and the lobsters slowly dying on the grill, he asks his childhood friend Kei if the animals have a soul. Kei’s business is booming. The island of Hainan, to which Jiangyu has returned after ten years in prison, has changed dramatically. It has become a flagship site of intensive housing construction – and therefore also a paradise for rip-offs and fraud. Jiangyu also meets his old love again. She now has a daughter. Could the girl be his? Together with his central character – a marvellous performance from Lee Kang-Sheng, who even manages to crack a smile – debut director Wu Lang searches for traces of the old and familiar in the new. The camera captures his wanderings through various places with very little grandstanding but abundant sensitivity for people in spaces, relationships in limbo and societies in flux. Almost every shot is unexpected and seems unspectacular at first, yet the delicate way with which they unfold always contains, alongside visual precision, the urge to tell a story (without words). One such story being that every reunion is also a farewell.
by Wu Lang
with Lee Kang-Sheng, Li Meng, Ren Ke, Liang Wanling
People’s Republic of China 2023 Mandarin 100’ Colour World premiere | Debut film

With

  • Lee Kang-Sheng (Han Jiangyu)
  • Li Meng (Su Hong)
  • Ren Ke (Chen Kai)
  • Liang Wanling (Yao Yao)

Crew

Director Wu Lang
Screenplay Wu Lang
Cinematography Deng Xu
Editing Qin Yanan
Music Ding Ke
Sound Design Li Danfeng
Sound Du Chunfeng
Production Design Li Xinhe
Costumes Quan Furen
Make-Up Chen Xixi
Casting Xi Mingjun
Assistant Director Li Juan
Production Manager Chen Yilie
Producer Dun He
Co-Producers Liao Xiaorui, Chen Kuaikuai
Co-Production Haikou Qinglan Visual Art Development Haikou

Produced by

Shanghai Turan Movie

Wu Lang

Born in China in 1991, the director has a degree in sculpture. Since graduating, he has taught and worked in documentary filmmaking and commercials. In 2021, his short film Xue yun (Absence) screened at festivals including Cannes and Palm Springs and won the prize for Best Short Film at the Milan International Film Festival.

Filmography

2021 Xue yun (Absence); short film 2023 Xue yun (Absence)

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2023