Fishbone

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Creative Statement

The film tells how Li Qi, in the summer after the college entrance exam, mends the rift with her mother. A secret she keeps is like a fishbone stuck in her throat, a discomfort she cannot put into words. Amid the bitterness and pain of growing up, she begins to rethink her relationship with her mother and with the world.

Synopsis

Eighteen-year-old Li Qi unexpectedly does badly in the college entrance exam, casting a shadow over her already tense relationship with her mother. At a friend's birthday party, Li Qi breaks a classmate's new phone. Asked to pay for it, she faces a dilemma: tell her mother or keep it from her? In the hot, humid plum-rain season, a crisis of youth is quietly brewing......

Running Time:

98 min

Genre:

Coming-of-age, Family, Women

Director/Screenwriter:

Zhang Xuyu

Producer:

Fan Zhijie

Production Company:

Bailu Pictures (Wenzhou) Co., Ltd.

About the Director

Zhang Xuyu: young director and screenwriter with a master's degree in film and television directing from Bournemouth University, UK, and one of the top five directors of the 6th Youth Film Program (Qingcong Project). Her work has been selected for festivals including the 13th Beijing Independent Film Festival, the 2019 Brussels Independent Film Festival, Hi! Shorts Xiamen Short Film Week 2020 and the 3rd Mingfengtang International Youth Film Festival, and has received awards including Best Film in the 3rd Nowness "Talent Program", a Best Screenplay nomination at the 6th Chongqing Youth Film Festival and a place among the "Top Ten Shorts" at the 3rd Inner Mongolia Youth Film Week.

About the Producer

Fan Zhijie: young producer and director with a master's degree in film and television directing from Bournemouth University, UK. He has worked for a foreign production company and has served as producer or line producer on several international and domestic documentaries, reality shows and promotional films. He was selected for the Producers Training Camp of the 15th FIRST International Film Festival. Piercing Cold, which he produced, was selected for the main competition of the 5th 86358 Jiajiazhuang Film Week and won Best Film in the 3rd Nowness "Talent Program".