Director: Liu Qingru

Synopsis

Following Peking Opera actor Sun Wei'an as he takes on the task of restaging a major production, the film seeks to portray the double predicament, physical and mental, that opera performers face in society. It shows the sense of disconnection and helplessness middle-aged Peking Opera actors cannot escape between the hardships of daily life and the glory of the stage, as well as their moments of doubt about their ideals. On stage they are peerless heroes, proud of the ideals of "becoming one with the role" and "the play comes first", but they are more than classic symbols of a national art. Through the offstage life of an onstage hero, the film hopes to draw audiences' attention to the contemporary opera profession and to the difficulty of keeping the national art alive, and to make them think: when opera performers take off their stage makeup and return to daily life, how should they carry themselves? As the years go by and the applause thins, where will they go? When bouquets lose their luster before money, and honors give way to reality, can today's Peking Opera actors find a viable path in the gap between the prestige of a national art and the reality of its decline...