Maladaptive Daydreaming

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Creative Statement

"Maladaptive daydreaming" is a mental condition in which a person, while awake, imagines content that is real and complex and cannot stop, to the point that it affects normal life; that is why such "daydreams" are called maladaptive. At the start, I wanted to use the form of the "daydream" to recreate a girl's adolescence: a girl under pressure from every side of reality, anxious about and looking forward to growing up, full of hopes and confusion about the future. More broadly, all of us, whatever our age, keep growing and keep searching for what kind of "adult" we should become.

Synopsis

Xiang Qing, 17, lives with her family in Yuhuan, a small coastal city. A high school senior who is good at talking and at cheating, she is facing her 18th birthday coming-of-age ceremony and the college entrance exam. When her cousin dies suddenly in an accident, Xiang Qing's defence mechanism kicks in: she begins imagining many stories that never happened, setting out on one last great adventure into the unknown adult world. Li Zhen, a mysterious female teacher at school, and Ye Jia, a transfer student she secretly loves, keep her company as she searches for the truth about the adult world. Along the way, she can no longer tell what is imagined and what is real.

Genre:

Drama, Coming-of-age, Fantasy

Director:

Zhang Lu

Screenwriter:

Jia Ruoshuang

Producer:

Liu Qingqing | Huo Chuxin

About the Director

Zhang Lu: Young director whose work portrays emotions in detail, with attention to the texture of the image and a steady, delicate style. She moved from producing to directing and focuses on developing and making original stories, and likes to try a range of genres. In 2018 her project The Pool Water Is Boiling was among the top 15 at the Wu Tianming Directors Program project market and the top 10 at the Chongqing Youth Film Festival project market. In 2019 her realist project Just Passing Through made the top 10 of the first Falcon Project and the top 30 of the Golden Rooster Films Project Market. In 2020 Maladaptive Daydreaming won the top prize of the second Falcon Project. In 2021 she directed the TV series It's Just Tug of War.

About the Screenwriter

Jia Ruoshuang: Young screenwriter who writes about women's psychology and intimate relationships. In 2020 Maladaptive Daydreaming won the top prize of the Falcon Project.

About the Producer

Liu Qingqing: Previously worked in film development, planning, publicity and marketing at Qingsong Pictures, Huayi Brothers and Wanda Pictures. Projects she worked on include high-grossing films such as The Eight Hundred, Youth, The Ex-File 3: The Return of the Exes, Mojin: The Lost Legend, Jian Bing Man, Goodbye Mr. Loser, Go Away Mr. Tumor and The Great Hypnotist; films she produced, Warm Hug, Detective Chinatown and Lost, Found, also performed well at the box office. Huo Chuxin: MFA in Creative Producing, Columbia University. While working at Beijing Wuxian Zizai Culture Media and Village Roadshow Pictures Asia, she worked on development, publicity and distribution for films including Shadow and Hide and Seek. The short film Duet, which she produced, won a 2020 US guild student award. The short film First Period, which she co-produced, was selected for the 2019 Taipei Film Festival, among others.

Logline

Xiang Qing, 17, is about to face adulthood and the college entrance exam. Curious about and imagining the adult world, she meets a transfer student, Ye Jia, and a mysterious female teacher, and sets out on a bold adventure before she comes of age.