LIVING THE LAND

Sponsored by:

Hawaii National Bank

The sophomore feature of Huo Meng is a tender and visually rich coming-of-age story set in early 1990s China, facing sweeping socio-economic transformation. While many villagers migrate to booming cities in search of opportunity, 10-year-old Chuang, the third child in his family, is left behind due to family obligations. Anchored in a rural village on the cusp of change, Chuang grows up amid the slow but steady encroachment of modernization. As televisions appear and roads are paved, the rituals of village life—births, deaths, marriages, and funerals—carry on, revealing the quiet tension between past and present. Through Chuang’s eyes, we witness the deep-rooted bonds of family, the burden of tradition, and the uncertainty of a future shaped by forces far beyond the village.

Garnering almost universal praise from both critics and audiences earlier this year at the Berlin Film Festival, Meng would be awarded the SIlver Bear for Best Director. The film is a parallel of sweeping storytelling, while feeling intimate, deeply poignant yet staunchly unsentimental. With poetic restraint and emotional depth, LIVING THE LAND offers a moving portrait of a boy—and a country—coming to terms with transformation.


Credits

Director(s):

Huo Meng

Producer(s):

Fan Zhang

Writer(s):

Meng Huo

Cast:

Wang Shang, Zhang Yanrong, Zhang Chuwen

Cinematographer(s):

Daming Guo

In-person

Consolidated Theatres Kahala

Oct 17

Oct 18