Crew of SIFF Documentary film nominees share insights into creation
The crew behind the Documentary category nominees at the 27th Shanghai International Film Festival met the press on Thursday afternoon, sharing insights into their creation.
Five documentary films – "Bridge 2045", "Catches On the Moon", "Constanza", "The Guardian of Stories", and "A Part of the Land" are vying for the Golden Goblet Awards in the Documentary category at the ongoing 27th Shanghai International Film Festival.
On Thursday afternoon, the crew behind these nominees met the press, sharing insights into their creation.
"Bridge 2045", a Mexican production, records how local firemen race against time and bravely fight against forest wildfires. The film cleverly interweaves the present and the future, breaking the boundaries of documentary.
According to director Olivia Luengas Magaña, the film inspires people to think about what is actually the most important thing in their lives through the touching scenes of the firefighters' endeavors to protect mother nature.
Chinese contender "Catches On the Moon" follows a middle-aged ecologist and his family residing on the margin of a desert in Alxa, a severely desertified area in China. He tries to improve the soil through ecological agriculture.
"The film is a narration and exploration of the relationship between humans and the land," said director Xu Huijing.
Five films are vying for the Golden Goblet Awards in the Documentary category.
The documentaries explore various topics in life.
"Constanza" from Spain follows a famous Spanish sculpture artist's several months of cooperation with art history student Constanza to create a distinctive artwork.
Director Agustín Márquez Gómez stated that the heartwarming film set in Madrid captures the friendship and interaction between the artist and Constanza.
"In the film, the birth of the marvelous artwork is a rewarding experience for each of us," said Gómez.
Claudia Bellasi, co-director of the Laotian production "The Guardian of Stories," noted that their film revolves around a local storyteller who has run a theater for around 20 years. But the traditional oral storytelling art is now facing challenges from digital media of story-sharing.
"The storyteller has a passion and perseverance for the inheritance of the age-old intangible cultural heritage skills," said Bellasi. "The art he sticks to for a long passage of time also has a magical connection from the past to the future."
Iranian production "A Part of the Land" focuses its lens on a single woman in a dilemma. The female psychologist faces many challenges in her life – quarrels with her daughter and rising rents.
Through interviews with the woman and people related to her life, the film reveals the imbalance of the social system.
