Films

Official Oscar© Selection—Taiwan 

Longtime collaborators Shih-Ching Tsou and Academy Award–winning filmmaker Sean Baker (Anora, The Florida Project, Tangerine) team up again as co-writers for this deeply intimate depiction of working-class life through the perspective of an inquisitive 5-year-old girl. 

After several years in the countryside, I-Jing moves back to Taipei with her mother and older sister, Shu-Fen and I-Ann, to open a stall in its bustling night market. As Shu-Fen hustles to make ends meet and both daughters grow acquainted with the city and the grandfather they’ve been estranged from, long-buried family secrets resurface, and the dangers of doing anything to get by threaten the stability of their family unit.

This intergenerational drama is infused with both unflinching honesty and tender hilarity, all set against the striking visuals of a neon-lit metropolis caught between tradition and modernity.

“A deeply immersive story of survival”
-Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter

“Announces Tsou as a confident directorial talent with a rare exuberance”
-Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire

This film will be presented with Open Captions visible on screen. For more information, visit VAFF Accessibility.