Awarded at Venice and Nantes Film Festivals

Since releasing 'West of Tracks,' a monumental trilogy exceeding nine hours that chronicled the decline of a major industrial district and symbolized an era with a small digital camera, Chinese filmmaker Wang Bing has been highly anticipated. His acclaim extends beyond the film world.

His works, including 'The Man Without a Name,' are widely collected by galleries. Last year, his films were screened at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, solidifying his role as a pivotal digital-age visual artist within China's contemporary art scene.

His eagerly awaited new film, 'Three Sisters in Yunnan,' garnered significant attention even before its Japanese release, winning the Grand Prize in the Orizzonti section at last year's Venice International Film Festival, which showcases innovative cinema, and also securing both the Grand Prize and the Audience Award at the Nantes Three Continents Festival. This visually and sonically powerful work, characteristic of Wang Bing's unique vision, finally arrives in Japan.

Young Sisters Living Alone in a Yunnan Village at 3,200 Meters Altitude

In a village in China's Yunnan province, at an altitude of 3,200 meters, lived three young sisters. Their mother had left, their father was away working, and their parents were absent. Although an aunt's family and their grandfather lived nearby, the three sisters, aged 10, 6, and 4, managed their lives entirely on their own, tending to farm work and caring for livestock.

Eventually, their father returned from the city and considered taking the children with him. However, due to financial constraints, only the eldest daughter would remain in the village. Wang Bing's digital video camera captures the children's energy, seemingly resisting the relentless wind, the solitude of the eldest daughter, Yingying, left behind, and the dignity that emerges from knowing such loneliness.

'Three Sisters in Yunnan' can be considered a new masterpiece in Wang Bing's documentary field. One cannot help but be moved by the sight of these girls living with resilience despite their poverty.

'Three Sisters in Yunnan'
Now showing at Theater Image Forum
Opening Saturday, June 1st, at Umeda Garden Cinema and other theaters nationwide
Director | Wang Bing
Distributor | Moviola
2012 / France, Hong Kong / 153 min
www.moviola.jp/sanshimai
© ALBUM Productions, Chinese Shadows