As the final installment of a decade-spanning trilogy on the hardships of young women in China, Stonewalling is an award-winning indie film that portrays a young Chinese woman grappling with an unexpected pregnancy. Notably, the film features the same actress from the two earlier films in the trilogy, Egg and Stone (2012) and The Foolish Bird (2017), offering a poignant portrayal of a “left-behind child” in a rural village as her parents seek work in bustling cities.
Join us for the screening of Stonewalling and a remote conversation with its visionary directors, Ryuji OTSUKA and Ji HUANG. This engaging event promises unique insights into the film’s creation and first-hand perspectives from the directors.
Read the New York Times review here
This program is made possible through the support of the Chinese International Education Foundation, and generous supporters of China Institute.
This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.
Born in Tokyo, Japan in 1972, documentarian Ryuji OTSUKA relocated to China in 2005 to work in independent filmmaking. He has been the cinematographer and producer for all the films directed by Ji HUANG. In 2013, he made his first Chinese documentary, Beijing Ants, as a solo director. His co-directed The Foolish Bird (2017) won him the Best Artistic Originality Award (DoP) at the FIRST International Film Festival. His recent cinematography work includes A Family Tour (2018) and Damp Season (2020).
Born in Hunan in 1984, Ji HUANG studied screenwriting at the Beijing Film Academy. Since completing her first short film, The Warmth of Orange Peel (2009), she has focused on exploring women’s inner emotions. Egg And Stone (2012), her debut feature, won the Tiger Award at the International Film Festival Rotterdam, while her sophomore film, The Foolish Bird (2017), Special Mention recognition by the Generation 14+ International Jury at Berlinale. She is also the founder and tutor of Around You Film Workshop, which is focused on educating young filmmakers.
Karen MA is the author of the book China’s Millennial Digital Generation: Conversations with Balinghou Indie Filmmakers published in June 2022 by Long River Press. An independent film scholar and movie critic specializing in Chinese cinema, she taught Chinese culture and film courses at The Beijing Center of Chinese Studies before relocating to the US in 2017. MA has a bachelor’s degree from Tokyo’s Sophia University and an M.A. in Chinese literature from the University of Washington, Seattle. She is also the author of Excess Baggage (China Books, 2013), a novel about a Chinese family’s struggle to make its way in Tokyo. She has been teaching at China Institute in Chinese language and Chinese cinema courses since 2021.
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