PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA / 15 MIN / 2023 / FICTION / DCP 2K / 16:9 / DOLBY 5.1 / COLOR
Subtitles available: English, Italian, Spanish
Except for mountain landscapes, magical rocks, and a few other kids, the village where Xiaohui lives with his grandfather and two cows has nothing to offer. The nine-year-old sorely misses his parents who work in the city. When grandpa has to sell a calf, the clever grandson tries everything to prevent the separation of mother and child. A soulful cry for love in times of capitalism.
Xiaohui es un niño que vive con su abuelo en un pueblo en el Suroeste de Cine. Sus padres trabajan lejos de casa. El abuelo quiere vender el ternero para tener un sustento económico. Para evitarlo, Xiaohui hace todo lo posible para esconder las vacas en las montañas.
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Festivals & Awards
Berlin International Film Festival(Germany, 2023) – SPECIAL MENTION OF THE GENERATION KPLUS INTERNATIONAL JURY – Academy awards® qualifying festival, EFA Qualifying Festival
Hamptons International Film Festival (USA, 2023) – BEST SHORT NARRATIVE –Academy awards® qualifying festival
BOGOSHORTS (Colombia, 2023) – Academy awards® qualifying festival
Drama International Short Film Festival (Greece, 2023) – Academy awards® qualifying festival
Chicago International Children’s Film Festival (USA, 2023) – Academy awards® qualifying festival
Annual Urbanworld Film Festival (USA, 2023) – Academy awards® qualifying festival
International Short Film Festival of Cyprus (Chipre, 2023) – EFA Qualifying Festival
Film Festival della Lessinia (Italy, 2023) – WINNER LESSINIA D’ARGENTO BEST SHORT FILM
Molise Cinema Film Festival (Italy, 2023) – SPECIAL MENTION STUDENT’S JURY AWARD
Orvieto Cinema Fest (Italy 2023) – BEST SHORT FILM, BEST SHORT FILM STUDENT’S JURY AWARD
Near Far Film Festival (Australia, 2023) – BEST NARRATIVE SHORT FILM
Vittoria Peace International Film Festival (Italy, 2023) – BEST SHORT FILM
Macau International Short Film Festival (Macao, 2023) – BEST STUDENT SHORT FILM
ZOOM ZBLIZENIA (Poland, 2024) – BEST FICTION SHORT FILM
Heart of Gold International Short Film Festival (Australia, 2023)
YOUKI – International Youth Media Festival (Austria, 2023)
Dhaka International Film Festival (Bangladesh, 2024)
Carrousel International du Film de Rimouski (Canada, 2024)
Shanghai International Film Festival (China, 2023) – Out of competition
Pingyao Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon International Film Festival (China, 2023)
Oulu International Children’s and Youth Film Festival (Finland, 2023)
Festival Tous Courts (France, 2023) –
Poitiers Film Festival (France, 2023)
Travelling Film Festival (France, 2024)
One Country One Film (France, 2024)
Kurzfilm Festival Hamburg Mo&Friese (Germany, 2023)
Kinderfilmfest München (Germany, 2023)
KUKI 16th Young Short Film Festival Berlin (Germany, 2023)
up-and-coming Int. Film Festival Hannover (Germany, 2023)
Landshut Film Festival (Germany, 2024)
Bunter Hund – International Short Film Festival of Munich (Germany, 2024)
International Asto Short Film Festival (Greece, 2023)
Psarokokalo International Children and Young Film Festival (Greece, 2024)
Blue Danube Film Festival (Hungary, 2023)
OFFline Film Festival (Ireland, 2023)
Giffoni Film Festival (Italy, 2023)
Corto Montagna (Italy, 2023) – Finalist
Cactus International Children’s and Youth Film Festival (Italy, 2024)
International Film School Festival of Tetouan (Morocco, 2023)
Nepal International Film Festival (Nepal, 2024)
Chinese Short Film Night – Show me Shorts (New Zealand, 2024) – non competitive
Women International Film Festival (Pakistan, 2024)
Lima Alterna Festival Internacional de Cine (Peru, 2023)
International Young Audience Film Festival Ale Kino! (Poland, 2023)
Porto/Post/Doc (Portugal, 2023)
Play Festival (Portugal, 2024)
Ajyal Film Festival (Qatar, 2023) – POSTPONED
Ulsan Ulju Mountain Film Festival (South Korea, 2023)
Catholic Film Festival (South Korea, 2023)
BUFF Malmo Film Festival (Sweden, 2024) – ‘Short Film Panorama’
Black Movie Festival international de films indépendants (Switzerland, 2024)
International Film Festival of Uruguay (Uruguay, 2024)
First City Film Festival (USA, 2024)
UPIKE Film & Media Arts Festival (USA, 2024)
Director’s notes
The story of Xiaohui and the two cows is a reflection of the reality that children and animals are currently experiencing. In my hometown, Guangxi, people usually raise two cows – a mother cow and a calf. The calf is sold when it reaches one year old, and the mother cow is impregnated again to produce another calf for sale. Each year, the mother cow is forcibly separated from her child. Similarly, in most rural areas of China, children are left behind while their parents work in distant cities, with only a brief reunion each year. During the summer of 2021, I participated in a short-term teaching camp in a village. Through our conversations, I sensed the children’s hidden longing for their parents. This short film conveys the longing for connection felt by children and animals alike, in the hope of resonating with those who have experienced separation.
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cast
Jinhao Wei, Yuanmo Wei, Yamiao Tang
written and directed by
Xinying Lao
producers
Haozheng Li, Xianglian Wei
co-producers
Xin Wang, Zhigang Lao
executive producers
Ruiqiang Dai, Jiajie Lu, Yu Wang
cinematography
Hark Xu
editing
Youmin Kang, Xinying Lao
music
Evan Roth
sound design
Bobo Lau
production design
Qianyu Jin
assistant director
Li Qiu
production manager
Ziyu Zhou
festival distribution and world sales
Xinying Lao's bio
Xinying Lao was born in Guangxi, China in 1997. Xinying Lao is a Chinese filmmaker and a third-year Graduate Film student at New York University. She is a director, writer, and editor. She has made several doc shorts and narrative shorts. She studied journalism as an undergraduate, which brought her into contact with people from different classes in society. In her films, she is dedicated to conveying the vulnerability that people are afraid to express in reality. Xiaohui and His Cows is her second-year film project at NYU.