FFCFW is an annual summer and fall meeting point for audiences and young filmmakers to celebrate the finest independent cinema and storytelling about farm and culture. The festival program includes eight curated award-winning feature fiction and documentary films from around the world.

Film: Swimming Out Till The Sea Turns Blue

Directed by: Jia Zhang-ke

Production: China

Production year: 2021

Duration: 112 minutes

Genre: Documentary

Languages: Chinese (mandarin), English subtitles

Cast: Jia Pingwa, Yu Hua, Liang Hong, Tong Su, Huifang Duan

Synopsis: From master director Jia Zhang-Ke (Ash Is Purest White, A Touch of Sin) comes a vital document of Chinese society since 1949. Jia interviews three prominent authors—Jia Pingwa, Yu Hua, and Liang Hong—born in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, respectively. In their stories, we hear of the dire circumstances they faced in their rural villages and small towns, and the substantial political effort undertaken to address it, from the social revolution of the 1950s through the unrest of the late 1980s. In their faces, we see full volumes left unsaid. Jia weaves it all together with his usual brilliance. SWIMMING OUT TILL THE SEA TURNS BLUE is an indispensable account of a changing China from one of the country’s foremost cinematic storytellers.