“Block the holes in the wall! Make Beijing great again!”
In general, change may come in various forms. Whether in natural ways through the tides and seasons, or man-made, change is inevitable and necessary for any society to sustain itself. However, the prospect of “change” has lately been abused, neglecting the inherent progressive quality of the concept. Many right-wing parties disguise their often backward ideology within the paradoxical change back to the past as if the “changes” that have been made can be undone by a greater one. In the end, the effect on our lives may be devastating to say the least, starting with little aspects of our daily lives which have disappeared from existence.
If Chinese activist and director Popo Fan was thinking similarly as he started his project “The Drum Tower” is unknown, but he certainly must have felt the first repercussions of change, which might lead to something far worse. In his home in Beijing, the “changes” came with government programs, such as “Holes in the Wall” which basically sealed up any illegal housing around the area of the famous drum tower or Gulou as it is called. Alleys and streets once filled with cafes, boutiques and other stores have now vanished and have been exchanged with large brick walls covering former windows, storefronts and windows. According to him, a development like this signifies how his home country marginalizes certain groups in society by covering up their existence and forcing them to leave.
“The Drum Tower” is screening at Chinese Visual Festival
For years, Chao Xiaomi has worked in a boutique near the famous drum tower in Beijing. But ever since the program “Holes in the Wall” has begun to change the environment around her, it has become apparent her shop will be next. With her colleague already planning to leave for Qingdao, it is just a matter of time before the authorities will come and force her to leave the premises.
At the same time, we follow Kacchan, a young photographer who is interested in documenting the changes in his environment. While he takes pictures of workers sealing up former cafes and stores, he also discovers Chao Xiaomi and follows her.
Maybe one of the most interesting aspects of Popo Fan's film is how it gives the impression of watching something forbidden or intimate, depending on the context. Considering the film uses the background of Chinese society and politics, the concept of something forbidden is, of course, a vast area which is explored in the roughly 18 minutes of the film. When Kacchan takes pictures of the workers sealing off what used to be a cafe or witnesses two police officers in Chao Xiaomi's shop, angry statements about the “punk” who needs to learn his lesson or eloquent use of editing speaks volumes about the nature of bans in China. The act of observing is solely allowed for authorities as a means to control and if necessary ban something, but in the case of “The Drum Tower” it is about documenting an increasing sense of social paranoia and schizophrenia.
Of course, the central metaphor of “The Drum Tower” is the concept of the brick wall which naturally exists due to the “Holes in the Wall” initiative. Since the slogan, which is presented one time in the film, is based on Donald Trump's now infamous phrase of “Make American great again”, the idea of distance and division has become more pressing than ever. Whether it is the more outspoken Chao Xiaomi or the taciturn Kacchan, the change of their environment has already affected their personality and ways of seeing the world. Popo Fan uses image distortion, overlapping sounds and animation to show the growing gap between the image we see and the image we would like at the moment. The government's thinly veiled attempts to silence dissent have resulted in people behaving much like Winston Smith in front of the telescreen in George Orwell's timeless dystopia “1984”.
In the end, initiatives such as “Holes in the Wall” may be just tiny changes, microscopic even. But their effect is profound and dangerous as they change the face of a city as well as of a society, undermining social cohesion in the process. Popo Fan has managed to make a poignant and short, yet provocative tale about the danger of leaving change of an authority using the concept to manifest its own oppressive political agenda.
Sources:
The statement of Popo Fan regarding his short feature “The Drum Tower”
https://filmfreeway.com/1398496 , last accessed on: 04/17/2019
