Xueni is a dynamic multifaceted artist who weaves her dance, acting, and directing background to craft narratives rich in emotion and nuances. Raised amidst diverse cultures, she earned her B.A. at Sarah Lawrence College in New York. Further, she refined her cinematic skills at FAMU in Prague, where she had a chance to study under the mentorship of Bela Tarr. Her latest short, “Fir”, was the result of her studies in the Czech Republic and was nominated for Best Student Film Award at Czech Lion Awards held by Czech Film and Television Academy (ÄŒFTA).
Fir review is part of the Submit Your Film Initiative
Shan, a Chinese girl is sitting on a couch playing with her toy dog, while her mother talks to the phone. The next scene shows the girl playing hide and seek in her school, but when she opens her eyes to search for her friends, there is no one around, with the movie implying that there were never actually there and that the girl is particularly lonely. That she roams the neighborhood on her own next, makes the fact even more evident. Eventually, she stumbles upon a young Chinese man, who is looking for direction, as he seems to just have arrived in the area, and proceeds on taking him to his destination. She also stays for a bit in his room, and the two of them start talking, about themselves, and about China. The girl starts watching the photographs in the young man's camera., before the two of them take a stroll in the park.
Xueni Yang directs a short that focuses on the loneliness and alienation Chinese people feel when abroad (one could say immigrants in general, but I feel the film is very specific in that regard). At the same time, she sends a message of hope, by essentially saying that the solution to the aforementioned issues can come in the most unexpected ways, although again from someone of the same origin. However, the director restrains this optimism somewhat, grounding it in realism, stating that things do not change from one day to the other, as the attitude of Shan's mother highlights.
A significant part of the narrative unfolds through the sound heard through phones, as for example, with the calls revealing the situation of both the girl and the young man. This “trick” works well considering the low budget of the short, but is not exactly particularly cinematic. In that regard, it would be interesting to see how the director would have handled a bigger duration, which would allowed her a couple of flashbacks to show the past of the protagonists.
The 21 minutes short also functions as a tour guide of the area, with the somber music and the overall setting establishing a tone of melancholy that seems to mirror the mentality of the two characters. In that regard, JIn-Yuan Liu's cinematography emerges as particularly accomplished, with the long shots in the parκ in particular, definitely staying on mind.
Ruixi Yang as Shan is impressive to watch, with her highlighting her need for connection with someone quite eloquently through her rather expressive eyes. Her performance is quite competent, pointing towards an actress with much more experience.
Fir is an accomplished short that just needed a bit more time for the director to be able to unfold her narrative more cinematically. We will definitely follow Xueni Yang in her future endeavors, since she seems to have an eye for composition and some interesting ideas regarding drama.
