School of Communication’s Academy of Film (AF) 2016 graduates, Eleanor Li (Film and Media Arts) and Heung Yuen-tung (Professional Programme in Film) were selected to screen their graduate short film projects at the fifth China Women Film Festival (CWFF).

“The (Science of) Cocoon”, written and directed by Eleanor, reflects on the mother-daughter relationship through an imaginative storyline. A mother ate her daughter after being in a troubled relationship with her for many years. This act gave the daughter a chance to journey around her mother’s womb. Soon she realised it was not her mother, but the cocoon created by herself that had shaped her. After a long process of struggling with herself, she eventually broke out of the cocoon and became free.

Eleanor went to the United Kingdom to take theatre and cinema courses at Aberystwyth University with a hope to further develop her skill in the arts and cinema. She said that as a film student, she should not be restricted to a particular way of storytelling and should experiment a lot. She said, “I want to explore the possibilities of telling a story through various media, such as theatre, film and video installation.”

“NOS”, another selected short film was written and directed by Heung Yuen-tung. It tells the story of a friendship between two teenage girls, Hazel and Chantry, who seemed destined to become friends when they first met in secondary six. However, upon graduation they lost contact and never met again.

The film was inspired by her experience. Yuen-tung said, “The film production process was like having a conversation with myself, in which I would recall the happy moments I spent with those I love, with memories I wish to keep close to my heart.”

CWFF, which takes place annually in mid-September in Beijing with United Nations Women as a partner, is dedicated to cultivating female film talents from China’s film industry. Through the medium of film, it aspires to strengthen women’s rights and raise social awareness on gender inequality in China.