A love letter to Hong Kong's soul, written in disappearing ink.
Poet and author Xi Xi is one of Hong Kong's most treasured writers. Though also acclaimed in Taiwan and mainland China for seminal works like the essay Shops, her writings are firmly rooted in the spirit of Hong Kong. Leave it to Fruit Chan, another staunchly grassroots auteur, to make a documentary on Xi Xi's career. Chan sought out renowned critics and writers to discuss Xi Xi's works, starting with 1979's My City. He also juxtaposes photos of a changing Hong Kong with readings of her writings, and even playfully inserts characters from her stories into the film.
Direction
Fruit Chan's meta-magical touches—fictional characters walking documentary streets.
Writing
Xi Xi's prose, read aloud, becomes the film's beating heart.
Cinematography
Then-and-now Hong Kong footage that aches with time.
Director
Fruit Chan
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Xi Xi famously wrote part of 'My City' while hospitalized, turning hospital corridors into urban prose poetry.
The film quietly documents Hong Kong's 2014 Umbrella Movement aftermath—political grief reframed through literary memory.
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