The Piano in a Factory

Harris Theater: May 8 @ 5:00PM
Melwood Screening Room: May 13 @ 6:00PM

Passes not accepted on Opening/Closing Night. Please arrive at least 15 minutes ahead of start time to ensure availability of seating. Film schedule and Q & A's are subject to change.

2010/China/Directors: Zhang Meng & Jae-young Kwak/105 min.
Cast: Wang Qian-Yuan, Hailu Qin (Language: Mandarin)
Festivals and Awards: Winner – Best Actor Award Tokyo Int’l Film Festival Official Selection – Toronto Int’l Film Festival, Rotterdam Int’l Film Festival, Dubai Film Festival, Cinemanila Int’l Film Festival
Single father Chen (Wang Qian-yuan) is a steelworker by day and passionate accordion player in the evenings with a local band. Left by his wife years before, Chen works long hours to provide a reputable life for his daughter and shares with her his passion for music, paying heftily for her piano lessons. When his estranged wife (Jang Shin-yeong) returns demanding a divorce and custody of their child, Chen is left in a heart-wrenching bind. He easily grants the divorce to a woman who has become a stranger, but is haunted by the custody battle, a decision ultimately left up to their daughter. A childish ultimatum ignites in Chen a desperate scramble to win his daughter’s heart and provide her with her most coveted possession – a piano.
Unable to afford such a luxurious item on factory wages, Chen enlists the help of his closest friends, including his lover and singer in his band, to embark on a series of schemes to save his little family. In a sentimental and at times comical mood, Chen exasperates every option. From constructing a false piano in their home to attempting to steal one from the school, he bides his time diligently as he knows his time is running short. Chen all but surrenders when a inspired idea comes to him from the rubble of the failing factory.
Through intensely poignant motives and charmingly comedic trysts, we are endeared to relatable Chen, his misfit clan, and their valiant endeavors. In blend with narrative elegance, diligent and stark imagery reflects a tinge of social commentary at a time when state-operated industry begins to falter in China -- a combination of characteristics quickly establishing Zhang Meng as a thought-provoking presence in Chinese cinema.