Wang Bing is one of the most important Chinese documentary filmmakers. In 2023, he was Guest of Honour at IDFA, and during the most recent IFFR, his new trilogy YOUTH was screened. His films explore the social and political history of China, focusing on remote and marginalized areas often overlooked by the mainstream. Despite the stark realism of his subjects, he employs a sober and restrained camera style. As an independent filmmaker, he works without subsidies or permits and with only a small crew, allowing him to operate as freely and honestly as possible. Unfortunately, his work remains censored by the Chinese government.
We will be screening his nine-hour debut: Tie Xi Qu: West of the Tracks (2002) on Sunday, June 8.
The film consists of three parts: Rust, Remnants & Rails.
Tie Xi Qu was filmed over the course of two years, between 1999 and 2001, and documents the slow decline of the Tiexi industrial district in Shenyang. Once a vibrant symbol of China’s socialist economy, the area saw its factories shut down as the free market emerged and industries shifted. Along with the closures came the collapse of the district's worker-based infrastructure and social fabric.
Although Tie Xi Qu: West of the Tracks is rarely screened due to its length, many critics have called it one of the greatest and most important films of the 2000s.
PROGRAMME:
09:45 – Doors open
10:00 – Start Part 1: Rust (246 min)
14:05 – Break (45 min)
14:50 – Start Part 2: Remnants (176 min)
17:45 – Break (45 min)
18:30 – Start Part 3: Rails (135 min)
20:45 – End