NEST

90 minutes | 2023 | Documentary | Mandarin, Shanghainese | English and Chinese Subtitles
Canadian Premiere

This profoundly raw slice of life documentary paints a realistically stark picture of the life and struggles of a 30-year-old man who lives with his aging parents in a cramped apartment in downtown Shanghai. The tight apartment acts as a perfect metaphor for what the protagonist is experiencing: suffocation by our culture, society, and his own family. Director QIN Xiaoyue’s humanistic concern is demonstrated through a patient and sensitive lens and the absence of overdramatization and sensationalization in the edit. This film may not be an easy watch, but its raw realism is rare in this day and age, and deserves to be celebrated.

QIN Xiaoyue is an independent documentary filmmaker from Shanghai. In 2014, she gratuated from the Hong Kong Baptist University, majoring in TV, Film, and New Media Production Management. In 2012, she graduated from the College of Communication at Boston University. Her debute feature documentary Nest was shortlisted for WIP at the 5th Pingyao International Film Festival in 2022 and won the Best Documentary award at the 17th FIRST International Film Festival in 2023. Her second feature documentary For Better or Worse has been selected to the 19th FIRST International Film Festival this year. Qin is currently in production of the documentary series Home Again 6 Living in China and feature documentary Grandma’s Encyclopedia.