Summer Swing

Language：Mandarin with English Subtitles

夏日舞会/夏日舞會

UK Premiere

Synopsis It’s the 1980s, teenager Xiaojun encounters a group of gangsters that will change his life. A youthful adventure through an iconic decade, Summer Swing is a profound reflection on the spirit of human freedom.

Director’s Statement A reflection of the 80s in China and the spirit of freedom.

Curators’ Notes Director Yan adapts a documentary visual style in this short film, with a colour palette that symbolises the repressive atmosphere of the 1980s Chinese society. Yan uses medium shots and close-ups to both convey the protagonists – Xiaojun’s insignificance in the social order as well as to reveal, in detail, the richness of his inner world and the subtlety of his emotional changes. Though Summer Swing is period-specific, its open ending leaves an ample room for the audience’s imagination to contemplate their own personal lives and place within society.

Festival & Awards

American Student Oscars Nomination

Cannes Critics’ Week Shortlist Nomination

86358 Short Film Week Nomination