Beihing de feng hen da

It’s spring 1999 in Beijing, and the 50th anniversary of the foundation of the People’s Republic is around the corner. Together with two crew members and a 16mm camera, Ju Anqi turns his attention directly to Beijing’s inhabitants in his debut film, asking them a simple question about the wind conditions in the city and receiving responses as absurd as they are significant. The 50-minute film shows everything that was shot in its entirety, with nothing left out. It celebrated its world premiere at the International Forum of New Cinema in 2000, with its directness being representative of a new, experimental tradition in Chinese filmmaking.