Experiencing Interruptions?

A Romantic Fragment

In a last-ditch attempt to revive their relationship, writer Su Dong invites his ex-girlfriend Zhao Ying on one final trip, planning to woo her at the site of a mythical tree that blooms only once every 100 years. Zhao begrudgingly succumbs to Su’s pestering but, unbeknownst to Su, also invites her new fiancé, the older and seemingly dim-witted Gu. Growing increasingly jealous, Su makes Gu his unwilling rival. Between long, arduous hikes and over-the-top romantic gestures, Zhao Ying remains unimpressed, but an uncanny friendship forms between the two men. That is until the trip takes a more sinister turn, eerily mimicking the the plot of Su’s latest novel, A Romantic Fragment.

  • Pingdao Yang
    Director
    My Dear friend 好友, A Yang Pingdao Film 裂流
  • Pingdao Yang
    Writer
  • Xufeng Huang
    Producer
    Dwelling In The Fuchun Mountains 春江水暖, Ripples of Life 永安镇故事集, Only The River Flows 河边的错误
  • Guojun Wang
    Producer
  • Luyue Meng
    Producer
    Yangzi's Confusion 洋子的困惑
  • Kyab Padma
    Key Cast
    Bystander 旁观者, A Song For You 他与罗耶戴尔, Changfeng Town 长风镇
  • Xinting Wang
    Key Cast
  • Leo Wei
    Key Cast
  • Bobo Lau
    Sound Designer
    All the Crows in the World 天下乌鸦, Xiaohui and His Cows 小晖和他的牛, I Have No Legs, and I Must Run 跑 跑 跑, Borrowed Time 人海同游
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    浪漫的断章
  • Project Type:
    Feature
  • Genres:
    Romance, Comedy, Fantasy, Mumblecore, Road Movie
  • Runtime:
    1 hour 36 minutes 44 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    October 10, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    150,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    China
  • Country of Filming:
    China
  • Language:
    Chinese
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital, 4K
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1.85:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • 7th Pingyao Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon International Film Festival
    Pingyao,
    China
    Chinese Premiere
    Official Selection of Hidden Dragons
  • Cinequest 2024
    San Jose
    United States
    March 12, 2024
    North America Premiere
    Official Selection/Comedy
  • Beijing International Film Festival
    Beijing
    China
    April 25, 2024
    镜界
Distribution Information
  • Factory Gate Films
    Distributor
    Country: China
    Rights: Theatrical
Director Biography - Pingdao Yang

Born in 1980, Yang Pingdao is a decorated Cantonese film director, screenwriter, and novelist.

His documentary feature The River of Life (2013) was the opening film at the Beijing Independent Film Festival, winning the Jury Prize. It went on to receive numerous international awards and was included as part of a film showcase that toured several European countries as well as North America.

His debut narrative feature My Dear Friend (2018) received backing from the Asian Cinema Fund and later premiered at the Busan International Film Festival. It was nominated for the Most Popular Film award in the Chinese New Generation category at the 2018 Pingyao International Film Festival.

A Yang Pingdao Film (2020), Yang’s second narrative feature, competed in the Hidden Dragons section at the Pingyao International Film Festival and received both the Youth Jury Award and Cinephilia Critic’s Award. It also won Best Feature Award/South Award at the South Taiwan Film Festival in 2020.

Yang's first collection of novellas, The Sorrow of Brother Liangjie, is due to be published in Singapore in the coming year.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

In high school, when I saw my first love again after a long separation, I reminisced about the past and felt emotions stirring within me. So I spent half an hour writing 99 letters to her, each one containing only three words: "I love you.” Face to face, I told her that our story wasn't yet over and hoped she would reply with just one letter, making our love 100% complete. She didn't respond with a letter, but instead, right there, simply said: "I'm dating your cousin.” Even though this "cousin" was the child of my dad's sworn brother, with no blood ties, it was enough to make me despair.

About ten years later, I learned that the girl had married a close friend of this same cousin. I met him by chance one time, and we bonded over the frustrations and failings in our lives. I wonder if she felt the same way. I came to realize the hopelessness of our situation and from that point on began to develop a strong interest in the evolution of intimate human ties.

Love is the best drama in life. The best way to love is to view your partner as if through a telescope, so that they exist to you both near and far away. However, we naturally yearn to get closer and closer to them, getting so close that eventually you can only see their blemishes. Ideal love only exists in the longing or reminiscing after the fact. What is incomprehensible is that we know the truth, yet we are still drawn to love like moths to a flame. It's a yearning for tragedy and a desire to destroy, as if deep down inside we pursue chaos.