Bread and Mountain

This movie documents the first month of two Chinese families living in Ecuador due to expatriate work and entrepreneurship. Due to insufficient preparation, they face language problems and many difficulties caused by cultural differences. In a completely unfamiliar environment, they struggled to integrate into the local society with their children, learning Spanish, setting up store, setting up stalls, anxious about the education of their next generation, and the safety of their lives. ...... In the smallest social unit, Eastern and Western cultures are exchanging and colliding.

  • MingXin Zhao
    Director
  • Camilo Luzuriaga
    Producer
  • Project Type:
    Documentary
  • Runtime:
    17 minutes 20 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    July 11, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    5,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Ecuador
  • Country of Filming:
    Ecuador
  • Language:
    Chinese, English, Spanish
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    Yes - Northwest Normal University
Director Biography - MingXin Zhao

2021.09-2022.05 Independent director of the documentary "Autumn and Winter in the Framing Room". 2023 West Lake Youth Documentary Forum "Autumn and Winter of the Framed Room" shortlisted, 2023 Chinese documentary new director "Autumn and Winter of the Framed room" shortlisted, 2023 Guangxi Intangible Cultural Heritage Film Festival "Autumn and Winter of the Framed room" nominated, 2023 Jinhua Qing director support program "Autumn and Winter of the Framed room" shortlisted.

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Director Statement

By chance, I went to South America to make a documentary about the local Indian culture. After finishing the documentary, I came across two families in a square in Ecuador. I find it very interesting that they are new to the country and take the resilience of the Chinese people to live a good life across the ocean. So I contacted Camilo, the director of INCINE, a South American film academy, and he funded the film for a small screening in the school community. When Camilo asked what the title meant, I said, "Bread Mountain is a national landmark of Ecuador." In China, bread symbolizes real daily life, while mountains mean poetry and distance." The film is not concerned with grand propositions, although it has the nature of international cultural exchange, but it is the most genuine and simple life record. I sliced their first month in a foreign country and put them together into this short film, which is not about meaning, but about life.