Private Project

Silver Moon

Siyao, born as the only son on a boat family settled over the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, China. His parents make a living by shipping sand and stone. Throughout the years, this tiny family drift over the Yangtze River.

In every winter, the boat would berth at Changzhou for a period. This city is quiet and pretty. Siyao would spend a whole day with Yaqi, his elder sister lived at urban city, to celebrate her birthday. While this year, a secret of their families would be unraveled suddenly.

Two children, two families, the story unfolds like a discovery journey, happened in this afternoon on Happy Birthday.

  • WANG Xide
    Director
  • WANG Xide
    Writer
  • LI Yang
    Producer
  • LI Siyao
    Key Cast
    "Siyao"
  • YANG Yaqi
    Key Cast
    "Yaqi"
  • YANG Liping
    Key Cast
    "Siyao mother"
  • ZHONG Yuanyuan
    Key Cast
    "Yaqi foster mother"
  • JI Genchao
    Key Cast
    "Yaqi foster father"
  • ZHANG Dianmin
    Key Cast
    "Grandma on the balcony"
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Drama, Famliy, Children
  • Runtime:
    28 minutes 34 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    December 29, 2019
  • Production Budget:
    5,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    China
  • Country of Filming:
    China
  • Language:
    Chinese
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Rome Independent Prisma Awards
    rome
    Italy
    Official Selection
Director Biography - WANG Xide

WANG Xide majored at Film Theory, graduating from Bournemouth University, UK. Now he is based at Changzhou, China, the city he was born and raised.

He has been a real estate agent, an Ogilvy & Mather creative staff, a freelance film critic and a baby sitter. After engaging in different jobs, he returns to filmmaking which inspires him most in his whole life.

Influenced by philosophy of pessimism, he tries to sketch the human stories around the thesis of Encounter and Departure.

He directed a feature film MIDDLE that is lasting one shot in 104 minutes at 2018. In the next year, both of his scripts LETTERS FROM HOKKAIDO and DOWNSTREAM get several awards at domestic. He keeps writing and prepares for series of feature film plan“LONELY CHILDHOOD“.

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Director Statement

“The sea gives birth to a bright moon, the horizon altogether at this time.” The Chinese name of short film SILVER MOON come from this poem originated from ancient China 1500 years ago, which is focusing on Encounter and Departure about human stories.

SILVER MOON comes from the social phenomenon of "preference for sons over daughters" in China. The boat family over the Grand Canal gave their newborn baby to a distant relative in urban city. Several years later, the younger brother was born to inherit the family business. The tragedy formed permanent split in their parent-child relationship.

After reading the script, an old friend told me that her parents had abandoned her then she had a tough childhood, just as the experience of elder sister Yaqi in the short movie, that she never mentioned it before. It made me realize that the story was real. The short film was real.

The marginalized groups in contemporary Chinese urban city are still drawing my attention at the following days. I will try to outline their current life situation, presenting the desire, joy and sorrow of various people.