A Summer’s End Poem

In a village near the southern Chinese city of Chaozhou, a boy has spent the summer with his grandfather. As the last day of the holidays approaches, he gathers together his hard-earned savings to fulfil a dream: he has long yearned for a city hairstyle. But the gap between expectation and reality is large. This story of a boy who bids farewell to his childhood and embarks on a journey towards self-discovery transcends the boundaries of a small village and resonates with universal themes such as growing up and the unpredictable nature of life.

Directed by Lam Can-zhao

Director’s Bio: Lam Can-zhao, a Chinese filmmaker born in 1994, made his directorial debut at the age of 20 with “THE DOG,” a low-budget feature film that brought him into the spotlight. In 2023, he produced, wrote, and edited the short film “A Bright Sunny Day,” which was selected for LA CINEF at the 76th Cannes Film Festival. In 2024, his short film “A Summer’s End Poem,” for which he served as writer, director, producer, and editor, won Best Short Film at the 74th Berlinale Generation Kplus competition.

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Poetry of Time

The films in this showcase explore themes of age, memory, separation, and reunions; they capture the silent poetry of life, where time is sculpted through long, lingering gazes and stories unfold not in action, but in the spaces between. We celebrate the beauty and significance of time, and how it can be experienced in diverse and meaningful ways.