‘Whispers in May’ Captures the “Delicate Space Between Girlhood and Womanhood” (Exclusive Copenhagen Trailer)

Share on Facebook Share on X Google Preferred Share to Flipboard Show additional share options Share on LinkedIn Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share on Tumblr Share on Whats App Send an Email Print the Article Post a Comment The care-free moments of childhood before society’s expectations weigh on us are the focus of Dongnan Chen’s second feature film, Whispers in May , which will world premiere on March 15 in the main DOX:Award competition of CPH:DOX , the Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festiva . Described as “a time capsule” that “clings to the last moments of childhood, just before reality takes hold, it follows three Chinese girls on a road trip full of natural beauty, discussions about hopes and expectations, and fleeting moments of tenderness. Qihuo has a secret. She’s just had her first menstruation. This means she is ready for the “Changing Skirt” ceremony, a traditional coming-of-age ritual, which signifies that she is no longer a child, but “a woman bound to the communal demands of marriage and labor,” according to a film synopsis. “With her parents away as migrant laborers and her grandfather recently passed, Qihuo and her two best friends set out on a road trip to buy a skirt for her rite of passage.” Related Stories Business It's a Megadeal: Banijay, All3Media to Merge, Creating New Indie Production Giant Movies Berlinale's Tricia Tuttle Backed By 32 Global Film Festival Bosses in Open Letter: "Supporting Freedom of Expression Has Never Been More Important" Chen ( Singing in the Wilderness , shorts 14 Paintings and The Trail from Xinjiang ) blends raw documentary with an improvised fictional voyage to craft “a world inhabited by the girls that exists beyond social norms.” Whispers in May was produced by Jia Zhao of Muyi Film, together with Chen’s Tail Bite Tail Films in co-production with Malin Hüber for Her Film in Sweden and Heejung Oh for Seesaw Pictures in South Korea. Luke Brawley’s Indox is handling festivals. “When I first travele...