Feature film / In development

The Boatman's Weave 編舟者

A meta-cinema mystery

It follows a mysterious boatman who repeatedly observes a Suzhou family from the city's canals.

After their grandfather passes away, cousins return to Suzhou for the funeral, where childhood memories and long-buried family tensions gradually resurface. Zhou Cheng, the eldest grandson, is a middle-aged fitness instructor struggling through life. His cousin Meng Baifeng, a film director returning from Hong Kong, proposes adapting Cheng's life into a movie.

As filming begins, Cheng meets Nana, a travel agency employee. Hoping to grow closer to her and regain a sense of self-worth, he enters a televised singing competition for middle-aged contestants. Meanwhile, disputes over the grandfather's inheritance reignite conflicts within the family. Throughout this period, a mysterious boat quietly appears whenever Cheng faces emotional turmoil or major turning points in life.

As production progresses, reality and fiction begin to blur. Cheng appears to murder Nana during an emotional breakdown, only for the audience to later discover that the incident may merely be part of the cousin's film. In reality, Cheng ultimately wins third place in the singing competition, earns recognition from his family, and begins rebuilding his life. In the final scene, he rides his scooter along Suzhou's canals. The boat reappears, and the boatman silently rows past, fading into the far end of the waterway.

Status: Selected for the Film Project Market at the 28th Shanghai International Film Festival.