Following his latest narrative feature, Ash Is Purest White–one of the finest U.S. releases of the year–Jia Zhangke quickly embarked on his next project, which marks his first documentary in a decade. So Close to My Land will close out the trilogy of his look at different artistic disciplines in China, preceded by Dong and Useless. Shot earlier this summer with frequent cinematographer Yu Lik-Wai, mk2 films have unveiled the first still and synopsis ahead of a likely festival premiere next year.
Prominent Chinese writers and scholars gather in a village in Shanxi, a province of China and the hometown of Jia Zhang-Ke. This starts an 18-chapter symphony about Chinese society since 1949. Narrated by three important novelists born in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s respectively, telling their own stories with literature and reality, the film weaves a 70-year spiritual history of the Chinese people.
See the first look below and read our recent interview with the director here.
