Anke retires from her job at the church in a small town in the Black Forest. She looks forward to reuniting with her children over the summer holidays by the Baltic Sea, at a place where they used to live as a young family, and where she lived her best years. At the last minute, her son Max is unable to join them because of the pro-democracy protests that are bringing Hong Kong, where he lives, to a standstill. She has been out of touch with him for many years and after an otherwise uneventful summer and facing the void of retirement, she decides to visit him. A mother wants to check in on her children every now and then, but Hong Kong is also her adventure, her escape. She takes up residence in his flat while Max is away on a business trip and cautiously begins to navigate this mysterious new world. Through conversations with strangers, she gradually settles in. A young woman who is sad to leave Hong Kong, Max’s doorman, a psychiatrist, a fortune teller and a social activist. These encounters and her experience of the city help her to break down the inner walls she constructed years ago and make way for a new chapter in her life.

https://www.woodandwater.de/

CAST Anke Bak, Ricky Yeung, Alexandra Batten, Patrick Lo, Theresa Bak, Susanne Johnssen, Patrick Shum, Lena Ackermann, Edward Chane, Christel Johnssen, Amy Aceituna, Jonas Bak, Wolfgang Ackermann, Rachel Chan, Harry Ha, Tony Poon, Tai Chi Chan C Fu Group

 

SCREENWRITER, DIRECTOR, EDITOR Jonas Bak

PRODUCER Charlotte Lelong

CO-PRODUCER Ulla Lehmann, Andrea Roggon

CINEMATOGRAPHER Alex Grigoras

 

FUNDED BY MFG Filmförderung Baden-Württemberg MFG)

DISTRIBUTOR NORTHAMERICA KimStim

DISTRIBUTOR MEXICO La Ola Cine DISTRIBUTOR URUGUAY Cinemateca Uruguaya

DISTRIBUTOR VoD Mubi

 

FESTIVALS Berlinale, New Directors/New Films N.Y.,

BFI London Film Festival, CPH:PIX, ArteKino Festival, São Paulo IFF, Festival du Nouveau Cinéma, New Horizons IFF Poland, Taipei Film Festival,...

 

AWARDS Berlinale Kompass Perspektive Special Mention, Tacoma IFF Best Cinematography, Cork IFF Youth Jury Award Special Mention, Uruguay IFF New Directors Best Film, Al Este Best Film Award Special Mention,…