A crew of 30 young people began researching and filming in November 2022. It took them a year to capture the stories of nearly 20 contemporary elderly people. Currently, seven episodes have been completed, each 50 minutes long.
Premiere scene
On the afternoon of June 7, the film held its premiere at Shanghai UME International Cinema, where two episodes of the film, "The Eternal God of Love" and "The Lover", were screened.
"The Ageless God of Love" was filmed in IKEA Shanghai for a year to film the blind dates of the elderly. No matter when, love is our everlasting need.
"The Lover" tells the story of how an old man gradually lost his lover who suffered from Alzheimer's disease. What is love?
"Tomorrow Will Be Better" continues to follow the journey of a 96-year-old man to take the driving test. He breaks the stereotype of the elderly with a controversial choice in order to be able to travel with his wife by car.
"The Guardian" follows an elderly man as he tirelessly searches for his guardian; "The Mother's Writing Project" warmly records a mother and son who reconstruct intergenerational communication through writing.
"Taking a Bath" is a film about five elderly people taking a bath. It tells the pain of life and also proves the dignity of life.
"Going with the Flow" is difficult to summarize. It is a story about an old man who is addicted to online shopping, and also shows the relationship between an old man and his mobile phone and surveillance. It is a mixture of sadness and humor, and is a typical picture of the life of contemporary old people.
The premiere was filled with joy and tears. The audience was moved by the optimistic spirit of the three elderly people in "The Ageless God of Love" who pursued love with perseverance and made hilarious quotes, and they also felt the same for the elderly in "The Lover" who faced the departure of his lover.
The main creative staff took a group photo with the audience
In the episode "Lover", two months after her lover passed away, the old lady sat alone at home missing her husband and still regretted sending him to a nursing home half a year ago. Recalling the various things in their decades of marriage, she said to herself, "Thinking about the decades we have been together, I can't think of how good you have been to me, but now I think of it. You chose to leave earlier, which is good for me, so I don't have to worry about you anymore."
The director of this episode said that after filming this film, he repeatedly asked himself whether it would be better if he had not been sent to a nursing home. What it can reflect on us is that we will all face the end of an intimate relationship. How can we better face it?
Although the directors are very young, some of them are even born in the 2000s, they approach the lives of the elderly and let them see more problems and solutions reflected in themselves. People of every age group will face such problems as: love cannot be defined by simple concepts, it is a moment, it is fluid, we will always face being cared for and caring for others, facing choices and being chosen, and facing loneliness in life.
Stills from "Front Wave"
The documentary "Front Wave" focuses on the elderly, and through long-term tracking and filming, records the love and pain they encounter, showing the real life of the elderly, which is also a cross-section of the city of Shanghai. As a city with the most concentrated elderly population and a high degree of aging in my country, Shanghai is actively exploring how to deal with the aging of society. The creators hope to use vivid character stories to change the public's stereotypes about the elderly and get into the lives and inner world of the elderly.
The documentary points out that "society generally has stereotypes about the elderly", and is no longer satisfied with a single discussion of intergenerational relationships; it not only reflects the loneliness of the elderly, but also strives to explore the light in their lives; it not only presents the mess that aging brings to Chinese families, but also strives to discover the truth, goodness and beauty in life... The documentary "Front Wave" has transformed from a single perspective to a diversified and comprehensive thinking, giving the idea a more solid weight, a broader perspective and a fuller connotation. This shows the reality of human nature and returns to the documentary's attribute of seeking truth and reality.
Stills from "Front Wave"
The creative team believes that the audience of this documentary should not be just the elderly, it will also attract discussion and attention from young people. "The pros and cons of living in a nursing home", "blind dates for the elderly", "intergenerational communication", "Alzheimer's disease", etc. will all become social issues extended from this documentary.
