Maineland
UW Cinematheque 821 University Ave., UW Vilas Hall, Room 4070, Madison, Wisconsin
press release: China, USA | 2017 | DCP | 90 min.
Director: Miao Wang
This gorgeous and thoughtful documentary by the director of Beijing Taxi follows two affluent and cosmopolitan Chinese high schoolers as they adjust to life at a small boarding school in rural Maine. Part of the enormous wave of "parachute students" from China enrolling in U.S. private schools, bubbly, fun-loving Stella and introspective Harry come seeking a Western-style education, escape from the dreaded Chinese college entrance exam, and the promise of a Hollywood-style U.S. high school experience. As the students fuzzy visions of the American dream slowly gain more clarity, they ruminate on their experiences of alienation, culture clash and personal identity, sharing new understandings and poignant discourses on home and country. Screening with the support of the 2018 Asian-American Media Spotlight.
Premiere Showcase is the Cinematheque’s effort to bring the boldest and most exciting new cinema back to the big screen. Crafted with the same curatorial acuity we bring to our repertory series, Premiere Showcase presents exciting new work by contemporary directors that would otherwise have no theatrical venue in the area. Our selections for this calendar include two acclaimed films from this year’s Sundance Film Festival: the Zellner Brothers’ Western comedy Damsel and Panos Cosmatos’ visionary revenge fantasy Mandy, starring a delightfully unhinged Nicolas Cage. Also in September, Casting is a new German movie that exposes the sometimes harmful casting process for a remake of a Fassbinder classic. Plus, Egyptian filmmaker Tamer El Said will appear in person to discuss his meta-film about filmmaking In the Last Days of the City, and our annual collaboration with Madison’s Asian-American Media Spotlight brings two films to the Cinematheque: Miao Wang’s documentary Maineland and the contemplative drama August at Akiko’s.
All Cinematheque screenings are free and open to the public.