China’s first vertical documentary presents authentic ordinary livelihoods

China’s groundbreaking vertical documentary This Is Life is set to premiere on Saturday. Over the course of a year, the film creatively weaves together 887 video clips from 509 users on Chinese short video platform Kuaishou, presenting an interconnected visual narrative around the themes of “clothing, food, shelter, transportation and home.”

It offers a genuine glimpse into the lives of farmers, workers, and truck drivers, showcasing the diligent and optimistic spirit of ordinary Chinese people.

After watching the documentary during a pre-screening event on Saturday, the most impressive aspect of the film is its innovative form and authentic content.

The film’s most striking feature is its bold venture into vertical storytelling, turning short videos into a feature-length film and transforming small screens into cinematic canvases. Splitting the large screen into five vertical sections, the film seamlessly switches between five screens, effectively conveying important content in single frames or collectively displaying related scenes. This innovative approach earned This Is Life the Best Innovative Documentary Award at the 10th China Academy Awards of Documentary Film.

The film’s authenticity is another standout feature, created collaboratively by a multitude of ordinary individuals, showcasing the vibrant, direct, and unpretentious self-shot footage of contemporary Chinese society.

The richness in scenes and details surpass what any individual documentary director could capture, portraying the aspirations of ordinary people and revealing the interconnectedness of seemingly mundane tasks.

As director Chen Hong aptly put it, these user-generated content, documenting their own lives, possess a unique authenticity that goes beyond traditional documentary footage – a power worth recording for the ages.