I was such a refreshment program student myself twenty-six years ago, staying in the last year of high school for three years. Eventually, I still disappointed my parents who had wished me to entre a university. Back then, my parents, regular citizens without any power themselves, nor any connection to the powerful, together with me, experienced the uncertainty of a long, dark and stressful tunnel of me staying home jobless, job hunting, working in a plant. And later, I left the small town for Beijing, where I did menial jobs, working industriously to make ends meet. During this period of time, the grievance arose from following the majority without necessary critical thinking, uncertainty over the future, as well as hesitation and frustration of not knowing where the future would be.

Therefore, it touched my heart when Hanhan’s mom told me the story of her daughter in a relaxed chatting manner. Totally different from me, who came from a rather remote small town, Hanhan has such a variety of options, such an abundance of opportunities, and so many resources in her life. The situation for me was an absolute shortage of everything, from choices to opportunities, without any social resources available at all, whatsoever. Especially, I was shocked at the fact that she gave up the education at the Middle School Associated to the China Central Academy of Fine Arts, which has been the dream opportunity that so many other teenagers have tried all their might to grasp, with such an ease of mind. I was shocked significantly and could not help wondering what exactly exempted her of the necessary pondering over the potential outcome when she took an action like that.

Through constant conversation with her, I was sharply aware of her independent thinking abilities resulted from a multitude of choices available since her childhood. This gave me a strong inspiration and desire to produce a story about her. However, a story only about her would not mean much, because it would not be contrasted and it would be difficult for the audience to figure out the reasons. Upon such realization, I decided to go back to the Xianning high school where I used to study myself, to find a student with similar experience in taking the national exam multiple times like myself, for whom the only choice for a decent future would be to get into a university. In China, especially in small and medium-sized cities, the traditional belief holds that getting a university degree means a decent job and a bright future, because more and better chances would be presented to them. Moreover, the better a university they can get into, the better and the more the opportunities there will be.

Many students have to repeat the last year of high school study in order to get a higher score in their university entrance exam. Some students have repeated two, three or even ten times. Because universities only use this score to assess the student’s qualification for entry, this once a year exam is critical for students interested in higher education.

For most students in small cities, gaining entrance to a university is the first step to move beyond the traditional family life with which they have grown up and play a role in the modern world. This role has different meanings for different people.  For the boy, Xu Jia, for instance, the only thing he was concerned about was getting into a good university and then finding a well-paying job. The philosophical quest of “what do I live for” never occurred to him. Xu Jia represents the majority of Chinese who have a strong desire to improve their lives by enjoying a better material life style.

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For the girl, Ma Baijuan, who lives in a small village in the remote mountains, survival is her life’s priority.  She doesn’t feel bored with life like Yuan Hanhan, nor does she feel anxious like the ambitious Xu Jia does.  Her livelihood comes from land, and her future life lies there too.  

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In present-day China, an extreme rich-poor gap separates people into different social classes. Xu Jia, Yuan Hanhan and Ma Baijuan are representative of these classes.  

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People trying to survive off the land must endure heavy pressure and anxiety while pursuing traditional success. Those individuals who are striving to enjoy the fruits of middle class are also beginning to wonder about the meaning of life and to explore spirituality.

This film explores the life of three young people looking to find their way, their worth and their world in traditional China’s newly emergent modern society. It is a wonderful journey as we observe the three not only learning how to live, but also understanding how life works in present day China.