DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT

For most of my life, I’ve been distant from my family, especially my father, who went abroad to work when I was three. As an adult, my visits were brief – just enough to say hello and goodbye. In 2023, my father suffered a stroke, and his health quickly deteriorated. It dawned on me that once they’re gone, all I’ll have left are the fading memories of childhood.

Making Time and Tide marked the longest, most intimate, and most confronting time I’ve spent with my parents. I set out to make a fiction film, but as my family grew accustomed to the camera, I found myself capturing raw and intimate moments that could only exist within the private walls of a family. 

It is also the first film ever shot in the town, and only the second to feature the Fuqing dialect – a cultural identity that is gradually disappearing as younger generations speak only Mandarin, while China marches towards a unified, hegemonic identity.

I believe Time and Tide will resonate with audiences seeking authentic, culturally specific family stories that transcend borders.