Nov. 2, 2023 - Filmmakers Anna Spencer & Jocelyn Au-Yeung (RUTHFUL)
RUTHFUL, 29min., Canada, Drama
Directed by Jocelyn Au-Yeung, Ariane Nopra
When a Chinese-Canadian college student returns home to Toronto, she visits a Hong Kong cafe she frequented during her childhood. Through eating the food, she is suddenly able to relive suppressed memories of her deceased grandmother. Now she must confront their multifaceted relationship and her own identity to find her peace.https://www.instagram.com/ruthfulshortfilm/
Get to know producer Anna Spencer & co-writer/director Jocelyn Au-Yeung
Jocelyn: This project was really born out of my experiences growing up, my relationship with my grandparents, and coming to terms with my identity. I couldn’t communicate deeply with them because I couldn’t speak Cantonese well, but I spent a lot of time with them instead. They would often take me out for afternoon tea after school at a Hong Kong cafe, and through sharing food together, that was how they expressed their love to me. After my grandfather died in 2017, I found myself asking what I could have done differently, how I could have been a better grandchild, how I could have expressed my love to them more. Ruthful was a way for me to explore those questions, and also show that I couldn’t be where I am now without my grandparents.
Anna: When I read the synopsis of this film, I was so touched by the themes of family and I knew right away that I wanted to work on this project. As well, diversity on-screen and off is something that I feel very passionately about. This film brings important stories to the forefront that aren’t always told in mainstream media.
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