SIFF YOUNG｜Wang Jing's THE BEST IS YET TO COME Starring Zhang Songwen and Bai Ke Will Be Released Soon

The film THE BEST IS YET TO COME by the SIFF YOUNG x selected filmmaker Wang Jing is scheduled to be released nationwide on March 24, 2023. It is supervised by Jia Zhangke and starred by Bai Ke, Miao Miao and Zhang Songwen.

Final Poster of THE BEST IS YET TO COME

The film is set in China in 2003 and adapted from a real story. Revolving around Han Dong (played by Bai Ke), a young man who dropped out of high school but is good at writing and dreams of being a journalist, it is a story of dream-seeker. Joined by his girlfriend Xiao Zhuzi (played by Miao Miao) and his friend Zhang Bo (played by Song Yang), Han Dong resolutely left his hometown to try his luck in Beijing. Having no money, no education background, and nowhere to belong, they ran into setbacks again and again. Later, Han Dong joined the senior reporter Huang Jiang (played by Zhang Songwen) who works in a newspaper office. During the investigation, he found that nearly 100 million people were being discriminated against, facing difficulties in such areas as "employment" and "schooling". With a journalism ideal, he was determined to find out the truth. The film creates a golden age belonging to the paper media and unveils to us the the choice and belief of media worker through the growth of an intern reporter.

Guard the ideal of journalism and speak out for the truth

With a strong realistic flavor, the film is full of humanistic care, aside from a unique and mature filming style as a rare work narrated from the perspective of a reporter. To restore faithfully the scenes, director Wang Jing and the main creative team spent a lot of time and energy interviewing the witnesses of that era, collected a lot of real materials, and finally condensed it into a story that directly touches upon the audience's pain points. The director said: "I think the difficulties met by an ordinary person in this case are more worth telling, because it mirrors the life of each of us."

 A realistic theme that casts spotlight on nobodies

The film THE BEST IS YET TO COME is supervised by Jia Zhangke, starring Bai Ke, Miao Miao and Zhang Songwen. Song Yang contributed the special appearance, Wang Yiquan and Zhou Yemang played the leading roles, and Jia Zhangke, Qin Hailu and Fox offered the guest appearance. Also, it is supported by Liu Xiaozhao and Zhang Dong as producers, Yu Liwei as the director of photography, Huang Zhiming as the lighting director, Liu Weixin as the art director, Li Hua as the modeling director, Zhang Yang as the sound director, Yoshihiro Hanno as the composer, Matthieu as the editing director, etc.

The film is produced by Momo Pictures, FABULA Entertainment, Maoyan Entertainment, and Shanghai Lianrui Sapling Film Co., Ltd. It was nominated for the 77th Venice International Film Festival, the 45th Toronto International Film Festival, the 36th Warsaw Film Festival, and the "Hidden Dragon" unit of the 4th Pingyao Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon International Film Festival among other international film festivals at home and abroad, and was honored by the International Film Critics’ Week for the Best Film at the 42nd Cairo International Film Festival and the Fei Mu Award for the Best Director at the 4th Pingyao Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon International Film Festival.

Director Wang Jing, graduated from the Department of Directing of Beijing Film Academy in 2007, joined Jia Zhangke's creative team in 2010, and served as executive director in films such as MOUNTAINS MAY DEPART and ASH IS PUREST WHITE. In June 2021, the SIFF YOUNG x released the list of candidates during the Shanghai International Film Festival, and Wang Jing was among the first batch of selected young filmmakers. And the Final Selection Jury led by the well-known director Ning Hao recommended him as a filmmaker with "solid skill" and "excellent overall performance".

 Wang Jing at the SIFF Young Forum 2021

At the SIFF Young Forum 2021, Wang Jing shared his growth path as a director. He said that as a newcomer, he must grasp every relation and every opportunity, "During this process, you learn to listen, to compromise, to correct, and to find new possibilities again.”

SIFF YOUNG x is a film talent support mechanism guided by the Shanghai Municipal Film Bureau and undertaken by SIFF. It aims to select outstanding Chinese cinema young film talents, and provide all-round support for their works to win domestic and foreign film industry resources through a series of support policies issued by SIFF. In 2021, five young directors Rao Xiaozhi, Zeng Guoxiang, Liang Ming, Wang Jing and Han Shuai were selected for the first batch of SIFF YOUNG x filmmakers, who promoted their work at the Cannes Film Market. Among them, Rao Xiaozhi's new work HOME COMING was the box office champion during the 2022 National Day holiday period, as a well-marketed and acclaimed work with a final harvest of 1.593 billion. Liang Ming's second feature film CARPE DIEM has been approved in Shanghai and has completed filming. SIFF YOUNG x will expand the scope of recommended young filmmakers from directors to producers and screenwriters this year, and it is planned to announce the list during the 25th SIFF in 2023.