April 24 to May 4, 2025
Content Advisory: Animal cruelty or animal death
FILM FESTIVAL
Hot Docs
Hot Docs 2025
PROGRAMME
World Showcase
A boy growing up in rural China finds solace through poetry in Always. Gong Youbin was born in a poor Chinese family in the countryside of Hunan. Gong finds an escape from his situation through his poetry class at school. However, Gong has to inevitably grow out of childhood and face reality.
Always Synopsis
Always is an observational documentary directed by Deming Chen. The film follows the child subject of Gong Youbin from the ages of 9 to 13, as he struggles with life with his impoverished family. Gong finds escape through poetry, with the poems written by him and his classmates periodically shown on screen.
My Thoughts on Always
Always is an incredibly well-shot observational documentary, filmed in black and white. Apart from the incorporation of poems written by the child subject Gong Youbin and his classmates, there isn’t too much substance or commentary in the film, though a moment of the impoverished family listening to a radio broadcast featuring the praise given by the winner of the Beijing housing lottery does stand out. I should also warn that Always features a scene of a pig being slaughtered, and even though it happens off camera, it still features the animal’s screams. Altogether, Always is a beautifully shot film, even though I wish it were a bit clearer with its thesis.
Trailer for Always – Hot Docs 2025
