Jia

In this award-winning film, two strangers are brought together by shared grief, experienced from vastly different perspectives.

Ming arrives in Australia to mourn her late son Yao. She embarks on a road trip with Eric, who she learns was in a romantic relationship with him, which challenges her conservative Chinese values. Their journey takes them through rural Victoria – where Ming scatters sand from Yao’s hometown across the last places he travelled – eventually finding a shared language in their suffering.

Chinese-born director Vee Shi drew inspiration from his personal relationship with his mother and their struggles to communicate across generational and cultural divides since he immigrated to Melbourne. This heartfelt tribute, which received support from the AACTA: Pitch Focus initiative, also won Best Direction and received a Special Mention for Best Actor in the Australian short film category at Flickerfest.