Synopsis

The “Great Sichuan Earthquake” took place at 14:28 on May 12, 2008. 10 days after: scenes not seen on official TV; “survival” is the keyword. Ordinary people are salvaging destroyed pig farms in the mountains, recuperating cents-worth of scrap metals, or pillaging victims’ homes. Behind the highly mediatized official visits is the inconsolable grief of families searching for loved ones. Throughout, a vagabond in tattered clothes wanders among the ruins, observing tragic scenes. A monk and a Taoist visionary suggest: “the earthquake is the consequence of Earth gods no longer worshipped”. 210 days after: a harsh winter, villagers preparing for Lunar New Year, the vagabond and family are detailing grievances about the mishandling of rebuilding schemes and relief funds. Gearing up for a high official’s visit leads to a thorough clean-up of the villages and tent resettlement for refugees. Promises made that all will be living in houses by winter seem tough to keep. Fake parts in the community transformer lead to an electricity blackout during New Year’s Eve reunion dinners. New Year’s Day starts as never-ending parades of tourists buy DVDs of the earthquake’s most horrific scenes, souvenir albums of corpses being pulled out of the ruins, and take photos in front of Beichuan, the town most severely hit, where over 70,000 people perished in seconds.