Along the Railway
Du Haibin
Release year: 2000
Run time: 98 min
Film type: Documentary
Synopsis
In the Spring of 2000, in Baoji county, a group of vagrants gathers on a rubbish platform near the railway station celebrate the New Year. Mostly of the same age, they come from all over the country. During the day, they venture aimlessly into the city. At night, they sleep along the rails by the station. They pick up rubbish and bottles around the railway for a few RMB in order to survive.
Among the vagrants is Zhou Fu, who lost his money and identity card on his way home after working in the city. There are two, Li Xiaolong and Huo Hongchang, who ran away from a detention house. There is little Yunnan, who was dumped by his boss after working for him for three years. And there is Feng Xiang, who ran away from home after an argument with his family about getting married.
Director biography
DU Haibin, filmmaker, teaches at the School of Film in China Academy of Art. He graduated from the photography department at Beijing Film Academy in 2000, and started documentary filmmaking and creative photography work since 1998. His works include Doudou (1999), Along the Railway (2000), Under High-rise Buildings (2002), Beautiful Men (2005), Film Childhood(2006), Stone Mountain (2006), Umbrella (2007), 1428 (2009), and A Young Patriot (2015). Among his many awards, Along the Railway was named Best documentary at the Festival du film indépendant Chinois in Paris and won Special Mention at the International Documentary Film Festival in Yamagata, Beautiful Men won the Best Asian Documentary award at the IFF in Pusan, 1428 won the Orizzonti Award for Best Documentary at the Venice International Film Festival.