At the 2024CAA GraduationExhibition, Zhang Keran, a master’s graduate in Film and Television Directing fromthe School of Film Art, presented her work“My Mom’s Secret”. This film was meticulously crafted by a passionate creative team, including producer Wang Jingru, executive director Jiang Haonan, sound designer Li Siyan, art director Ge Lingmei, and editor Zhu Tianyuan. Through their collective effort and dedication, the project was successfully brought to life and awarded thegoldaward.

The work “My Mom’s Secret” is set in a small steel-heavy industrial town in the 21st century. In this era, mechanical systems increasingly infiltrated the mining industry, with machines gradually replacing a large number of manual laborers. The film tells the story of the protagonist Chen Duo, who presses her handprint onto a layoff agreement, marking her farewell to a mine she had worked at for thirty years. The city is perpetually shrouded in smog, and she tightly clenches her hand, afflicted with nail bed disease from years of labor. The film skillfully uses the mine and railway tracks as symbols, contrasting the delicate scars on the woman’s nails with the cold hardness of steel, and unfolds the narrative through Chen Duo's subtle yet profound physiological struggles.

The film explores the complex entanglement between women and their external environment, reflecting on the decline of steel cities, the insignificance of individual women, and the relentless impact of the times. Through a unique perspective, it portrays the conflict and connection between the body and industry. The“hand”, as an organ, tool, and symbol of contract, is gradually eroded in the tidal wave of steel. The mechanical forces depicted are both ruthless and, to some extent, evoke a melancholic beauty. Through delicate portrayal, the film deeply examines the opposition and fusion of humanity and mechanization in the process of modernization.

My Mom’s Secret

Artist: Zhang Keran (School of Film Art)

Instructor: Du Haibin