The SIFF ING section of the 28th Shanghai International Film Festival concluded a new mobile filmmaking camp. Ten short films by emerging Chinese directors, all shot on iPhone, were screened both on-site in Shanghai and online.
Launched as a new and noteworthy initiative within the 2026 SIFF ING section, the camp selected 10 participants through an open call and provided each participant with professional iPhone filmmaking equipment, production funding, and technical guidance. The program covers the entire production cycle, from development and filming to festival screenings and industry exchanges, and is positioned as a structured pathway for young directors to develop their cinematic expressiveness.
The resulting ten short films span a wide tonal range. Ding Ding’s “One Way Out” follows an urban drifter who embarks on a surreal adventure after picking up an unusual passenger. Lee Chenxi’s “The Lobster” imagines an encounter between humans and artificial life forms. Directed by Yang Xiaoman, “A One and A Two” tells the story of a mother and daughter who sort out the belongings of a deceased man and have an unexpected reunion with him. Wu Xinyu’s “Days With You” follows two women who spend three days playing the roles of mother and daughter, breaking up after a candid confession.
Stray Chen’s “Till Death” is a sci-fi angle about an AI humanoid who chooses to live with his terminally ill wife after a heated argument. Director Bonnie Cheng’s The Mentors is an autobiographical work in which the director, still haunted 20 years after an unresolved breakup with his rhythmic gymnastics instructor, Lily, enlists his acting mentor, Jim, to help him devise a theatrical process in which he attempts to reconcile with Lily. Xu Xiang’s “Live Photo” uses the iPhone’s Live Photo feature as its central metaphor, as a man revisits old photos on the last day of his divorce cooling-off period as he unpacks memories of his marriage.
“Unscientific Disappearance,” directed by Tu Hai Lung, is a supernatural thriller in which an elderly man who was being taken to the hospital by a driver disappears without explanation in a tunnel. Han Yuchi’s “Hide and Seek” depicts an eight-year-old boy processing the death of his sister while his parents refuse to discuss it. “Amour,” directed by Harry Kai, depicts a woman hiding her heartbroken over her ex-lover’s wedding, as her friends quietly stand by her side.
The SIFF ING section, which will be held throughout the Shanghai International Film Festival, aims to harness the creative energy of young filmmakers from diverse cultural backgrounds and provide them with access to a broader industry platform.
