abstractSynopsis:
“Homeland 1961” is an old tenement building in Quanzhou that has since been converted to a hostel and coffee shop, owned by Chen Qiuyue. Her husband, a returned overseas Chinese, built this place and then departed, never to be seen again. Chen Qiuyue raised her three children here, but is now suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease. When local officials notify her that the building is due to be torn down, her children have varied responses: to flee, or to fight back. As layer after layer of the family’s pain is revealed, Chen Qiuyue prefers to take refuge in her beloved Qizi operas. Her granddaughter shows up after many years away, and has to deal with her difficult relationship with her father as well as her collapsing marriage. Over the course of an afternoon conversation about Qizi opera, grandmother and granddaughter find common ground. When everything is in flux, what is worth holding on to? Whether or not the old building is torn down seems to be more than a question of bricks and mortar…