Born in 2000
ZHANG Tongdao • 2019
The film records the growing pains of China’s globalized generation in the past decade. It also presents how they are rejected, then accepted, and finally grown in the cultural shock between China and the US. It is in this way that China’s current education has been reconsidered in the level of the system itself and families.
CAST & CREW
DIRECTOR'S STATEMENT
ZHANG Tongdao
Director
This is the coming-of-age story of a group of post-2000 Chinese children, as well as a fable about China’s future. I never imagined the shoot would span twelve years—yet it was the hidden mysteries of their lives unfolding that drove me onward: I was always curious to see how time would shape these youngsters. Over the years, they have grown into a vibrant, verdant landscape in my own life. As China’s first documentary to follow post-2000 children for twelve consecutive years, Post-00s chronicles the growth of a newly internationalized generation and paints an unvarnished portrait of Chinese education. The film captures the psychological battles among children, parents, and teachers, touching on individuality versus the system, exams versus holistic development, left-behind children versus overseas students, and the tensions of adolescence and parent–child relationships—educational themes that resonate in every household. Rich in vivid detail and dramatic storytelling, it truly feels like a youth epic.