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Maineland

Directed by Miao Wang

  • “Astute and absorbing”
    NY Times
  • “Stunning...speaks to us in a language we understand.”
    PASTE Magazine
  • “A visual marvel...revealing perceptive truths”
    Hammer to Nail
  • “An eye-opening cultural commentary”
    Huffington Post

*A SXSW 2017 Special Jury Award Winner.* *NY TIMES CRITICS PICK* With China’s ascendance, there has been an exponential surge of study-abroad students — Chinese students now account for over one-third to one-half of international secondary school students. Many are children of the new Chinese wealthy elite, whose parents found success in China’s economic rise of the last decades.

Filmed over three years in China and the U.S., MAINELAND is a multi-layered coming-of-age tale that follows two affluent and cosmopolitan teenagers as they settle into a boarding school in blue-collar rural Maine. Part of the enormous wave of “parachute students” from China enrolling in U.S. private schools, bubbly, fun-loving Stella and introspective Harry come seeking a Western-style education, escape from the dreaded Chinese college entrance exam, and the promise of a Hollywood-style U.S. high school experience. In one sleepy Maine town, worlds collide as students fresh from China learn to navigate the muddy waters of this microcosmic global village.

The journey begins with illuminating interviews and admission panel reviews in Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen. The admissions officer interviews a colorful variety of students. Stella and Harry, our main protagonists, are accepted for the Fall 2012 semester at Fryeburg Academy, Maine, along with a gregarious cast of characters who weave throughout the film. Stella and Harry’s family and school life in China stands in contrast to their new lives in Maine. For three years, the film observes their normal teenage malaise, angst and frivolity, and their very different attempts at adapting to an American high school culture and education as they transition from a metropolitan Chinese to a rural American lifestyle.

Stella is outgoing and boisterous. Her American dream is of cute boys and a High School Musical–style school experience. Her parents expect her to take over the family manufacturing enterprise – but she wants to teach. Just before arriving in Maine, the life she knew shattered. Her parents divorced. Her mansion in Shanghai was emptied. Stella dives head first into her new social life in America. In China, dating is not allowed in high school; in America, Stella has many rotating boyfriends. She becomes a cheerleader and performs seductive dances during talent shows. Her mother is appalled listening to Stella’s stories back home.

Harry is reflective and philosophical. He seeks a Western-style schooling that encourages critical thinking. Like many Chinese boys his age, he has a videogame habit. Harry’s family urges him to retain traditional Chinese values. In a class in Maine, he researches the Tiananmen Square Massacre for the first time, and his findings enlighten him about both China and America.

Through lyrical cinematography that transports us from China to the U.S., MAINELAND captures a new crop of future Chinese elites as they try to find their place between the collectivist society they come from and the individualist culture they come to embrace. As Stella and Harry’s fuzzy visions of the American dream slowly gain more clarity, they ruminate on their experiences of alienation, culture clash, and personal identity, sharing new understandings and poignant discourses on home and country.

For more info please visit: https://mainelandfilm.com/
"Maineland in LA Times" In The Press
LA Times on MAINELAND: "Sweetly observed."MORE +
New Yorker: Maineland is "a quiet marvel of a documentary directed by Miao Wang"MORE +
NY Times: Maineland is "Astute and absorbing...I'll keep my fingers crossed for a sequel"MORE +
Film Journal on Maineland: "An absorbing and rare intimate look at the lives of the rich Chinese" MORE +
Fast Company: Maineland Review and Interview with Miao WangMORE +
Village Voice: "Chinese Students Discover America in Breezy Beautiful Doc Maineland"MORE +
Maineland Wins Audience Choice DocumentaryMORE +
DigBoston: "MAINELAND is exceptionally knotty...a keen-eyed movie"MORE +
The Boston Globe: “Maineland” examines how the students adjust to Fryeburg Academy and how they reconcile their expectations about life in America with the reality of being teenagers in a small, blue-collar town.MORE +
The NY Times: "Fall Movie Releases" Maineland October 6thMORE +
NBC News: Report Finds China Sends Most International Students to U.S. High SchoolsMORE +
Paste Magazine on MAINELAND: "Stunning...speaks to us in a language we understand."MORE +
BmoreArt: "Maineland is one of the recommended films at Maryland Film Festival."MORE +
Vanyaland: "Required viewing....approaches the meditative tones of Terrence Malick’s recent works"MORE +
Huffington Post on MAINELAND: "An eye-opening cultural commentary on two seemingly opposite countries."MORE +
Hammer to Nail: “Visual marvel...revealing perceptive truths."MORE +
Austin Chronicle: "MAINELAND serves to remind audiences of the power, and beauty, in differences.”MORE +
Moveable Fest: "A fascinating story regarding legacy in modern China." MORE +
International Examiner: “A gripping tale about two international students from China – Equal parts coming-of-age story and cross-cultural discourse..."MORE +
The Daily Dot: "MAINELAND is a genuine portrait of immigrant teens..."MORE +
Austin Monthly: 14 Documentaries Not To Miss at SXSW includes MAINELANDMORE +
FF2 Media: SXSW highlights outstanding female filmmakers including MAINELAND's Miao WangMORE +
We Are Moving Stories: Interview with SXSW Jury Award Winner Miao Wang about MAINELANDMORE +
Sixth Tone: Documentary filmmaker Wang Miao followed two ‘parachute kids’ as they adapted to life at an American high school.MORE +
Women and Hollywood - Interview SXSW 2017 Women Directors: Meet Miao Wang — “Maineland”MORE +
ReelScreen - Interview SXSW ’17: Miao Wang tackles distorted perceptions in “Maineland”MORE +
eFilmCritic - Interview SxSW 2017 Interview: MAINELAND director Miao WangMORE +
nsavides Podcast - Interview SXSW 2017 Podcast CoverageMORE +

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