Youth (Hard Times)

Dir. Wang Bing. 2024, 226 mins. China. In Mandarin with English subtitles. DCP. The second installment in Wang Bing’s monumental series chronicling the lives of young migrant garment workers in the Zhili district of Huzhou City, continues to immerse the viewer in the daily grind of workshop life. In Hard Times, we follow a handful of these 300,000 workers as they grow in solidarity, deal with brutal conditions, confront bosses who withhold payment, and organize to sell the shop’s sewing machines to pocket the money. Up against the unstoppable forces of capital and the state, the workers nevertheless hold out hope that they can control their own lives. This intimate and evocative film stands on its own as a striking portrait of lives in an alien environment.

Tickets: $17.50 / $12 senior and students / $10 youth (ages 3–17) / discounted for MoMI members ($7–$11). There is a $1.50 transaction fee per ticket for all online purchases. The cost of admission may be applied toward a same-day purchase of a membership. 

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