Anthony Chen’s ‘The Breaking Ice’ for International Feature Category
The youth drama–starring Zhou Dongyu, Liu Haoran and Qu Chuxiao–premiered to great acclaim at 2023 Cannes Film Fest.
Singapore has picked Ilker Anthony Chen‘s coming-of-age Chinese drama The Breaking Ice as its submission to the 2024 Oscars in the best international feature category.
The film made its world premiere in May in Cannes Film Fest’s Un Certain Regard section.
Made with Chinese cast and crew, The Breaking Ice tells the story of an unlikely, fleeting friendship formed between three restless young people in China’s far northeastern border city of Yanji.
It is headlined by a star-studded ensemble of young Chinese talent, including Zhou Dongyu (Oscar-nominated Better Days), Liu Haoran (Detective Chinatown franchise) and Qu Chuxiao (The Wandering Earth).
Described as a Generation Z drama, the film’s story follows the blossoming friendship of its three main characters as they discover warmth in their shared isolation over a weekend in the winter snow — exploring some of the hopes, dreams, and anxieties of Chinese young people in the process. It was Chen’s first feature shot entirely in mainland China, a project that took him far outside his creative comfort zone.
Chen has described the film as his “love letter” to China’s restless youth.
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Critics praised The Breaking Ice after its Cannes premiere, as feeling yet never emotionally emphatic.
Strand Releasing is planning a theatrical release for The Breaking Ice in US in late 2023 or early 2024.
