A Breath

How does one survive the twentieth century? For the Chinese artists‘ couple Huang Miaozi and Yu Feng, this has not merely been a poetical question, but stark reality. Both were born in the beginning of this century, and both have experienced the turbulent revolutions in China from very close by. After having survived many hardships during World War II, the two of them were arrested in the mid-sixties, after Mao had proclaimed the Cultural Revolution, only to be released from prison seven years later. Apart from dramatised scenes and archive footage from these periods, the film makes abundant use of the work - drawings, cartoons and calligraphic works of art — of the now eighty-year-old, but still very active artists. In the meantime, they have had exhibitions all over the world. They are currently living in Australia. Their poignant life story is largely told by a voice-over, and their own voices can also be heard. The film title has several meanings in Chinese, but it primarily represents this exceptional couple‘s indomitability.