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MOM'S HEARTBEATS

F5, Shanghai / CCTV / 2018

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Film
Demo Film

Overview

Credits

Overview

BriefExplanation

A crying baby is being passed from person to person. No matter who tries to pacify her, she continues crying incessantly. Finally, she's passed to a man who holds her close to his heart. The baby stops crying as soon as she hears his heartbeats. It is revealed that the man is the recipient of a heart that was donated by the baby's mother.

EntrySummary

Organ donation has had a long and murky history in modern day China. For years, there were no proper centralized system for organ collection and transplant. Organs were harvested from the bodies of executed prisoners. Organ trafficking was rampant. Worst, there were no voluntary organ donation and transplant system.

However, as China slowly modernizes, there is a realization from the central government, partly due to pressure and influence, that the current system is old, archaic and inhuman.

China needs to catch up to the rest of the world when it comes to building up a transparent organ donation and transplant system.

This film was released one month before the Chinese Tomb Sweeping Day, a traditional festival to commemorate the dead, in the hope that it'll inspire the living to donate their organs.

Implementation

The casting process took more than a month. It took us a month, just to cast the right baby for this project. We cast dozens of them. We spread word among friends, colleagues and family members. Whoever we could find - as long as the baby age and physical appearance fits the story.

After the initial selection, we put the babies in front of the camera to test their emotional stability; looking for the way they react to strangers and the chemistry with the main talent. We shortlisted 3 babies. The one that was finally selected is the one that both the main talent and the baby had a natural chemistry. It is as if they've known each other. They bonded straight away.

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