76 Days

This is the first significant piece of cinema about the ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic. The documentary is set in Wuhan during the 76-day lockdown imposed by the Chinese authorities in an attempt to stop the virus from spreading. Deserted streets contrast with patient-crowded hospitals where frontline health personnel, dressed up in astronaut-like uniforms, battle a disease which they know little about.

For all its dystopian elements, the documentary is firmly grounded in the reality experienced by Wuhan’s 11 million people, where fear and uncertainty coexisted alongside perseverance and, why not, humor. While some scenes are so intimate that make one wonder how cameras were even allowed in there – and that might help explaining why one of the co-directors decided to remain anonymous – the documentary provides an invaluable insight into the first days of the pandemic that has changed the world as we know it.

Leonardo Rodarte

Director

Hao Wu is a Chinese-American film director, producer and writer best known for his feature-length documentary, People's Republic of Desire, winner of the Grand Jury Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 2018 South by Southwest. Weixi Chen is a video reporter for Esquire China and has won awards at the Hong Kong International Festival and the Caixin Media Awards. 76 Days is his feature directorial debut.