Whispers in May

A visually striking, close, tender, humorous and serious hybrid documentary.

This is a hybrid documentary that magically blends gritty realism with staged elements. We find ourselves in southern China, in the mountainous Liangshan region, where we meet 14-year-old Quihuo as she transitions from childhood to adulthood. Like many other children in this impoverished part of China, her parents work in cities elsewhere in the country, leaving the children to fend for themselves.

As Quihuo enters puberty, she sets off with her friends on a journey to another village to find the perfect skirt to mark her transition into womanhood. Along the way, they naturally encounter numerous challenges. The film is visually striking—intimate, tender, humorous, and serious all at once. The winner of the main prize (Dox:Award) at CPH:DOX, one of the world's largest documentary film festivals, is a unique documentary you cannot afford to miss.

Lasse Skagen