2023, 99 Minutes
Director: CHEN Xiaoyu
Genre: Drrama
Synopsis
Zhou Jin lives alone in a village by the canal. When she is suddenly diagnosed with a brain tumor, her adult children return home — bringing with them old questions, unspoken conflicts, and memories of a family life that has long since drifted apart.
While her daughter Su Nianzhen is determined to provide her mother with the best possible treatment, her son Su Nianqing faces the approaching farewell with greater acceptance. Between care, helplessness, and the desire to do the right thing, the family begins to confront their shared past.
Gone with the Boat is a quiet and moving family drama about illness, farewell, and the search for a sense of home. In poetic images, the film explores how difficult it can be to let go — and how deeply family, memory, and origin continue to shape us until the very end.
About the Director
CHEN Xiaoyu is a Chinese director, screenwriter, and editor. He studied film production at the Toronto Film School and began working in the film industry in 2011. Before his feature film debut Gone with the Boat, he created several documentary works.
With Gone with the Boat, CHEN Xiaoyu presents his feature film debut. The film combines personal memories, the atmosphere of southern China’s waterside landscapes, and universal questions of family, transience, and belonging.
For Gone with the Boat, CHEN Xiaoyu received the Best Screenplay award in the Asian New Talent section at the Shanghai International Film Festival. The film was also screened at the FIRST International Film Festival, where it was nominated, among others, for Best Feature Film.
Watching movies online is convenient and comfortable, but it lacks the joy of immersing yourself in the same space and time with friends and sharing the experience with them. We provide a platform for Chinese movie fans to get to know each other and communicate with each other. We cordially invite you to join us!
Number of viewers: 5-20
Price: Admission to this event is free for all alumni members. External guests pay a fee of 5 €.
Date: July 24th, 2026, Friday, 19.00 - 21.00 pm
Venue: Confucius Institute Munich (Gleichmannstraße 10, 81241, Munich-Pasing)
Please sign-up for this event on the bottom of the page!
We ask all movie fans who do not want to miss out on this exciting cinema experience to register in good time and look forward to seeing you there in large numbers!
Once a year, the Confucius Institute Munich brings Chinese films to the big screen: Cinema productions never shown in Germany before, documentaries and classics have been screened at the Chinese Film Festival Munich since 2013. Since April 2021, friends of Asian cinema can now watch Chinese-language films online all year round.
From arthouse and action to melodrama and zombie, there is something for everyone. All films are shown in the original version with subtitles. At irregular intervals, Chinese filmmakers and filmmakers present themselves exclusively in the livestream. Each film is available on the streaming portal from Friday 10.00 to Sunday 23.00.
The cinema premiered on April 23, 2021 with the documentary "Four Springs" (2019, original title: 四个春天) by LU Qingyi. Since then, many films have already screened, including "Inner Landscape", "June 30th", "A Bright Summer Diary", "My Father at Grandma's Funeral", "Petty Things", "Puzzle", "Three Adventures of Brooke", "Girls Always Happy", "Love Education" and "Wrath of Silence".
Participation is free for members of the Confucius Institute Munich Alumni Network. Please register with the alumni mailing list. You received the link by e-mail during the first week of the course.
We are looking forward to seeing you!
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