| Director: | Mingjian Cui |
|---|---|
| Production: | Many Broken Hearts (Olivia Shanks, Emma Mortimer), Congratulations Films (Olivia Shanks), FreezeFrame (Emma Mortimer) |
| Running Time: | 14’ |
| Language: | English, Chinese, Cantonese |
| Country: | New Zealand |
| Year: | 2025 |
| Main Cast: | An Ann, Yihan (Roxie) Pu, Kunxiao (Willem) Wu, Lila Yu, Thomas Chin |
| Screenplay: | Mingjian Cui |
| Cinematographer: | Adam Luxton |
| Editor: | Chia-Chi Hsu |
| Production Designer: | Mark Grenfell |
| Costume Designer: | Sacha Young |
| Sound: | Maxwell Scott |
| Visual Effects: | Stuart Bedford |
Cinema
The Girl Next Door
Synopsis
Rui, an international student, moves to a remote American college town with her husband for a better future. But after she kills him in their apartment, she finds herself in a desperate situation. For the next week, she keeps his body in their bedroom. No one knows why.
Years later, her neighbour, also a “student wife”, is still haunted by that love story. She imagines the two of them in that room, trying to piece the story together. People say that on the seventh night, the soul returns to say goodbye. Was she waiting for him?
Director’s Statement
The Girl Next Door is inspired by my memories of living in an American Midwest college town, and the long shadow of a real-life homicide there, when an international student took her husband’s life. The film explores love, displacement, obsession and the hidden emotions that drive us.
Production/distribution
PRODUCTION 1:
Many Broken Hearts Ltd - Olivia Shanks, Emma Mortimer
63 Kervil Avenue
0610 Auckland, New Zealand
Tel: +64 2040801180
E-mail: olivia.shanks@gmail.com
PRODUCTION 2:
Congratulations Films - Olivia Shanks
Flat 6, 55A Hepburn Street
1011 Auckland, New Zealand
Tel: +64 2040801180
E-mail: olivia.shanks@gmail.com
PRODUCTION 3:
FreezeFrame - Emma Mortimer
63 Kervil Avenue
0610 Te Atatu, New Zealand
Tel: +64 211317175
E-mail: emjmortimer@gmail.com
