AC Films producer
Directed and written
by Andy Cohen
Co-Directed and written
by Gaylen Ross
Executive Producer Ai Weiwei
Directed and written
by Andy Cohen
Co-Directed and written
by Gaylen Ross
Executive Producer Ai Weiwei
Synopsis:
Ximei is a young peasant woman who contracted AIDS during China’s "Black Blood Economy”, a 1990’s government-sponsored campaign that aimed to monetize the blood of its peasants. Impoverished residents of Henan Province lined up in droves to sell their blood for a month’s wages (5 USD), so that the government could manufacture blood products to sell back on the market for easy profits. Donors and recipients became infected with HIV due to contaminated medical equipment and blood, sparking a full-blown epidemic that spread among 300,000 people. In an ominous display of how China would later respond to Covid-19, a scandalous cover up and media blackout ensues. Ximei is sequestered to live out a desolate life in the AIDS Villages where, instead of succumbing to death, she becomes determined to fight for life.
She organises victims groups, reaches out to the press to uncover the true story, and petitions local officials to receive proper medical care and for the right to move freely beyond the AIDS Villages. Through incarceration and by withholding treatment, officials try to terrorise her into silence and close down her halfway house for HIV victims. In a tour de force, Ximei musters the strength to single-handedly battle the authorities to help her fellow victims, many dying along the way, to overcome social and legal discrimination and to receive medication vital to their existence. Her courageous actions and fiery character transform the tragedy of Henan's HIV-infected outcasts into lives of hope and dignity.
Selections & Awards:
Close-Up Edinburgh DocuFest - Social Impact Documentary Award
Movies That Matters Festival - Activist Award
Golden Gate International Film Festival - Best Cinematography
Palm Spring International Festival - Best Documentary
FIFDH / Geneva, CH /2019
DOCUTAH FESTIVAL / St Georges, USA / 2019
AWARENESS FILM FESTIVAL / Los Angeles, USA / 2019
SLIFF / St Louis, USA / 2019
JAYU FESTIVAL / Toronto, CA / 2019
ONE WORLD FILM FESTIVAL / Prague, CZ / 2020
MOVIES THAT MATTER FESTIVAL / The Hague, NL / 2020
HUMAN RIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL BERLIN / Berlin, DE / 2020
FILMFEST OSNABRÜCK / Osnabrück, DE / 2020
Film’s website