CONFUCIAN DREAM – Co-Presentation with Hot Docs

Chaoyan discovers the ancient teachings of Confucianism and she becomes a zealous convert, involving her impressionable four-year-old son in her rigorous routine of chanting daily mantras. Chaoyan’s husband, Mei, finds their study schedule excessive, but tolerates it until she proposes that Chen attend a year-round Confucian school. While Confucianism’s primary purpose is to instil peace and harmony, the opposite occurs between this husband and wife as their beliefs clash and their arguments escalate. A gripping portrait of marital and parental crisis, Confucian Dream demonstrates the devastating effects of misplacing your expectations of a spouse onto a child.