MOVIE TRAILERS

Award-Winning Tragic Documentary 'Finding Yingying' Official Trailer

by Alex Billington
December 11, 2020
Source: YouTube

"If I lose my daughter, I lose everything." MTV Doc Films has debuted the trailer for Finding Yingying, a documentary made by Chinese filmmaker Jiayan 'Jenny' Shi. After a young Chinese student goes missing on an American university campus in Illinois, her family travels to the U.S. for the first time, hoping to unravel the mystery of her disappearance. This heartbreaking film is partially a "true crime" doc figuring out what happened to Yingying (spoiler: it's not good) and subsequently how devastating this is to her family and everyone that knew her. It's a film that shows how many lives are connected to one life. Instead of spending too much time on the tragedy itself, Shi wants to show us how one life connects with others, and how we need to relish and admire that connection. The way the local community comes together in support of her is really moving. I caught this film as part of DOC NYC this year and couldn't stop thinking about it for weeks.

Here's the official trailer (+ two posters) for Jenny Shi's doc Finding Yingying, direct from YouTube:

Yingying Zhang, a 26-year-old Chinese student, comes to the U.S. to study at the University of Illinois in Urbana–Champaign. In her detailed and beautiful diaries, the aspiring young scientist and teacher is full of optimism, hoping to also be married and a mother someday. Within weeks of her arrival, Yingying disappears from the campus without a trace. Through exclusive access to Yingying’s family and boyfriend, Finding Yingying closely follows their journey as they search to unravel the mystery of her disappearance and seek justice for their daughter while navigating a strange, foreign country. But most of all, Finding Yingying is the story of who Yingying was: a talented young woman loved by her family and friends. Finding Yingying is directed by Chinese filmmaker Jiayan 'Jenny' Shi, making her directorial debut with this film. It most recently played at the DOC NYC Film Festival this fall. MTV will release Finding Yingying in "virtual cinemas" starting on December 11th this month. For more info, visit the film's official website.

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