The Weary Bird Knows the Way Home

Gu Mingyuan, 45, is one of China's most renowned documentary directors, hailed as “the last man of conscience of this era.” His epic film The Great River earned a 9.8 rating on Douban and made him a cultural icon.

But behind the accolades, his life has long been falling apart. His creativity has stalled, and his new project has been hijacked by its financiers. His wife, Shen Wanqing, is a famous pianist. They have treated each other with courtesy for twenty years, but there has been no love or intimacy between them for a long time. Their daughter studies abroad and is practically a stranger to him.

At a cultural forum, he meets Su Mian, a young writer. She admires him, understands him, and tempts him. Gu Mingyuan knows this is a dangerous game, but he falls into it like a moth to a flame. Meanwhile, his friend and investor, Zhao Pengcheng, is plotting to bring him down. He wants more than Gu Mingyuan's talent: he wants his reputation, his connections, and everything that keeps him afloat.

That year, Gu Mingyuan's life is like a mirror, cracking at the edges before shattering completely. He loses his family, career, friends, and dignity. At last, alone, he returns to the small village by the Yellow River where he was born.

There, he meets a senile old ferryman. The old man asks him, “You've filmed so many other people's stories. Are you brave enough to film your own?”