Canadian Premiere
In this broken-mirror reality, humans have achieved immortality, but at the cost of their ability to dream. The only outliers still capable of slipping into the dreamworld are monsters branded Fantasmers, who are privy to visions no one else can see and capable of being reincarnated. We follow one Fantasmer (Jackson Yee) over the course of a century as he takes various forms — a vampire, a card shark — all as a mysterious woman (Shu Qi) monitors his exploits and grows more sympathetic to his fateful odyssey…
While Bi Gan (Kaili Blues; Long Day’s Journey into Night) has never lacked ambition, his third feature represents the year’s most astonishing and audacious epic. Spanning 100 years and segmented into six chapters — each a nod to a particular era of cinema (be it silent films laden with enchanting practical effects or action fare elevated by a bravura single take) — the transcendent Resurrection pays homage to legends like Méliès and Murnau while cementing the Chinese auteur’s status as one of his generation’s most incandescent talents.
Special Prize, Cannes 2025
Jackson Yee, Shu Qi, Mark Chao, Li Gengxi, Huang Jue, Chen Yongzhong
China/France
2025
In Mandarin with English subtitles
At SFU Woodwards
At Fifth Avenue
Book Tickets
Credits & Director
Executive Producer
Bi Gan, Wan Juan
Producer
Shan Zuolong, Charles Gillibert, Yang Lele
Screenwriter
Bi Gan, Zhai Xiaohui
Cinematography
Dong Jingsong
Editor
Bi Gan, Bai Xue
Production Design
Liu Qiang, Tu Nan
Original Music
M83
Bi Gan 毕赣
Born 1989 in Kaili, China, Bi Gan made his first film tests in Kaili, where he set up a video workshop and directed the short film Diamond Sutra (2012). His first feature film, Kaili Blues (2015), was selected by 70 festivals and received rave reviews, winning the Best Emerging Filmmaker Award in the Cinéaste du Présent section at the Locarno Festival, among other awards. In 2018, he released Long Day’s Journey Into Night, a monumental fresco in 3D. The film was presented in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival to widespread acclaim.
Filmography: Tiger (2011); Kaili Blues (2015); Long Day’s Journey Into Night (2018)
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
The Secret in Their Eyes
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American Doctor
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