Markers: Films that push the boundaries of the documentary form

When the film starts, images captured by a surveillance camera show life coming to a halt in a street in Wuhan. But for the rest of this gorgeous cinematic letter from a filmmaker to her hometown, it's ordinary human activities before the pandemic that Shengze Zhu observes in wide static shots taken along the Yangtze River. As on a communal stage quietly bustling with life, people walk, dance, sing, swim or work, while in the background a series of urban landscapes highlight the imposing multiplication of new constructions and the calm resilience of nature. Far from the controlled footage of the pandemic, these scenes of unexpected beauty are nonetheless haunted by loss. Appearing as text onscreen, letters addressed to loved ones evoke the pain caused by recent bereavements. However altered the city is, the memories of its inhabitants remain as strong and unwavering as the currents of the Yangtze. Charlotte Selb

This event has been financially assisted by the Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund of the Government of Ontario through the Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries, administered by the Ontario Cultural Attractions Fund Corporation.