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Inside the Red Brick Wall
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Inside the Red Brick Wall
IDFA 2020

Inside the Red Brick Wall

Hong Kong Documentary Filmmakers
Hong Kong
2020
88 min
International Premiere
Festival history
IDFA Award for Best Editing

In 2019, Hong Kong was swept by demonstrations against the controversial extradition bill. At the Polytechnic University, a group of students also takes a stand for freedom and democracy. Negotiations with the police are chaotic and aggressive, conducted via megaphones and politically charged music played over loudspeakers. The colorful umbrellas which the young people use to protect themselves against the brutal police actions emphasize the group’s bravado, which borders on recklessness.

What begins as an energetic battle against the establishment turns into a lopsided game of cat and mouse when the police decide to surround the building. Within its red brick walls, the university building becomes a prison. Over the nearly two weeks that follow, as fear and exhaustion grow among the hundreds of students, so does the uncertainty. Should they hang on inside, or leave the building to face the armed police? The camera follows the developments and emotions so closely that it is impossible for the viewer not to become caught up in this deadly clash.

Credits
Director
    Hong Kong Documentary Filmmakers
    Hong Kong Documentary Filmmakers

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