‘Dear You’ Director Credits Overseas Chinese Letter-Writing Tradition for Sleeper Hit’s Emotional Power

By Naman Ramachandran

Naman Ramachandran

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Director Lan Hongchun took the stage at the 28th Shanghai International Film Festival to discuss how “Dear You,” now one of China’s most-talked-about films of the year, drew its emotional charge from qiaopi – the tradition of family letters and remittances exchanged between overseas Chinese communities and their relatives at home.

The film has earned more than $255 million at the Chinese box office since opening in May, and carries a 9.3 rating on Douban. Lan spoke during the “Cultural Roots, Localized Narratives, and Emotional Resonance in Contemporary Chinese Cinema” forum at the festival.

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