Why Try to Change Me Now
© iQIYI, Inc
Haosen Zheng, Baoshi Dong
Why Try to Change Me Now by Dalei Zhang
CHN 2023, Berlinale Series
© iQIYI, Inc
Xiameng Zhang, Qing Hai
Why Try to Change Me Now by Dalei Zhang
CHN 2023, Berlinale Series
© iQIYI, Inc
Xiameng Zhang, Haosen Zheng
Why Try to Change Me Now by Dalei Zhang
CHN 2023, Berlinale Series
© iQIYI, Inc
Why Try to Change Me Now by Dalei Zhang
CHN 2023, Berlinale Series
An industrial city in north-eastern China in the early 1990s. Work, pragmatism and getting the job done are the values of the age. For people like ambitious cigarette factory employee Dezeng Zhuang, problems are solved with bribes and evenings are spent drinking and doing karaoke. His wife Dongxin Fu, on the other hand, is quiet and shy, a dreamer who escapes reality by delving into her books. She may not be on the same wavelength as her rowdy son Shu Zhuang, but recognises a kindred spirit in her neighbour’s quiet daughter Fei Li, whose mentor she becomes.
However, as different as the two children are, there is a connection between them that begins with a fascination for matches. Then murders start occuring: the manager of the beer factory and his wife are found dead in their flat. A little later, the police discover the body of a taxi driver in his burnt-out vehicle.
Director Dalei Zhang won the Silver Bear in 2021 with his short film Xia Wu Guo Qu Le Yi Ban. In Why Try to Change Me Now, he has created an adaptation of the award-winning novel “Moses on the Plain” by Xuetao Shuang that is as meticulous as it is poetic.
However, as different as the two children are, there is a connection between them that begins with a fascination for matches. Then murders start occuring: the manager of the beer factory and his wife are found dead in their flat. A little later, the police discover the body of a taxi driver in his burnt-out vehicle.
Director Dalei Zhang won the Silver Bear in 2021 with his short film Xia Wu Guo Qu Le Yi Ban. In Why Try to Change Me Now, he has created an adaptation of the award-winning novel “Moses on the Plain” by Xuetao Shuang that is as meticulous as it is poetic.
With
- Zijian Dong (Shu Zhuang)
- Qing Hai (Dongxin Fu)
- Tian Qiu (Fei Li)
- Baoshi Dong (Dezeng Zhuang)
- Chen Zhang (Xiaodong Zhao)
- Jingdong Liang (Shoulian Li)
- Zheng Wang (Bufan Jiang)
- Haosen Zheng (Younger Shu Zhuang)
- Xiameng Zhang (Younger Fei Li)
- Jing Ai (Donghua Fu)
Crew
| Creator | Yu Gong |
| Showrunner | Xiaohui Wang |
| Director | Dalei Zhang |
| Screenplay | Dalei Zhang, Tao Guo, Rui Xiao, Rongrong Hu, Anyang Zhang, Bo Pang based on the novel by Xuetao Shuang |
| Cinematography | Songye Lv |
| Editing | Ching-Sung Liao |
| Music | Hanno Yoshihiro |
| Sound | Gang Hao |
| Costumes | Lingyuan Kong |
| Production Design | Zhiqiang Lan |
| Line Producers | Zirui Yuan, Weichen Shang |
| Producer | Kang Qi |
| Executive Producer | Yinan Diao |
World Sales
iQIYI, Inc
Produced by
iQIYI, Inc
Additional information
Broadcaster: iQIYI, Inc
Dalei Zhang, Kang Qi
The director and the producer of the Chinese series.
Why Try to Change Me Now · Berlinale Series · Feb 21, 2023
Kang Qi, Dalei Zhang, Julia Fidel
The director and the producer during the Q&A with the section head.
Why Try to Change Me Now · Berlinale Series · Feb 21, 2023