k us if we could fake marry each other,  says Yu.  A lot of people are 100% sure that no matter what they tell their families, they will never accept that. 

While addressing minority stress within the family, the film coincidentally summoned unexpected support - the father's role was played by its real-life inspiration, Yu's father, Hai.

 My dad was in my [short] film before, so I know he could act,  says Yu.  I said,  We are looking for the father role, do you want to come?' My father said,  If you can't find someone else, you can come to ask me.' And I said,  This is the moment I'm asking you: I need your help.' A week later, he arrived in Harbin for the table read. 

As Hai opened his heart on set while filming the emotional father-daughter confession scene, the profound pain was soothed.  He turned his back to everyone and sobbed, and said:  You don't understand the feeling of a father losing his daughter,'  Yu confides.  He told me that he [took] the role because he wanted to rescue himself, and express everything he had not said in real life. 

The director-producer duo will continue to collaborate on future projects. Zhou's next feature,  Another Stranger,  is a family comedy-drama based on her experience with her cousin when they were trapped in Thailand during a trip due to the COVID lockdown from January to April 2020.

 I was trying to understand our family from a different perspective. My cousin and I used to be very close when we were little, but during that period, he was not the man I used to know and I was not the woman he used to know. There was a lot of jealousy, vulnerability, masculinity - all these things mixed together on this tropical island,  Zhou says.

A writer-director as well, Yu is working on her debut feature, a Chinese diaspora story set to take place in Los Angeles and a European village. The project is hitting international film markets, seeking American and European producers.

Watch the trailer: https://youtu.be/0v-cCIKet28