The World is Bright (Shi Ming)

In 2005, Qian Hui Deng and Xue Mei Li received notice from the Canadian government that their son Shi-Ming had allegedly committed suicide and was buried on Canadian soil. With no further details provided other than his death certificate and a box with his belongings, they decide to travel from Beijing to Vancouver to investigate the mysterious circumstances around Shi-Ming's death. Skilfully employing a docu-thriller style, the film follows the grieving parents for over a decade as they navigate a new culture and a complex web of bureaucracy in a search for answers. While tracing Shi-Ming's footsteps through reenactments and interviews with those closest to him, the film reveals a distressing connection between the act of immigration and mental illness - a vulnerability that his parents come to understand firsthand. In creating a vital space to discuss mental health within immigrant communities, The World Is Bright also serves as a powerful testament to parental devotion. By bravely sharing their story, the Dengs turn their grief into an act of hope.