THE TRAIN TO MY HOME TOWN Color, 62 Mins, 2008 Genre: Documentary Subtitle: Chinese/English Director and Camera: Ai Xiaoming Editors: Hu Jie, Ai Xiaoming
At the beginning of 2008, when the Spring Festival was around the corner, the Beijing-Guangzhou Railway, the major traffic line that links South, Central and North China, was interrupted suddenly and many trains on this line were forced to stop indefinitely. Eager to get home before the Eve of the Spring Festival, thousands upon thousands of inland migrant workers congregated at Guangzhou Railway Station and waited for the trains bound for their homes...
The Guangdong Provincial government immediately started a preparatory emergency program of the highest level for the Spring Transportation. For the first time, the halls of the Guangzhou Import and Export Fair were transformed into temporary havens for the stranded migrant workers, volunteers were activated to offer services for them, and the Guangzhou Military Area Command dispatched soldiers to repair the Beijing-Zhuhai Expressway in northern Guangdong.
However, because passengers had been waiting for days for trains that did not arrive, their level of irritation began to intensify. A 17-year old woman named Li Hongxia was killed when she was trampled by the flood of people. A man named Li Manjun, who was returning home to remarry, received a severe electric shock when he jumped from the viaduct to the top of a train, resulting in his death.
"The train to my home town travels to a paradise."... Li Hongxia's grave lies quietly in a field of wheat in her hometown. Li Manjun's son, nearly 12 years old, prayed that his deceased father could bless him with good marks in Chinese and Mathematics, so he can enter a university in the future. When being asked, "what do you wish to do after you graduate from university", the boy gave us an unexpected answer...
As an independent filmmaker, Ai Xiaoming is concerned with the needs of the marginalized people. In order to record the scenes and stories that happened during the Spring Transportation, she went to Shenzhen, Shaoguan, Ruyuan, as well as the villages in Jianli, Hubei Province and Yueyang, Hunan Province - the hometowns of Li Hongxia and Li Manjun, respectively. The documentary presents the expectations of Guangdong's migrant workers, the good wishes of their relatives at home, the ice-snow disaster relief efforts made by the government, and how the police and the migrant workers got through the hardships together. Let us review these scenes and consider what we need to do to ensure better spring travel next year.
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你很难看见的影像第二十五击
时间：2009年2月13日（周五）晚7:00
地点：广州广州大道中南方都市报主楼10楼会议室
《开往家乡的列车》
2008·彩色·62分钟
纪录片/中英文字幕
导演、采访、拍摄：艾晓明
剪辑：胡杰 艾晓明
还记得2008年初那场暴雪吗?
中国春节临近，铁路南北大动脉京广线中断、列车停运；除夕之前，成千上万的广东外来工集聚在广州火车站，等待开往家乡的列车。
广东省紧急启动最高级别的春运预案，举办广交会的交易中心大厅首次作为候车室为农民工敞开，军区调兵遣将奔赴粤北抢修京珠高速；许多志愿者开展服务为民工分忧。
然而，久候不至的列车造成的不安也在加剧，汹涌的人流吞没了年轻女工李红霞的生命；而急切回家结婚的工人李满军从高架桥跳上列车触电伤重不治。
“开往家乡的列车，开往幸福的天堂"……花一样的李红霞静静躺在家乡的麦田里；李满军的不足十二岁的儿子在父亲的新坟前抹去眼泪，希望爸爸保佑他语文和数学成绩好，将来考上大学。"大学毕业后你会做什么"？孩子给了观众一个意想不到的回答……
一如既往地关注民生，本片记录了1月27日到2月6日农历除夕期间发生在广州火车站的场景。围绕广州发生的故事，作者也先后到深圳、韶关、乳源以及遇难者的家乡湖北监利、湖南岳阳农村采访。影片呈现了在粤民工的诉求、家乡亲人的盼望、政府的努力以及警民之间共度难关的状态。让我们重温这一幕幕，并思考来年春运关头，大家怎么做才能过得好一些。
THE TRAIN TO MY HOME TOWN
Color, 62 Mins, 2008
Genre: Documentary
Subtitle: Chinese/English
Director and Camera: Ai Xiaoming
Editors: Hu Jie, Ai Xiaoming
At the beginning of 2008, when the Spring Festival was around the corner, the Beijing-Guangzhou Railway, the major traffic line that links South, Central and North China, was interrupted suddenly and many trains on this line were forced to stop indefinitely. Eager to get home before the Eve of the Spring Festival, thousands upon thousands of inland migrant workers congregated at Guangzhou Railway Station and waited for the trains bound for their homes...
The Guangdong Provincial government immediately started a preparatory emergency program of the highest level for the Spring Transportation. For the first time, the halls of the Guangzhou Import and Export Fair were transformed into temporary havens for the stranded migrant workers, volunteers were activated to offer services for them, and the Guangzhou Military Area Command dispatched soldiers to repair the Beijing-Zhuhai Expressway in northern Guangdong.
However, because passengers had been waiting for days for trains that did not arrive, their level of irritation began to intensify. A 17-year old woman named Li Hongxia was killed when she was trampled by the flood of people. A man named Li Manjun, who was returning home to remarry, received a severe electric shock when he jumped from the viaduct to the top of a train, resulting in his death.
"The train to my home town travels to a paradise."... Li Hongxia's grave lies quietly in a field of wheat in her hometown. Li Manjun's son, nearly 12 years old, prayed that his deceased father could bless him with good marks in Chinese and Mathematics, so he can enter a university in the future. When being asked, "what do you wish to do after you graduate from university", the boy gave us an unexpected answer...
As an independent filmmaker, Ai Xiaoming is concerned with the needs of the marginalized people. In order to record the scenes and stories that happened during the Spring Transportation, she went to Shenzhen, Shaoguan, Ruyuan, as well as the villages in Jianli, Hubei Province and Yueyang, Hunan Province - the hometowns of Li Hongxia and Li Manjun, respectively. The documentary presents the expectations of Guangdong's migrant workers, the good wishes of their relatives at home, the ice-snow disaster relief efforts made by the government, and how the police and the migrant workers got through the hardships together. Let us review these scenes and consider what we need to do to ensure better spring travel next year.
主办：先锋光芒、南都电影兴趣小组
协办：镜像中国、深圳独立电影社