Abstract:

Four Springs is a "personal video film" created by director LU Qingyi with real family life as the background. It unfolds bits of the routine life of the director’s parents living in Dushan County, Guizhou Province over a time span of four spring seasons. From the perspective of “personal video film”, it can be found that Four Springs has the characteristics of multiple close-up shots, participatory shooting, private emotional expressions connected with public communication. Examining its aesthetic value reveals the following features: a random and loose narrative rhythm and a peated use of the symbol of the swallow image and folk music, choosing love, family affection and nostalgia as the theme, and the employment of aesthetic empty mirror shooting. The film adopts the “personal video film” mode, distinguishes it from other types of film carriers by doing it from the first-person perspective, and bearing cultural meanings such as family and hometown memories, family ties, a man’s life experiences from cradle to grave, and sense of belonging. The film has developed from a visual display of personal family’s daily life to a cultural expression that resonates with the public in general, thus showing the director’s strong humanistic concern.

Key words: Four Springs, personal video film, aesthetic value