For the film The Last Summer.

Shi Renfei is an independent Chinese filmmaker, writer, and director, born in Hefei, Anhui Province. She graduated from the Shanghai Film Academy (Shanghai University) and the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom. Currently based in Shenzhen, she is dedicated to telling stories that explore the complexity of contemporary Chinese family life and the inner world of young women.

Her feature debut, The Last Summer (《夏坠》), which she both wrote and directed, marked her arrival on the international film scene with extraordinary force. The film centers on a top student, Li Zhizhi, who on the eve of China‘s life-defining college entrance exams accidentally knocks an ashtray off a balcony, striking a five-year-old girl playing below. Caught between the victim’s grieving family and her parents‘ crushing expectations, she buries her guilt—along with her anger at what she believes is her father’s betrayal. What unfolds is a quietly devastating portrait of a family bound together by secrets, and torn apart by their exposure.

The script originated from a dream Shi Renfei had in the winter of 2021. But as she developed it, she drew deeply from her own experiences—exploring what happens when a “good kid,” who has always followed the rules, makes a mistake. “I wanted to show their confusion and struggle when they do something wrong,” she said. “Many people have had such experiences. I hope the film resonates with them.” Her commitment to authenticity led her to sacrifice visual “prettiness” for a raw, lived-in realism. The director was praised for a “mature yet agile” approach that “delicately portrays and cares for the characters, letting life unfold naturally”.

The Last Summer has enjoyed an exceptional festival run. It was nominated for the Asian New Talent Award at the 27th Shanghai International Film Festival and selected for the FIRST FRAME unit at the 19th FIRST Youth Film Festival. It won the Grand Prix (Best Film) at the 21st Osaka Asian Film Festival, with the jury praising its “highly attractive script” and the director‘s “unified style that holds the audience’s attention from beginning to end”. At the 48th Moscow International Film Festival—one of the oldest and most prestigious film festivals in the world—it was the only Chinese-language feature in the main competition, and went on to win both the NETPAC Jury Award and the Russian Film Critics Association Award.

Shi Renfei‘s earlier works include the short film Long, Long Spring Days (《春日迟迟》), which was nominated at BISFF 2022, and the feature script No Time For Dreaming (《春困》), which won the Seven Impressions Special Mention at the 4th Pingyao International Film Festival’s pitching forum. She is currently developing her “Female Tetralogy” —a series of four films themed around the four seasons, all centered on women‘s stories.