My 1919

The year is 1919 and the war is over. The peace conference is meeting in Paris. China sits at the table as one of the victors. One of the younger members of its delegation is Gu Weijun. His task is to defend his country’s rights. The matter on the table is the province of Shandong. The German concession there is handed to Japan. Yet China had not been on the opposing side in the war. The decision causes great anger at home. Students take to the streets and demonstrations begin. Gu Weijun makes a long speech at the conference. The outcome does not change even so. In response the Chinese delegation does not sign the treaty. Theirs is the only delegation at the conference that does not. The film tells the episode from the Chinese side. Chen Daoming and Xu Qing appear in the hundred minute film, a Chinese production Huang Jian-Zhong finished in 1999.