- Welcome to POV.
I'm Pete Schwaba, host of PBS Wisconsin's Director's Cut.
Tonight, we bring you a film
Variety says tackles China's gender divide and romance
in the digital age.
How's that for a combination?
The Dating Game follows three young Chinese men
who struggle to find love and companionship
in China's ultra-competitive dating market.
In 1979, China enacted the controversial one-child policy
in order to combat overpopulation
due to fear of famine.
The order may have stunted
the country's massive overpopulation growth,
but left China with a socioeconomic crisis
and a serious gender imbalance.
Today, there are 30 million more men than women in China,
and 18 million more men than women
between the ages of 20 and 40,
or the age people typically think about
meeting a potential spouse.
The policy ended in 2015 thanks to a workforce shortage.
To this day, however,
the country is still dealing with the aftermath
of the one-child policy.
The results have also created a loneliness epidemic
for young men.
Director Violet Du Feng set out to explore the issue
by following three bachelors
who join an intense, week-long dating camp
run by a married couple who are also dating coaches,
Hao and his wife Wen.
Du Feng says she was fascinated by Hao
and his push and pull technique,
which encourages a young man to compliment a woman,
but in the same breath, insult her,
saying things like,
"You're pretty, but you dress like a grandma."
The boys follow his advice
because they have not had much interaction with women
due to their rural or lower class backgrounds.
Du Feng was fascinated by how vulnerable these young men are
and the influences they've had
that have led them to this point in their lives,
and just how profound their lack of confidence is
when it comes to women.
Du Feng is New York City-based and originally from Shanghai.
She is an award-winning filmmaker and very prolific.
Her 2024 film Hidden Letters was screened by Independent Lens
and won 11 film festival awards,
and over the course of her career,
she's won an Emmy award and a Peabody,
and has had her films shortlisted
for Oscar consideration.
Du Feng's films typically focus on stories about social change,
particularly in China,
frequently using personal stories
and oftentimes with an emphasis on gender, family,
and/or cultural change through generations.
In a recent interview,
the director said that she does not feel confident
for the future of men like her three subjects,
given who is leading them.
But to do her part and maybe as a thank-you to her actors,
Du Feng added a clip at the end of the movie
allowing the guys to say they have not found love yet,
then let them post their QR codes.
Watching the reactions from the responses they get
from all over the world is priceless.
Maybe they will actually find love thanks to Violet Du Feng.
The Dating Game starts now on PBS Wisconsin,
your home for independent film.