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To New Beginnings

2025
Lanaguge: English, Mandarin
Length: 10:31
UK

Stills from, To New Beginnings. 2025

When I first came to the UK in 2017, I left my parents in Luxembourg to go to a small boarding school in the town of Folkestone. My school was quite strict. We were only allowed to go out once a week. On that day, my friends and I would always have a meal at either of the two Chinese/Asian restaurants. I was very sad when I heard one of them had closed following the COVID-19 pandemic. I have never felt lonelier, lacking support and direction, than when I first arrived in the UK at 15 years old. Those meals have always warmed me during those boarding times when I had my ups and downs in academics, relationships, and feelings. The week would not feel complete without a meal at a Chinese restaurant.

As I grew older and went on to university, I became more and more curious about the different roles these ‘foreign’ restaurants play in wider society. I also became curious about their histories and origins, and about how Cantonese food has come to dominate the UK and London. Most recently, Chinese takeaways have been dealing with the problem of succession, which is not only a British problem but also a problem in the US and across the ‘West’. These family businesses struggle to find successors as their children have moved on to ‘white-collar’ professions. All these reasons make me very interested in making a documentary about Chinese restaurants and learning more about their stories.

RENJIE WANG (PROFILE)

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