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29 Jan – 8 Feb 2026

Sanyu

Robert Frank | Switzerland, USA | 2000 | 29' | | IFFR 2001

In 1953, the young Robert Frank met the older Chinese painter Sanyu. They remained friends until Sanyu’s premature death in 1964. Thirty years later, Frank received a letter from Rita Wong, a Taiwanese woman who had taken an interest in cataloguing Sanyu’s work, which was constantly rising in value. That letter became the start of the cinematographic quest to fragments from their shared memory. Frank made an honest and original living portrait of a friendship, using the power of cinema. Robert Frank (1924, Zürich) is a famous film-maker and photographer.

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Film details

Countries of production
Switzerland, USA
Year
2000
Festival edition
IFFR 2001
Length
29'
Medium/Format
35mm