Synopsis

Beijing Bubbles is a documentary about the punk and rock scene in Beijing, a portrait of five bands in the capital of China. It is also a movie about being different in a country which is the most developing in the world today, in which everybody seems to be obsessed with social advancement and the accumulation of prosperity.

Berlin filmmakers Susanne Messmer and George Lindt go on a ramble through the musical underground that is rarely recognised in China. The protagonists of this subculture are the punk band Joyside, the girl band Hang On The Box, the blues band Sha Zi, the rock band New Pants and the band T9 who combine rock with traditional Mongolian music. They all grant them intimate insights into their everyday lives and despite their diverse music styles, they share the same attitude: They have retired from the world in which they have grown up.

With an authentic and sometimes abrasive style in the spirit of punk rock Beijing Bubbles´ genuine pictures fall smoothly into place with the fresh sound of these five bands which arrestingly accompanies the film. A very personal and intimate document of China´s subculture and of life and society in Beijing beyond common clichés.