Mei Mei

Between desire, confusion and a fractured past,
Lulu begins to see that nothing is quite what it seems.

Technical Details | Mei Mei | Short Film

Original title: 美美 ( Mei Mei )
English title: Mei Mei
Written and directed by: Xu Xiaoxi
Produced by: Marielvy D’Apollo, Ana Menéndez
Cinematography: Roberto F. Canuto
Music: Andrea Centazzo
Cast: Janet Chiarabaglio, Alex Best, Alexandra Smothers, Kjord Davis, Alexander Aguila, Gudmundur Luovik Porvaldsson, Miles Wood
 USA, China  2010  14' 31"  color

 english  spanish, english, french

 fiction, drama  mystery, lgbtq+, rural

 DCP · Digital HD · 1.85:1

SYNOPSIS

Mei Mei follows Lulú, a high-end sex worker who receives frequent visits from her neighbor Julian, convinced she is his missing ex-girlfriend, Mei Mei. Desperate for a second chance, he insists on their connection, but Lulú dismisses him, assuming he is fabricating the story to win her over.

After some time without seeing him, she begins to miss him. One day, she discovers that Julian has found the real Mei Mei—someone who bears a striking resemblance to her.


COMMENTARY

Mei Mei is a Chinese–American short film directed by Xu Xiaoxi and written by Roberto F. Canuto and Xu Xiaoxi during their MFA studies at the New York Film Academy (Hollywood).

Shot on Super 16 mm with the support of Kodak and CCI, the film blends Chinese sensibility with American independent cinema to create an intimate and poetic work about desire, loneliness, and self-perception. Through the duality of two identical women—Lulú and Mei Mei—the film explores how experience and trauma shape identity and destiny.

Premiering at the Slow Film International Film Festival (Hungary, 2010), the short film was also nominated for Best Cinematography at the 2009 Kodak Scholarship Awards, representing the New York Film Academy in Hollywood.

OFFICIAL SELECTIONS

Title Mei Mei
Original title 美美 (Mei Mei)
Format short film
Country USA, China
Language English
Running time 14 min
Color color
Genre fiction, drama
Themes LGBTQ+, identity, desire, loneliness
Written and directed by Xu Xiaoxi
Year 2010
Awards Nominee – Best Cinematography – Kodak Scholarship Awards (USA, 2009)
Official Selections Official Selection – Slow Film International Film Festival (Hungary, 2010)