Two Mountains Weighing Down My Chest

A documentary by Viv Li | 90 min | 2026 | D, NL

Viv, a Chinese artist wannabe, got stuck in Berlin after the pandemic and accidentally ventured into the vibrant alternative culture scene. To someone who was raised to follow “the standard”, everything seems so exciting. But to her family in China, the most alarming question surfaces: “why is she such an oddball?” Drifting between new environments and traditional expectations, Viv is constantly adapting to shifting opinions about herself, the world, and of course, China, only to feel more lost than ever. TWO MOUNTAINS WEIGHING DOWN MY CHEST follows Viv’s eclectic encounters and the nuanced clashes that shape them. Told through a deeply personal and humorous voice, the film takes a witty yet sharp look at the sense of belonging in a globalised world, and how different societies define our lives. A story of the perpetual search for oneself, for identity, for acceptance, woven into a spiral of surreal yet tangible moments.