Egregoros

https://spectator.com/article/we-pretend-to-teach-they-pretend-to-learn-the-reality-of-lecturing-chinese-students/

In filmmaking, seminars begin with me working out which student speaks the best English. I then deliver the key information to them and they explain to the others, or so I hope. They could be saying anything: ‘Just keep nodding and smiling at the stupid Englishman, tonight we film the air base.’ In truth, the topics of their films suggest most are very lukewarm supporters of the Chinese system. Corruption and the CCP manipulating everything from education through to jobs and housing are frequent topics for scripts, in spite of writers knowing that some of their colleagues are probably party informants.

The scripts are almost invariably written in Mandarin and then run through a translation app, but they give a better idea of the concept than the excruciating verbal pitches students are forced to do. There are many films about relationships, though mainly intergenerational ones. While British student filmmakers massacre fictional parents in car crashes and then write about themselves, Chinese parents and grandparents are all too present and demanding. There are always scenes involving food. Sex is rare, and what sex there is leans towards coming out but is occasionally deeply bizarre. I once had to explain to a student with almost no English why he could not film a scene where a child was abused by a man dressed as a sheep. Luckily, miming handcuffs instantly bridges cultural gaps.

https://spectator.com/article/we-pretend-to-teach-they-pretend-to-learn-the-reality-of-lecturing-chinese-students/