BPFF Presents: Beijing Spring

Opening this year's Big Picture Festival in Stratford-upon-Avon, this stirring documentary explores a remarkble period in Chinese history.

Beijing, 1978: After the police forcefully shut down the Stars' (an artist group) confrontational art show at Democracy Wall, thousands take to the streets, marching in protest and demanding the right to free speech. The authorities force most of the Stars group (including a young Ai Weiwei) into exile. Hidden for decades, footage from these daring acts of rebellion are featured in Beijing Spring for the first time ever.