Hooligan Sparrow / Hai nan zhi hou

Following the rape of six girls by their headmaster in the Hainan Province, women’s rights activist Ye Haiyan (alias Hooligan Sparrow) and her friends take to the streets in a noisy protest. This is not the first assault by a state employee – most of whom go unpunished. Filmmaker Nanfu Wang accompanies Hooligan Sparrow wherever she goes – and soon appears herself on the radar of the Chinese authorities. The hunt for these ‘enemies of the state’, known to us as human rights activists, covers half of China. No threats, interrogation techniques, deportation charges or threat of imprisonment can stop these women from taking their message to the rest of the world. With considerable luck and skill, Wang manages to smuggle the clandestinely recorded film material out of her homeland.