妹妹 SISTER | Oscar-Nominated Stop-Motion Animation by Siqi Song

[@shortoftheweek]

妹妹 SISTER is back online thanks to the BANG BANG channel. Animation-lovers hit that subscribe button! kzbin.info/door/z76OSfotBxu94eDuQHHM3Q

[@AkshayKumarX]

I watched this with sincerity and I'll admit some amusement in the back of my mind. I had an OK opinion of this short but at exactly 6:05 It hit me, in a moment I recalled China and its one child policy and the narration that came next filled my heart with desolation. Beautifully presented and absolutely worthy of an award, its the simplicity of it all that made it such a palpitating for me.

[@dangianhac]

I cried. Not only do we grieve over a loved one who has been with us for a long time, when they pass away, we grieve, we grieve the death of a loved one who has not even been born. Thank you to the production team for creating such a wonderful work. From now on it will be one of the meaningful movies for me.

[@Dumbodeguy]

Congrats for nominating for the Oscars.

[@buzzvideochannel]

Incredible craft - not often you can do this particular style and still make it feel unique

[@SheekChick6901]

That was so incredible and heartfelt. I was almost giggling at first. But it was so heartwrenching when reality came back. Well done. I loved it.

[@m.l.a.161]

So... I have already seen this three times for three years. And every time for me is heavily than another. First time - I had my old brother. Second - he was ill. Third - he lives only in my memories. I'm thankful for life with my brother. He is the best part of my life without exaggeration. I am that I am, largely thanks to him 😢

[@NicholeChapman]

I'm thankful everyday for my mom not having an abortion when she found out she was pregnant with me and 14 years later my sister. She was told at the start of both pregnancy we were high risk to her and it would be better for her to abort. I'm very thankful she chose to give us a chance. Turns out we were healthy babies. I'm 22 and my sister is 8.

[@fatimapalomino3316]

I hope you win in the Oscars!! The story is so deep

[@toniacollinske2518]

It's a beautiful film and an interesting perspective on the broad effects of China's one child policy. Having been an only child and not being able to have children myself, it is difficult to identify with the message.

[@realar]

I'm a father and the feeling of losing my daughter would be devastating.

[@bumpercoach]

being forced by govt is the point which makes this the most grotesque of all the worst tyrannies in history

[@Lucian_Media]

What a roller coaster. I immediately thought 'cancer' @ 4:47 then hope returned only to be dashed. Such an expressive film.

[@SirAbyss]

Definitely deserves that nomination. Congrats, Siqi!

[@vanshikha7179]

The frames were so beautiful, can't even describe

[@ionizedgamers8067]

Just absolutely both beautiful and heart breaking

[@SaketSharma5595]

Congratulations for the Oscar Nominations

[@sshhayne]

Beautiful and thought provoking This is a necessary piece

[@venemoussyrin5949]

China's only child policy sucks tho. Thought at first this was a Pro-life film for western culture but then I realize my mistake. This is about China, this is about their story.

[@lukehahn4489]

so the politics aren't relative to you, so you conflate it with your own political ideology. That's so cool

[@jarrjack8110]

@@lukehahn4489 he is acknowledging his mistake in the comment my man

[@joytoy2281]

I watched this video several times. I am a grown man and I wanted to cry.

[@SusanAmberBruce]

Ow, I cried, and then I thought how beautiful.

[@akhila2210]

Different people different perspective but end of the day we must respect the decision of the mother. No country no community no other human being has the right to play God with a woman's womb except her.

[@hibaalhibir8295]

We should respect the decision of the mother to kill her baby? Do you know that abortion qfter 22 weeks require giving the baby anesthetic so they dont feel the brutal pain?? Killing is killing

[@akhila2210]

@@hibaalhibir8295 so you will force a woman to give birth to a baby she doesn't want? She may or may not regret about it later but it isn't for us to decide whether the woman who is carrying a child should give birth to her baby or not.

[@hibaalhibir8295]

@@akhila2210 the main difference in our understanding of the topic is that you don't realize that this fetus is a living creature, their hearts are beating, they feed they even pee inside the womb... Would you stop a mother of killing her 2 days old newborn?? I bet ur answer would be yes you would stop her,, for me and from a medical and ethical point of view a fetus who has a heart beat is exactly the same as a 2 days old newborn.. no difference.. Of course i feel bad for the pregnant mothers who don't want the pregnancy, I would give them all the support they need and pray for them, but my sympathy won't blind me from seeing the truth.. killing is a crime

[@akhila2210]

@@hibaalhibir8295 You didn't answer my question. Again would you force a woman to give birth to a child she doesn't want? It could be a result of a rape or she might have miscarried and the doctors aren't allowing her to abort because of a heartbeat still existing and later they both end up dying. As for the child that is already in this world it is in this world nobody has the damn right to take law in their own hands that doesn't mean everybody has the damn right over a woman's body or her life. She doesn't want your prayers she wants your support because when the seriousness of this situation will hit you home you will all feel responsible for supporting such a pathetic law.

[@joygibson484]

@@akhila2210 there are thousands and thousands of married couples who cannot get pregnant that would give anything to adopt that baby! The choice to kill the baby is totally unfounded and unnecessary. Adoption is the ONLY moral answer for an unplanned pregnancy. It's a human being, created in God's image, and must be protected!

[@michaelangelo2192]

Deserved the nomination. My favourite animated short of the year - better than Kitbull and Hair Love for sure!

[@ironickylee3831]

Michaelangelo I didn’t really like Hair Love but I love Kitbull. I 100% this deserves the win tho it is such a different beautiful take on the art even though I love the message Kitbull has

[@michaelangelo2192]

@@ironickylee3831 I thought Hair Love and Kitbull were both harmless and well-intentioned, but very average to me! This was everything I want from a short - excellent animation; an interesting, thought-provoking little story/message and well presented. Glad you agree!

[@barzelvimarc7439]

虽说没有过弟弟妹妹，但同为一个在独生子女政策时代出生的我深有同感。小时候就是一个人看电视，一个人玩玩具。

[@cnmxkcnm1]

I understand a lot of people are sympathy with the film maker. I am the only child in my family . Thanks to the siblings I did not grow up all by myself. On the other hand , at the time, based on the calculation, too much population , would cost and consume too much natural resource and food which China could not afford . The consequence is to leave some people starved . Even now, some part of the world still struggling to feed their people and Chinese government is trying its best to feed all the people by different ways. Less people more room and higher quality of life also less competition and less demand from the earth . I like the film but also understand the policy at the time too.

[@P.Gillett]

perfectly brainwashed.

[@jewelhaines8842]

Such a sad story. Very well done. 🧡

[@sebasti923]

Thank you so much for being an outlet for art.

[@shortoftheweek]

See more from the talented filmmaker, Siqi Song, at her personal website: songsiqi.com/

[@astoryofafrica]

Sad and beautifuly told. Your story matters* too.

[@mcbluematter]

Incredible piece of work ! Thank you for making such touching art

[@ljuuzzz723]

Wow this is wonderful

[@stillmaninmotion6081]

Oh man. This made me cry 😥😭

[@hazzal2470]

This was amazing

[@identitywithheld2123]

Hey guys, it's me. I just wanna say that you're awesome and I hope that you're channel does not get affected by COPPA. Cheers!

[@goChillax]

Beautiful

[@joshupload]

好喜欢这个故事，艺术表现很有趣。 那个年代出生的特别有同感！Well done!

[@md9971]

Wow, how very touching.

[@Liuhuayue]

This is also why China has a shortage of brides. How tragic.

[@watchforever1724]

Surprised this was seen at the oscars

[@judyvalencia3257]

So sad! But true. Crying.

[@graveyard8661]

有同感啊！我本来也应该有一个妹妹，但是也是因为这个政策被打掉了。幸好我妈后来又生了一个弟弟，我从他两个月时起就看着他长大，到现在他都读初一了:]

[@naderadel7759]

magnificent awesome brilliant expressive

[@changeurlife9709]

Such a great msg is very well presented through story👍👍👍👍💞👍👍👍

[@isa_cant_u]

Que belleza. Estoy sin palabras. Que triste y tan elaborada historia. Me fascinó.

[@FrontRoomProductionsanimation]

Fantastic!

[@oombaga96]

Congrats on the Oscar Nomination! (If you read this, Siqi)

[@dalbert144_9]

Post-nomination gang

[@vinayakshanbhag1804]

Amazing animation keep it up..

[@jesseboy5044]

This is superb presentation! The production and the story. Freedom versus Policy. There are partners who wanted more child but controlled by laws of States. This is the way of these Governments address over population. But their laws creates the most evil crime ; aborting one's child, an Angel created from their own flesh.

[@SacchieILU]

I agree. People should have the freedom of choice and governments should not have policies on abortion.

[@amsnek6162]

*Aborting their own child, which isn’t a child yet, something they have the right to do

[@jesseboy5044]

@@amsnek6162 but is an existing life.

[@PyroRoadScout]

@@jesseboy5044 Not at that stage, most abortions take place before the 2nd trimester, aka, when they are either a measly zygote or at best an embryo - not a fetus, not a human. Just a clump of cells that's slowly growing and taking a humanoid shape. To be fair, we don't know when the parents in this short found out about the pregnancy, and I don't know China's policy on which trimester someone can still have an abortion in, but I feel it is more likely in the 1st trimester. But I do agree it is despicable for a government to have a say in someone's personal life like that, and to essentially force them to have an abortion if they don't want it. Whether you believe abortions are wrong or not is your own matter, but nobody has the right to tell others what they can or can't do with their body; but undoubtedly it is worse to force an abortion on someone than to force them to have the child. Both are wrong, but at least with having a child you don't want, you can put it up for adoption, versus basically having a child stolen from you.

[@mnkykungfu]

A lot of people don't realize that China's policy on children was only limiting based on what you could afford. Lots of people had enough money to support more children, and so had families with two or even three children. It's easy from a Western point of view to demonize the policy, but if you start thinking about quality of life for kids, about overpopulation, about the ramifications of families having as many kids as they want with no control, it becomes a more complicated issue. That's not to take away from the perspective of the filmmaker, just to say this is a short film that obviously doesn't address the whole story.

[@XiaoliangZhao2014]

Amazing and shocking

[@just_ard784]

That plottwist :0

[@williamjoyner3759]

...ahm, I felt that.

[@thebrinksf69]

so sad. The world needs uplifting

[@ruonanzhao5508]

I'm the only child and I wouldn't want it any other way. I never felt alone growing up in China because there's always other kids to play with. I had friends in school and everything. I had all the love and attention from my parents. Sometimes I wish I had a sibling so my parents could leave me alone a bit lol. I'm addressing the comment section not the film itself. It may not be the point of the film but it's what some people get out of watching the film so this is for you: Abortion is legal in China. There was the one child policy and everyone KNEW it. It wasn't a secret the government kept from them. It was a publicized policy a law. If you have to be irresponsible and have unprotected sex then it's your responsibility to obey the law and get an abortion. The government didn't force anybody to have unprotected sex and then have an abortion! It's people's choice and their decision in the end. People who "accidentally" get pregnant the second time are either irresponsible or stupid. If China didn't control their population the way they did, you can imagine how overload the earth would be and that just leaves another reason for the western world to criticize China.

[@FoxChestnut]

我也是1991年出生的，很幸运，我是双胞胎里的那个弟弟。从小每当我调皮的时候大人都会说我是多余的那个，是从垃圾堆里捡来的，后来我才知道因为我的出生我爸爸被罚钱了，尽管在当时双胞胎不应该被罚款，这钱可能帮那些人完成任务了。

[@destinydestiny2208]

I cried

[@ailings]

felt

[@bumpercoach]

it seems like a "good idea" to have ALL SIX of the grandparents and parents focused on the one child UNTIL YOU REALIZE the kid has ZERO BROTHERS/SISTERS/COUSINS/UNCLES/AUNTS and its all too easy for an accident or illness or life choices or personality to result in the kid having ZERO OFFSPRING so the whole family dies right there if theres another more grotesquely idiotic example of tyranny in human history then it doesnt come readily to mind

[@Marihl4693]

En la actualidad China tiene problemas de natalidad, muchas personas superan los 60 años y hay menos nacimientos...también hay pocas mujeres, por eso existe una gran presión para que las mujeres chinas se casen y tengan hijos.

[@andryawaru]

👏🏻👏🏻🙏🏻

[@Intentionaltia]

Damn.

[@jacey8718]

So sad :(

[@Andrea-xs4ny]

What a sad story, repeated millions of times in China. 😢 Up to half a billion abortions later, things are not magically better. The below articles are excellent and give more chilling information. Here are some snippets: "Now China has 30 million more men than women, 30 million bachelors who cannot find brides. ... They call them guang guan, 'broken branches,' that's the name in Chinese. They are the biological dead ends of their family." Fong says the policy also led to forced abortions and the CONFISCATION [my caps] of children by the authorities. Looking ahead, China is also facing a shortage of workers who can support its aging population. www.npr.org/2016/02/01/465124337/how-chinas-one-child-policy-led-to-forced-abortions-30-million-bachelors [Even with the loosening of the one-child policy, China] forbids out-of-wedlock births and childbearing without permission-even if it is a couple’s first child. So women who violate these rules are still being hunted down and, when found, aborted and sterilized. www.pop.org/forced-abortions-in-china-continue-despite-two-child-policy/

[@Mjollnir1983]

Whether you like it or not, population control and limits on birth will have to be considered if we are to survive on this planet. 1 child policy was draconian, but necessary.

[@JohnLawtonJeffcoat]

The only thing more evil than the government-protected right to chose to murder unborn children, such as what we see in the USA, is the unimaginable worse evil of government-mandated murder of unborn children, such as what we see in China. There is surely a very special place in hell awaiting the Chinese officials who have perpetuated this system for so long. I do not believe the world has seen such a horrific practice of forced baby murder on a large scale since King Herod commanded it, in his failed attempt to kill the newborn Jesus, two thousand years ago.

[@mathiasboudon9371]

la claque que je viens de me prendre

[@blackitikatt533]

💔

[@shinseiangel55]

This just makes me angry.

[@goldaj4028]

пиздец конечно. Изначально подумала, что семья не может себе позволить второго ребенка из экономических соображений, но все оказалось намного хуже. Мне кажется, что оскар 2020 за ним

[@amsnek6162]

Boy: has 2 loving parents Also boy: *I grew up alone*

[@fathima_rf]

THATS NOT THE POINT, YOU STUPID FUCK.

[@rockcanine8658]

legenda ae pfv

[@aarthurgames6521]

Wtf

[@annamaureenbellizio8168]

I have great relationships w/ my siblings. I can't amagine one of them not being here with me, abortion is a terrible thing and needs to end.

[@AndreaRodriguez-vu3mo]

Abortion isn't a terrible thing, woman have the right to do whatever they want with their body, If you dont support abortion that's fine, but stop saying it's terrible.

[@ionizedgamers8067]

Starjammer it’s not about abortion it’s bout China’s one child policy

[@androidaita]

@@ionizedgamers8067 yeah, but here's an example of a misinterpretation. She said: "abortion is terrible". No. It isn't.

[@davidlee723]

@@ionizedgamers8067 It's both about abortion and the one child policy. It doesn't have to be one or the other...

[@davidlee723]

One child policy was the best decision the Chinese government ever made, period. No amount of propaganda will change my opinion on this topic. In case people have forgotten, the Chinese population is 1.4 billion, that's more people than the total populations of EU, North America, Russia, Australia, Japan, South Korea combined. AND THAT'S AFTER THE ONE CHILD POLICY. You may say that it's immoral to control people's reproductive rights, but it's the lesser evil at the end of the day, it's the adult decision and we all know it.

[@shortoftheweek]

Don’t think the film is making an argument one way or the other. Just telling a personal story set in that context

[@chencif6185]

So how do you feel about GFW

[@davidlee723]

@@chencif6185 GFW is intelligent protectionism in hindsight, it's the reason why China has Tiktok, Wechat, Baidu, Alibaba, Weibo etc. while Indians don't have their own native equivalent to western social media, despite the massive numbers of talented computer programers in India. The Indians got economically colonized once again.

[@jcpeters4157]

@@davidlee723 wasnt hotmail created by india

[@EvilCherry3]

Soon 10 BILLION stupid humans on our small planet and they're still complaining that they feel lonely ? Ah yes of course the solution is to increase the population even more, how could i not figure this out by myself... Just use your brain, socialize with your neighbours and stop being selfish brats.

[@androidaita]

THANK YOU. I loved everything about this but the message. Honestly it feels like pro life propaganda, and that is incredibly irresponsible these days. Abortion is a matter of public health. It's beautiful that they tried to give life to a child's perspective. Still, that doesn't change the fact that they're saying "abortion is bad and you should not do it if you don't want to traumatize a kid" WHAT THE ACTUAL F**K

[@shortoftheweek]

​@@androidaita Yeah, that's not the point at all. It's very specifically about growing up during the One Child Policy. If you believe in a woman's choice that's great. There were multiple generations that did not get a choice, and that has its own particular legacy.

[@ionizedgamers8067]

Arthur C you are a very BB pessimistic person aint ya

[@ionizedgamers8067]

Andra Ciné no you are just wrong in like all the levels. Like the poster said. It’s about forced abortion in China’a one child policy. Not about pro-life or pro-choice. There was no choice for them then.

[@androidaita]

@@shortoftheweek No, no, no. Several people is mentioning this. I'm not even trying to, I don't know, accuse the director or anything. The message is clear because the director states it. My apologies if I sounded rude :c My point is: someone could think of this as "abortion is wrong" when it's not. Only when I went through the comments and the replies I got I understood, but I just felt uncomfortable seeing other comments thinking that the actual message is abortion is wrong.

[@androidaita]

I can't with the message. I just can't. Abortion is a women's right, a matter of public health, a necessity. If you can't see it as that, you're thinking based on a romanticized idea of human life and a childish necessity of validate your personal points of view. This is beautiful, the art is incredible. I just, no. No.

[@musxidntty]

This is about china's one-child policy

[@ionizedgamers8067]

Andra Ciné yo it ain’t about that. It’s about China’s one child policy

[@androidaita]

@@musxidntty I read that in a comment, and I was like ooooh, alright. I just reeeally think that someone can use this trying to support their "pro life" position. And, well, that wouldn't be fair. Not trying to go after the director, just pointing the possible misdirection of the original intention :B

[@androidaita]

@@ionizedgamers8067 :B now I know it. I replied to Bie :o I'm just confused about the possible implications of this material in hands of someone that could change the message :c

[@Liuhuayue]

The mom clearly didn't choose the abortion. She was upset, too, that they couldn't have the baby. It was forced. Really, the opposite of woman's rights, because the government controls reproduction.

[@PESandriux]

Congrats for nominating for the Oscars.