Olivia

Directed by Nanfu Wang and Jialing Zhang, One Child Nation (2019) follows a woman named Nanfu who grew up in China around propaganda when the One Child policy was active. During the documentary, she interviews many people with contrasting perspectives regarding the policy, which serves as the basis for the film. The documentary thoughtfully portrayed the policy in a personal and moving manner, but it could be partial and not show the entirety of the situation. As someone who only had a vague understanding of the policy, I originally didn’t hold much of a perspective. Nanfu was against the policy, but still included opinions that differed from hers, such as her mother’s, showing she wasn’t afraid to show diverse outlooks while maintaining her position on the matter. However, since she does hold a bias, she could have left out certain extreme opinions or ones that she didn’t understand. It’s worth noting that the majority of the interviewees said that there was no choice and being complicit with the policy was obligatory. There was even a perspective in the film that essentially stated China would have had to resort to cannibalism and that the One Child Policy saved them. Although it’s true China was suffering from a poor economy, interviewees seemed to disagree on whether this was the most effective way to solve the issue. At one point, photographs taken by Peng Wang were shown of deceased babies abandoned in heaps of trash. It was shocking to learn that people would abandon their newborns because they couldn’t deal with the repercussions of having a second child. However, many did have to face the consequences of having a second child. In the film, it was stated that people had to pay fines, and if they couldn’t, a forced abortion might have occurred, their homes might have been destroyed, and/or their children would be taken from them. Many forced sterilizations occurred as well; midwife Huaru Yuan stated she performed an egregious 50,000 - 60,000 forced abortions or sterilizations over the course of her life, which makes one think about how large the matter really was. One narrative in particular covered the story of a twin, Shuangjie Zeng, whose older sister was taken from her at birth. It brought up the possibility of situations with two or more children born at once. In her case, her family was told to pay a fine to keep both children, which wasn’t possible. Zeng lamented not being able to grow up with her sister. Additionally, although the film presented emotional stories and impacts of the policy on specific people, she failed to really recognize the policy’s impact on China as a whole. Nevertheless, the personal narratives did enhance the film and create a sense of reality. She also leaves out most of the aftermath from the policy and how the situation has changed since. Since the film was released in 2019, there could have been more said about the future of China’s population and lasting effects of the policy. The film itself was structured in an intelligible manner. The interviews were spliced with video footage to keep viewers engaged. It really felt genuine while I was watching, as interviewees would show old photos or awards as evidence that they really experienced the policy. Overall, One Child Nation vulnerably conveyed the circumstances in China. Nanfu brought a sense of humanness to the people involved and provoked insightful thought about the policy. It gave me a whole new perspective on the issue and I found it very impactful learning how the government chose to enforce the policy.