Fu Xuan Zhang

Graduation is approaching, marking the close of a chapter. I took my camera to Green Island, recording video letters day by day. But the camera became unruly, backup batteries went missing, and the trip began to go downhill. Typhoons arrived, and the video letters ceased... Finally, facing the sea beneath the sun, my camera non-responsive, I took a Dramamine, then boated back home.

Fu-Xuan is my classmate and friend. As a man who yearns for freedom, he has a cat. From January 12 to January 18, 2024, Fuxuan wanted to take me to meet Sesame, but she ran away.

“It Must Be” is a collaborative project between the filmmaker and his girlfriend, documenting their everyday life as international graduate students. Through the use of a handheld DV camcorder, they each film the shared spaces they inhabit, gradually exploring and redefining their understanding of “home.” The work also serves as a reflective summary of the filmmaker’s three years in graduate school.