Archived: Balance of the Five Elements

This film is part of Doc Edge Festival, a documentary festival like no other. The exceptional 2022 programme, which is their largest in recent years, includes over eighty feature-length and short films that celebrate and explore diverse storytelling.

Director: Jan Hinrik Drevs | New Zealand, China, Germany, 2022 | 100 min | Chinese, English, German

TIME IS INFINITE. NOTHING IS PERMANENT. 

What are the Five Elements? Take a trip through modern China to find out. 

Studying and applying the Five Elements to daily life has become immensely popular throughout the world. This ancient Chinese philosophy known as Wu Xing accepts that everything in the universe is in a constant state of change. This holistic philosophy, closely linked to Daoism, is thousands of years old. In our turbulent times, it is still as relevant as ever. 

Studying and applying the Five Elements to daily life has become immensely popular throughout the world. This ancient Chinese philosophy known as Wu Xing accepts that everything in the universe is in a constant state of change. This holistic philosophy, closely linked to Daoism, is thousands of years old. In our turbulent times it is still as relevant as ever.

But what is behind this eternal circle? How and where can Wu Xing be found and experienced in contemporary China?

Passing through deserts, ice and snow, remote rural villages and populous megacities German director, Drevs and New Zealand Field Director & DOP, Mike Single embarks on an extensive 200 day expedition throughout China.

Balance of the Five Elements is a New Zealand, Chinese, German co-production, and the first feature documentary co-production under The New Zealand China Co-Production Treaty.

In this epic cinematic exploration filmmakers ask how we might achieve balance and harmony amidst the complexities and challenges of modernity?

The film is a fresh perspective on ancient culture in our contemporary world.

World Premiere