Reflective Encounters

“In Taiwan, T’ung-yang-hsi was the traditional practice of pre-arranged marriage, in which a young girl was sold to the family of her future husband. From then on, the majority of domestic labour befell the child, who hardly had time to study or play. In this compact animated documentary, Chang Wu-Ching recounts the story of her grandmother, from her stolen childhood to her days spent boiling and peeling eggs for a business that wasn’t truly hers.

My Grandmother is an Egg opens with a foreshadowing statement, “Eggs are fragile, but at the same time tough”. This simple statement conceals a larger truth. Throughout the film, Chang’s grandmother is often visually associated with an egg – the smooth surface of it transforming into a canvas on which the woman’s face reverts back in time – and trapped inside it to signify her lost freedom. Though this practice might have died out with time, My Grandmother is an Egg asks us to remember the women whose lives were sacrificed to inequality and relentless labour, but whose resilience should inspire us all to fight for permanent change.”

— Ren Scateni