One Second

In a town surrounded by desert dunes, a man walks with what seems like one goal in mind: to reach the nearby town's cinema, and to make sure he catches the next screening of the newsreel. Enters Liu, an orphan girl who is determined to steal the film reels, for reasons that are initially as mysterious as why the man needs to see them. The two get entangled in a multi-layered story that also includes Fan, known as Mr. Movie, the charismatic and powerful cinema manager. 

One Second is both a tribute to the magic of cinema mirroring Zhang Yimou's own childhood, and a reflection on the power of images and the use of cinema as propaganda. It is also a story about family ties: what are we willing to do for the ones we love? Compared to Zhang Yimou's well-known epic films, One Second sets itself apart by its heartfelt story set in the political context of the Cultural Revolution.