The Last Ferry From Grass Island

The look of a film can go a long way towards immersing you in its emotions, particularly with short subjects - so credit to Giorgos Valsamis for his sharp work on this melancholic short from writer/director Linhan Zhang  - where everything from the scrape of a knife on a fresh catch or sizzle of fish in a wok to clasped hands by candle light are captured so vividly you feel as though you could almost reach out and touch them yourself.

The story concerns a man (Tai Bo), who is caring for his mother (Yee-Yee Yeug) in a small shack and who, we quickly learn, must have a dangerous past, since a former apprentice (Wang Yang) has been sent to kill him in his island home before the last ferry home.

The story is slim, leaving room for the emotions between mother and son and teacher and pupil to expand to fill the space, with Zhang building his film through gestures, such as the preparation and eating of food. In addition to the strong camerawork from Valsamis, there is intricate production design from Mike Hui, that makes man's home feel completely lived in.

We don't need to be told explicitly about the world beyond the camera frame or the history of these characters to feel intimate with them - no mean feat in a 14-minute film and an achievement that belies the fact this is only Zhang's second short.