Desert Dream


Desert Dream, also known as Hyazgar, is a 2006 drama film written and directed by Korean-Chinese filmmaker Zhang Lu. It is a co-production between Korea, Mongolia and France. The film opened the 2006 Asian Summer Film Festival in Barcelona. It won the top prize for Best Picture in the Asian and Arab section at the 2007 9th Osian's Cinefan Festival of Asian and Arab Cinema in New Delhi, India, "for the conviction with which Zhang Lu depicts the contemporary crisis of our time and found the right cinematic expression to tackle a theme of such great importance."

Plot

Farmer Hungai is obsessed with tree-planting to stave off desertification at a small, drought threatened village on the Chinese-Mongolian border. After his wife left with their daughter to seek treatment at a hospital for their daughter's illness, he drinks in despair and anguish. Soon after, a North Korean refugee Choi Soon-hee and her son Chang-ho seek refuge at his home. The three, depending on one another to overcome the hostile environment, get to know each other although they don't speak the same language. Hungai's relationship with Soon-hee soon grows on the fine line of love and friendship.

Cast