Modern Shanghai expat life is captured in a new web series named Floating City. In its debut episode, Shanghai veteran Jenny greets new arrival Marissa with xioalongbao and sage warnings about gutter oil and fake booze. The two decide to become roommates and celebrate with a Tuesday ladies’ night of cocktails and manicures.
“The bigger picture is the expectations that people have when they come here versus the reality. Sometimes it can seem like a disappointment, but it’s really more absurd and better than you imagine,” explains writer and director Leah Churchill.
Starring as Jenny, Churchill portrays the transitioning expat. Just as her character returns to part-time tutoring to focus on starting up a blog, she’s decided to drop commercial video work to develop this independent web series.
Admitting that her character “is a little tongue-in-cheek,” Churchill praises the city for its myriad opportunities. “If you know what you want to do and start doing it, you can find a way to make it work. It’s easy to bring together a lot of interesting people. That is one of the things that’s kept me in Shanghai.”
In English with no subtitles (VPN required)
In English with Chinese subtitles (no VPN required)
Shot over a December weekend, Floating City debuted in January on YouTube and with Chinese subtitles on Youku. Each eight- to ten-minute episode revolves around a popular food and drink item. Next up is the Yongkang Lu-set ‘La Chouffe’ with Churchill hinting at an episode exploring how “the time you show up for teppanyaki determines who you sit next to and what kind of night you’ll have.”
Filming on the next episodes begins this month with an eye towards monthly releases. While she admits the show is looking for everything from actors to make-up artists to sound mixers, Churchill is thrilled with the number of people willing to lend a hand.
“There’s a lot of talented people making good money doing their thing but would love to do something creative,” she says. “Once we put together all the pieces, they were really excited to be a part of it.”
The show's online release has only bolstered enthusiasm. Churchill sheepishly admits to being recognized at parties and finds humor in the negative feedback.
“Someone’s comment was ‘veteran expat fempat,’” she laughs, “I’m thinking of using that as my bio.”
// Watch Floating City here. To get involved, contact them on WeChat at ‘floatingcitysh’
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