THE MIGRANT WORKERS OF SHANGHAI (Germany-Den/2005)

Shot without an official permit from the Chinese authorities, The Migrant Workers of Shanghai depicts a few of the millions of peasant workers who've descended upon the country's largest city in search for better employment opportunities. No matter how educated they are, manual labor is the best they can hope for in most cases. Compared to their Shanghai-based counterparts, they usually make less than half for doing the same work. Until recently, the children of the migrant workers weren't allowed to be schooled in the city (the situation is still far from ideal). Most dream about starting their own business one day -- thanks to the booming economy, the sky is the limit for the select few who succeed. This 52-minute documentary from Christian Schidlowski is just as honest and unflinching as many of the films from Sixth Generation Chinese filmmakers.