So Sorry

Year: 2011

Duration: 54 min

A sequel to Disturbing The Peace, the film So Sorry (named after the artist’s 2009 exhibition in Munich, Germany) shows the beginnings of the tension between Ai Weiwei and the Chinese Government.  

In Disturbing The Peace, Ai Weiwei travels to Chengdu, China to attend the trial of the civil rights advocate Tan Zuoren as a witness.  In So Sorry, you see the investigation, led by Ai Weiwei’s studio, to identify the students who died during the Sichuan earthquake as a result of corruption and poor building construction, leading to the confrontation between Ai Weiwei and the Chengdu police.

After being beaten by the police, Ai Weiwei traveled to Munich, Germany to prepare his exhibition at the Haus der Kunst.  The result of his beating led to intense headaches caused by a brain hemorrhage, requiring emergency surgery.  These events mark the beginning of Ai Weiwei’s struggle and surveillance at the hands of the state police.