Whisperings of the Moon is the debut feature by the late director Lai Yuqing, a film that delicately explores the expressive potential of cinematic language. It unfolds as a deeply sensory work, where emotions seem to emerge from within the image itself, touching its texture and pixels in a moment of inner revelation.

Nisay, a young theatre actress, returns from New York to Phnom Penh after her father’s death, where she reconnects with Tiida, a former lover. The stage and acting workshops become suspended spaces, where gestures and glances allow them to revisit and process their shared past. Between rehearsals, the city’s rhythms, and encounters with friends and family, there is also a return to the essence of a place once called home.

The film shifts between temporalities and layers of perception, moving between what is visible and what quietly unfolds beneath the surface. The often trembling camera follows the emotional pulse of its characters—at times intense, at others unsettled or uncertain. Through themes of love, loss, and return, the film creates a cathartic and intimate journey: a movement back to a place, to oneself, or toward what lies ahead.

Lai Yuqing passed away in 2025, and this film is presented in honor of a remarkable filmmaker whose work introduced a powerful and original voice to queer cinema.

(text by Pol Merchan)