People's Republic of Desire

The film talks about the lives of Shen Man and Big Li, the modern day Internet celebrities in China.

Shen Man, a 21-year-old,[4] who works as a nurse in real life, is hosting a singing contest at YY, a Chinese web service similar to Twitch and YouTube. While she is spending time online, trying to raise money for herself and her parents, her penniless father and stepmom move into her new flat. In addition, to hosting various singing contests, Shen Man is also in competition against other female hosts, who are trying to steal her fans and money by using the same mechanics and platform.

At the same time, a 24-year-old real life comedian,[4] Big Li, who attained some stardom as a passionate and angry everyman, has become an aspiration for many of his YY fans. A family man with a wife and child, he has a luxurious lifestyle, but he too is addicted to YY and its annual competitions, which promise riches and expensive gifts, which he assumes will cement his livelihood for another year (or until he will need to go back and gamble for more).

If the host plays his cards right, he is expected to receive from $40,000 to $60,000 a month from fans, just by showing up at YY and do a gig or two. The other hosts earn even less, like $300 a month.[4] Just like with their Hollywoodian counterparts, the lives of rising stars are ambitious, but with fame, comes the downfall, as better faces start to emerge. So, in one instance, when Shen Man's offline entanglements are publicly revealed, her fan base starts to fizzle.

The film also shows how talent agencies and only those agencies are constantly support such business models, enabling stable flow of cash in the livestreaming industry for the would-be hosts and platformers, while taking unrealistic cuts of up to 60 percent from performer's wallet. Considering the number of active users that are online, a staggering 100 million, Guangzhou-based YY has a market cap of $6.2 billion and a stock price on NASDAQ that is in double digits. And, considering that it's just one of dozens of livestreaming platforms in China through which the government command the attention of 200 million of the country's 750 million internet users.[5]

As fame and money conquer the hearts of our would-be celebrities, it becomes a vicious cycle, braking which, becomes nearly impossible.[6]

People's Republic of Desire premiered at Doc NYC in 2018,[7] and on May 15, 2018, the film was screened at the Seattle International Film Festival.[8]

The film was shown on PBS's Independent Lens on February 25, 2019.[9][10]

On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 97% based on 33 critics, with an average rating of 7.9/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "People's Republic of Desire fascinates and repels in equal measure with a sadly illuminating look at the intersection between technology and our relationship with celebrity."[11] On Metacritic, People's Republic of Desire holds a rank of 77 out of a 100 based on 13 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[12]

David Lewis of the San Francisco Chronicle called the film "Equally fascinating, sad and scary",[13] while Justin Lowe of The Hollywood Reporter called it "A revealing examination of contemporary Chinese Internet culture".[14]

Katie Rife of The A.V. Club wrote "A microcosm[os] of the bizarre fantasy economy and complex, parasitic interdependencies of late capitalism as a whole".[15]

Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Kenneth Turan pointed out "The ability of "People's Republic of Desire" to show these familiar desires playing out in futuristic surroundings is invariably surprising and never less than compelling".[16]

Both Kimberly Jones of The Austin Chronicle and Joe Leydon of Variety agree that "[the director] unpacks a heady system and makes sense of it for newbies".[17][18]

By giving People's Republic of Desire a score of "B+", David Ehrlich of indieWire shown praise for the director, calling his work "fascinating [and] deeply alarming", and added "[the] film ushers us into a bold new world where our pleasure is simulated, but our pain is real".[19]

According to TheWrap's James Greenberg, the film is "A chillingly sad document of where the human spirit is at, and where it may be going".[20]

• Nulf, Jenny (March 13, 2018). "SXSW Film Review: People's Republic of Desire". The Austin Chronicle.
• Jaworowski, Ken (November 29, 2018). "'People's Republic of Desire' Review: A Virtual Craze Makes Actual Cash". The New York Times.

• People's Republic of Desire at IMDb
• Official website