The short film “Once Upon a Rooftop” profiles the hardships, and enduring hope, of a community living in the Hong Kong rooftop slums. On a rooftop high above the bustling streets of Hong Kong, a woman practices the ancient art of tai chi as her daughter watches from the shadows. Invisible from below, they share their hidden promontory with 30 other families. Their lives are tenuous, especially with eviction imminent, but filled with an enduring hope for a brighter future as they try their best to lay down roots atop a city’s concrete tenements. All live in shanties perched precariously on top of a nine-story building. This film is a porthole to an intimate view of life in these illegal rooftop tenements that exist throughout Hong Kong.

Once Upon a Rooftop : short film