Student Academy Awards Series Part 2: Neither Donkey Nor Horse - Robin Wang

Neither Donkey Nor Horse, dir. Robin Wang

Next up in our 8 days of SAA winners we have Robin Wang’s live action short Neither Donkey Nor Horse. Despite only recently receiving his MFA in Film & Television Production from USC, Robin Wang already has a long history in short film. He made his inaugural short film around the age of 16, almost 13 years ago. Robin Wang has since gone on to direct many short films, including Graduation (which was inspired by his own graduation experience at Duke University), Wei-Lai and now his latest Neither Donkey Nor Horse. Robin has already had a hand in producing several short films as well, which have gone on to play at multiple Oscar-qualifying festivals as well as win DGA awards. 

Born in Xi’an China, Robin is described as a queer Chinese diaspora storyteller who aims to explore the meaning of “home” and “homelessness” against the backdrop of cultural displacement. Aside from winning a Student Academy Award, Neither Donkey Nor Horse premiered at the prestigious Telluride festival where it played in the Student Prints block of Filmmakers of Tomorrow. It has also been selected to major Film Festivals such as St. Louis International Film Festival, Newport Beach Film Festival and San Diego International Film Festival. 

Neither Donkey Nor Horse is a historical drama that centers around the true story of Nobel Prize nominated scientist Dr. Wu Lien-teh during the 1910 outbreak of the Manchurian Plague. The short starts off with superb animated visuals as a voiceover sets the tone for the current plague. The title card fades into the laboratory of Dr. Wu Lien-teh played by Chris Pang, who many will recognize from a multitude of recent movies, such as Palm Springs, Crazy Rich Asians and Joyride. The storytelling is very precise. The initial conflict of traditional Chinese herbal medicine vs. western medicine is made clear right from the start as the plague ravages the area. The cinematography by Devon Johns and production value are impressive throughout the short, from the dust swirling in the air in a gruesome hospital scene to the winter snow blowing about. 

Dr. Wu feels homeless in the medical community. Being claimed by neither side, as the Chinese doctors are embarrassed by his embrace of Western medicine while Russian practitioners of western medicine write off his medicine as “opium-smoking”. Dr. Wu is Neither Donkey Nor Horse. 

Although these events take place in 1910, the themes of Neither Donkey Nor Horse remain especially relevant today. Dr. Wu’s science formed the basis on how we combat pandemics today, even as recently as the Covid-19 pandemic. And while the science is solid and evidence-based, there are still groups of people today who refuse to follow it, even when guidelines are as simple as social distancing and wearing a mask. In a world where misinformation is so easily spread, we need more people like Dr. Wu who hunt down the truth. Overall Neither Donkey Nor Horse is an incredible act of storytelling, portraying a courageous doctor who forged a path in medicine that would save many lives in the years to come. 

Review by: Brandon MacMurray