Wei Minzhi

Not One Less -- The charming story of a 13-year old substitute teacher in rural China who's been promised a bonus if she keeps her young charges from dropping out of school.

In the village, she was the teacher. In the city, she discovered how much she had to learn.

In the crushing poverty of rural China, a young woman is ordered to a remote village to be their substitute teacher. Barely older than her students, the shy girl is charged with keeping the class intact for one month or she won't be paid. Faced with overwhelming family debt, her biggest little troublemaker disappears into the city to find work. The stubborn teacher, however, is determined to follow the boy and bring him back to school. Once in the city, her simple peasant pleas fall on deaf ears, and only when the local television station sympathizes does her search bear fruit.

Mandarin, subtitled in English. In the village, she was the teacher. In the city, she discovered how much she had to learn.