Young, freethinking teacher, Xiao He is seen as a rebel by her colleagues and thrown out of her school. She decides to start over and moves to Beijing to work for a news agency. But there too she is asked to adapt to what the system expects of her, making her wonder how long can she resist alone.

Debut writer-director (and producer-editor-costume designer!) Liu Shu holds little back in targeting the oppressive cycles of life under an authoritarian government. An incisive inquiry into the personal limits of passivity and subjugation, Lotus is a daring, dramatic act of cinematic activism.