(From left to right) Cast members Zhang Yi, Zhao Tao, Director Jia Zhangke and cast members Sylvia Chang pose on the red carpet as they arrive for the screening of the film "Mountains May Depart" (Shan he gu ren) in competition at the 68th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, May 20, 2015. [Photo/Agencies]

"In the past two or three years, I have always wanted to make a film about affections. I have some new understandings of affections, so I want to show them. Besides, the changes in the society are also changing how people express their affections," said Jia Zhangke, explaining why he wanted to make Shan He Gu Ren.

For Jia, the movie is about human affections, and how time can change them. In his movie, there are three time frames, 1999, 2014 and 2025. The goal, according to him, is to show what kind of new understanding people have of affections.