Tracing the fascinating, real-life saga of one of China’s most revered composers, master storyteller Teng Wenji sweeps us into China’s intellectual and artistic coming of age during the Cultural Revolution (1966-76). As a young composer, Zhao Liming (Shao Bing) struggles with a constellation of opposing forces: personal ambitions vs. communal obligation, romantic love vs. loyal friendship, modern music vs. traditional. While seeking to research and archive the country’s indigenous musical forms, he emerges determined to forge a new form of opera, one with the daunting goal of preserving the voice of traditional Dogu song within a westernized orchestral arrangement.