In three days Yana will be evacuated from China to escape COVID-19. Darkle, her best friend, has planned some fun activities for 'outside day’—a prescribed day they are allowed to leave their apartments—so they can finally celebrate Chinese New Year together.

Ben Mullinkosson is a cinematographer and director who works between Los Angeles and Chengdu in China, where this film is based. He follows the protagonists as they weave and wander through “the abandoned landscapes of a city perpetually under construction”—as described by the director.

“Outside Day was shot in January, right as the outbreak was starting to become an international emergency,” says Mullinkosson, who traveled to three different continents to evade the spreading global shutdown from coronavirus. “Despite the panic among friends and family in Chengdu at the time, the virus felt far away for Darkle and Yana.”

Mullinkosson’s ‘social-first’ aspect ratio reflects the youthfulness and care-free nature of his characters who roam the desolate city shooting fireworks, play fighting, and engaging in idle conversations.

“Escape is what this film is all about,” says Mullinkosson. “Before social distancing became a phrase the whole world knew, it started happening all across China, and it was bizarre. This film is an observation of this strange moment in time and all the unique emotions that come with it.”