LISTENING TO THE HOMELAND: SOUND NARRATIVE AND THE CONSTRUCTION OF SENSE OF PLACE IN DEAR YOU

Abstract

Studies of cinematic Sense of place have long been dominated by analyses of visual symbols and spatial representation. Focusing on the 2026 the Teochew-Dialect film Dear You, this article examines how sound narrative constructs a sense of place associated with overseas Chinese communities in Chaoshan. The film transforms the homeland from a geographically visible space into an acoustically experienced place through the sonic encoding of the Teochew dialect, the spatial construction of environmental soundscapes, the layering of Chaozhou opera and diegetic music, and the narrative use of silence. While synchronized sound contributes to a sense of spatial authenticity, audiovisual counterpoint and subjective sound evoke memories that traverse the sea and connect different generations, rendering sense of place an auditory form of identification that moves between the homeland and overseas spaces, and between the past and the present. By foregrounding sound as a narrative and cultural medium, Dear You demonstrates how cinematic sense of place can be constructed not only through what is seen but also through what is heard, remembered, and imagined.