Waiting Alone

Waiting Alone (Chinese: 独自等待; pinyin: Dúzì Děngdài) is a 2004 Chinese romantic comedy film written & directed by Chinese-American filmmaker Dayyan Eng (Chinese: 伍仕贤; pinyin: Wǔ Shìxían), depicting the lives of a group of hip twenty-something Beijing residents. The film features Chinese movie stars Xia Yu, Gong Beibi and Li Bingbing. It also features cameos of some of Asia's best known actors, including Hong Kong superstar Chow Yun-fat in his first mainland Chinese film appearance.

Excellent reviews and strong word-of-mouth made this independent film a cult hit in China where it was embraced by millennial audiences. The film debuted at the 2004 Tokyo International Film Festival and was released in theaters in China in 2005. In the same year, Waiting Alone was nominated for three Chinese academy awards (Golden Rooster Awards) including Best Picture -- the first time a nomination was awarded to a foreign director in this category. Waiting Alone was acquired for international distribution in 2006 by Arclight Films and subsequently became available on streamer platforms worldwide including Amazon Prime.

With this film, Eng made history as the first American to direct a Chinese feature film, and the first and only foreign director to date (as of 2024) to have a film nominated for Best Picture at the Chinese academy awards. The film also remains the highest-rated romantic comedy from China on Douban and other review sites (as of 2025), resonating deeply with an entire generation of Chinese audiences.