Taiwan Film Festival Edinburgh has announced the full programme for its third edition, featuring a packed line-up of Taiwanese films that will be screening between 15 and 20 October in both Summerhall and Everyman Edinburgh cinemas.
This year’s programme offers a unique glimpse into the country’s rich film heritage: from short films to documentaries as well as classics both old and new, many of which will be having their UK premiere as part of this year’s festival.
This year’s six features and five shorts are united under the theme of the (un)Usuals, seeking to shine a light on the people, events, relationships that usually fall outside of the mainstream experience.
Tickets are now available to book on taiwanfilmfestival.org.uk. All screenings are priced at £8 and £6 concession.
In recent years, there has been a tangible upsurge in attention towards Taiwanese cinema throughout global film communities. This growing but still nascent interest served as a reminder that much of Taiwanese film is still overlooked in contemporary film discussions, and thus Taiwan Film Festival Edinburgh was created with the purpose of championing this often under-appreciated yet meaningful film culture.
The first of three strands that make up this year’s programme is Shorts: Being Alone Together, a programme inspired by the famous quote from British poet John Donne, “no man is an island”. This collation of shorts questions that assertion, diving into the distance between people that can be felt in many ways, and how connections can be reforged despite that. The strand features two shorts from Taiwan such as the beautiful stop-motion animation Where Am I Going and the deeply emotional Can You Hear Me? following a person witnessing his family dealing with his death. The strand also features films from outside Taiwan including Siren from Japanese director Nobuyuki Miyake and A Taxi of Coldness from South Korean director Joonha Kim.
The second strand Doc Replay: Portraits presents two documentaries, each charting one person’s life as they navigate their goals and struggles. When The Dawn Comes shines a light on the story of Chi Chia-Wei, the first person in Taiwan to publicly come out as gay and who also dedicated his life to raising awareness around AIDS. The Catch is a fascinating portrait of the camaraderie and hardship experienced by indigenous nomadic eel-catching fishermen, as they set up camp along Taiwan’s Lanyang River.
The third and final strand of this year’s programme is a retrospective of the complex and hugely influential career of Chen Yi-Wen. Chen played many a supporting role in Taiwanese films and TV before and went on to become a celebrated playwright, screenwriter and director in his own right. The retrospective features a hand-picked selection of films from Chen’s acting career including The Man From Island West, Growing Pains, Increasing Echo and Treat or Trick. Audiences can also look forward to enjoying The Cabbie (2000), directed by Chen which won him the Grand Jury Award at the Golden Horse Awards.
Liu Kuan-Ping, Chief Curator at the Festival, said: “Although streaming at home is a comfortable and convenient way to enjoy cinema, I still prefer sitting in the dark with other people, people who enjoy the big screen experience as much as I do. I am so glad that we can meet our audiences in person this year.”
Talking about this year’s theme, Kuan-Ping reflected: “People think of Asian cultures as collective cultures. You are told not to stand out, not to be different, since childhood. We want to show people that being unusual is not all that bad.”
Head of Taipei Representative Office UK Cultural Division, Dr Chen Pin-Chuan said: “It is great to see Taiwan Film Festival Edinburgh coming back with once again a well selected programme that showcases the diverse and thriving cinematography of Taiwan. We bring the films back to cinemas this year and encourage audiences in Edinburgh to join us as we celebrate this first edition of fully in-person Taiwan Film Festival Edinburgh.”
2022 TAIWAN FILM FESTIVAL EDINBURGH PROGRAMME
STRAND – SHORTS: BEING ALONE TOGETHER
Where Am I Going? | Huang, Yun-sian and Tsai, Yi-chin | 2018 | 15 mins
In-person screening on 15 October, 20:45 at Summerhall; tickets here
An old man lives alone in a small hut by the railway which is soon to be demolished. He spends his days cycling and looking for work mending windows until one day his routine is interrupted by figures that appear to be different to everyone else.
Can You Hear Me? | Li Nien-Hsiu | 2021 | 36 mins
In-person screening on 15 October, 20:45 at Summerhall; tickets here
Jhong wakes up and finds himself dead. He watches his family dealing with his death over breakfast. Although his wife can’t hear him, she can somehow comprehend what is on his mind.
Director Li follows her debut documentary film ‘Hebei, Taipei’, which focuses on her father, with this short film inspired by her family and real-life conversations they had following her father’s death.
Siren | Nobuyuki Miyake | 2017 | 17 mins
In-person screening on 15 October, 20:45 at Summerhall; tickets here
Sirens are blaring outside, Abbas breaks into the room of an old Japanese man named Toyoshige. He lifts Toyoshige and carries him out the door. As they go down the stairs, the last few days of bias and misjudgement become clear.
A Taxi of Coldness | Joonha Kim | 2017 | 20 mins
In-person screening on 15 October, 20:45 at Summerhall; tickets here
Late at night, a taxi passenger is offered chewing gum by the driver. As he reminds himself of the ‘drugged gum’ story told him by his mother, the driver asks whether he heard about all those criminal taxi drivers… after several persistent offers, the man reluctantly accepts the chewing gum.
STRAND – DOC REPLAY: PORTRAITS
When The Dawn Comes | Zhang, Hong – jie | 2021 | 60 mins
In-person screening on 16 October, 14:00 at Summerhall; tickets here
Chi Chia-wei devoted his life to educating people about AIDS: he gave out condoms in the 80s while dressed as Snow White, Jesus or a mummy. At a press conference, he came out as gay and became the first person in Taiwan to do so publicly. His activism garnered a lot of media attention as well abuse from the public. In 2017, a constitutional ruling made him a hero in the LGBTQ+ community – a 30-year-long struggle seemed to have reached its final destination and a new starting point.
The Catch | Hsu, Che-chia | 2021 | 54 mins
In-person screening on 16 October, 15:30 at Summerhall; tickets here
From every November to the following February, Indigenous migrant fishermen set up camp along Taiwan’s Lanyang River to catch the season’s first eel. Camaraderie and bonds are forged as they face the hardship together.
STRAND – Chen Yi–Wen Retrospective
The Man From Island West | Huang, Ming-chuan | 1991 | 90 mins
In-person screening on 17 October, 19:30 at Everyman; tickets here
Contemporary Taiwan. An aboriginal man, Ah-ming, attempts to take his own life but is saved by an old miner. This life-changing moment spurs him to journey back to his origins. Meanwhile, the miner’s son, Ah-Chuan, meets a fugitive prostitute who has returned from the lowlands… Ah-Chuan desperately tries to fit into the mainstream society but those around him seem to have different intentions.
Growing Pains | Lin, Po-yu | 2020 | 25 mins
In-person screening on 18 October, 19:30 at Everyman; tickets here
Fourteen-year-old Yao is sick of his worn-out shoes which his debt-ridden father cannot replace. One day, following a confrontation with debt collectors, he suddenly buys Yao a pair of expensive sneakers which turns out to be the start of a tragic series of events…
Increasing Echo | Chienn, Hsiang | 2021 | 85 mins
In-person screening on 18 October, 19:30 at Everyman; tickets here
Mr. Yan’s mistress suffers from dementia and lives in a nursing home. Upon learning about her husband’s infidelity, Mrs. Yan plans her revenge and takes her husband to visit the mistress. After seeing her, Mr. Yan runs away, but Mrs. Yan must get him back for their son’s wedding…
Treat or Trick | Hsu, Fu-HSIANG | 2021 | 106 mins
In-person screening on 19 October, 19:30 at Everyman; tickets here
During a police raid led by a bent cop Feng, Feng’s buddy Chiang decides to keep the offenders’ prized possessions and hides in a remote village. Feng has no choice but to call on his men, Monk and Yang, to retrieve the diamonds.
The Cabbie | ChEN, Yi, wen, CHANG, Hwa-kun | 2000 | 94 mins
In-person screening on 20 October, 19:30 at Everyman; tickets here
Ah Quan enjoys his life of a taxi driver. One day he meets and falls in love with a policewoman. And the only way to get her attention is to get as many parking tickets as possible…
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