Go Asian!

TIDF is one of the prestigious events presenting the best of Asian documentary. The diversity of this genre is proved by films in our online documentary cinema. For instance, Chung Chuan’s Face to Face can be characterized as a film about a group of losers who have achieved nothing really at first glance, however, at the second one, they still arouse a sense of dignity. Huang Ting-Fu’s 4891, for a change, interprets the ubiquitous surveillance cameras as machines recording everything without emotions. Su Ming-yen’s Listen Darling and the Mountain Spirits by the duo Kuo-liang Chiang and Singing Chen are similarly revealing. Last but not least, Yao Hung-I’s introspective Hometown Boy is a feast for the eyes.

The history of Taiwanese documentary is interesting as well. It is connected with the Green Team which was active between 1986 and 1990. It was the most significant period of Taiwan’s democracy. People on the island went out to the streets to demonstrate for their rights and freedom. The above mentioned group of filmmakers captured all of the hectic period in 120 documentary films. “While they reflected local events, their courage and truthfulness are relevant today as well. They have inspired a number of other filmmakers,” explains TIDF Programme Director Wood Lin. Taiwanese documentaries are further supported by Taiwan Docs, a platform of the Taiwan Film Institute and a partner of Taiwan International Documentary Festival, which aims to promote Taiwanese documentaries abroad and assists the domestic filmmakers to reach a wider audience. Would you like to learn more? Ok.