The "Producer and Actor in Focus" categories were included to challenge the lack of professional training opportunities for producers in the the local film industry.
Portuguese independent producer Paolo Branco has produced over 200 films and has engaged in successful collaborations with film masters as well as young talent from across the globe. Hailed as the savor of the Japanese film industry, Tadanobu Asano is a professional actor/star with diverse acting styles and who has worked with directors such as Hou Hsiao-hsien and Nagisa Oshima. Both will come to Taiwan for the festival and hold workshops to share their experiences and expertise with local film professionals and audience members.
This year's opening film is Princess Raccoon by Japanese master Suzuki Seijun. Drawing inspiration from Japanese folklore, the movie depicts a budding romance between the exiled Prince Amechiyo and Princess Raccoon (played by Zhang Ziyi (章子怡)), who changes into human form so she can fall in love with the prince.
Time to Leave by French director Francois Ozon, a frequent guest at previous Golden Horse festivals, will close the film bonanza with his latest film about a handsome young photographer who is diagnosed with terminal cancer and has to learn how to embrace life and death.
The international guests confirmed to attend include, Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne (Rosetta and The Child) from Belgium, Dusan Hanak (Director in Focus) from Slovakia, Benedek Fliegauf (Forest and Dealer) from Hungary and Stuart Samuels (Midnight Movies: From the Margin to the Mainstream) from the US.
In order to navigate your way through the hundreds of films on offer a program booklet is available. Tickets can be purchased at ERA ticketing outlets, Eslite bookstores and branches of FNAC. The 3,000 limited-edition ticket packages have already been on sale since last Sunday, while individual ticket sales will begin on Wednesday. Single tickets are priced at NT$220, and NT$190 for students. For information on the films and schedules, visit the festival's bilingual Web site at http://www.goldenhorse.org.tw.
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