A child of Taiwan's New Wave cinema, award-winning cinematographer En Chen (陳懷恩) has been a long-term collaborator of Hou Hsiao-hsien (侯孝賢) and has worked with acclaimed directors such as Chang Tso-chi (張作驥) and Cheng Wen-tang (鄭文堂) since the 1980s.
After more than 20 years of working at the center of Taiwan's film industry, the veteran cinematographer has decided to tell a story of his own with a scanty government subsidy and lots of supports from friends and money of his own. The end result is his feature debut Island Etude (練習曲), a road movie about Taiwan's past and present, it's beauty and sorrow and the stories of its inhabitants.
With guest appearances by novelist, playwright and filmmaker Wu Nien-jen (吳念真), theater veterans Deng An-ning (鄧安寧) and Yang Li-ying (楊麗音), TV personality Hsu Hsiao-shun (許效舜), musician Kimbo Hu (胡德夫) and others, the film is centered on a hearing-impaired college student named Ming-hsiang and the people and their stories he encounters during his seven-day, round-the-island bike trip. He travels through the scenic seaside landscape in Hulien (花蓮) and along the western coastal highway, passes through the Matsu pilgrimage (媽祖遶境) and a protest by elderly female workers protesting the unannounced closure of the factory in which they had worked for lifetime. The film takes audiences deep into the corners of the country and presents intimate portraits of people from different cultural, social and ethnic backgrounds, all of whom have their own stories to tell.
PHOTO: COURTESY OF CHI FEI FILM
As the writer, cinematographer and director, Chen makes a genuine effort to share his affection for the island and its people. The narrative is carried through Ming-hsiang's travels through different places, with the natural environment playing an important role and give the piece an unique rhythm and texture. In tune with the New Wave look and spirit, the travelogue ingenuously mixes history, myth, folk memories and contemporary issues of the country and its people.
Though some sections of the film seem over-produced and some less than articulate and rather dull, director Chen pulls off a human story about this diverse country. As the real-life round-the-island biker who inspired Chen to make the film said: "there is something that if you don't do it now, you will never do it for the rest of your life." Chen has certainly grasped the chance to realize his dream and has done a commendable job.
PHOTO: COURTESY OF CHI FEI FILM
July 28 to Aug. 3 Former president Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) reportedly maintained a simple diet and preferred to drink warm water — but one indulgence he enjoyed was a banned drink: Coca-Cola. Although a Coca-Cola plant was built in Taiwan in 1957, It was only allowed to sell to the US military and other American agencies. However, Chiang’s aides recall procuring the soft drink at US military exchange stores, and there’s also records of the Presidential Office ordering in bulk from Hong Kong. By the 1960s, it wasn’t difficult for those with means or connections to obtain Coca-Cola from the
Taiwan is today going to participate in a world-first experiment in democracy. Twenty-four Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers will face a recall vote, with the results determining if they keep their jobs. Some recalls look safe for the incumbents, other lawmakers appear heading for a fall and many could go either way. Predictions on the outcome vary widely, which is unsurprising — this is the first time worldwide a mass recall has ever been attempted at the national level. Even meteorologists are unclear what will happen. As this paper reported, the interactions between tropical storms Francisco and Com-May could lead to
A couple of weeks ago the parties aligned with the People’s Republic of China (PRC), the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP), voted in the legislature to eliminate the subsidy that enables Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) to keep up with its burgeoning debt, and instead pay for universal cash handouts worth NT$10,000. The subsidy would have been NT$100 billion, while the cash handout had a budget of NT$235 billion. The bill mandates that the cash payments must be completed by Oct. 31 of this year. The changes were part of the overall NT$545 billion budget approved
It looks like a restaurant — but it’s food for the mind. Kaohsiung’s Pier-2 Art Center is currently hosting Comic Bento (漫畫便當店), an immersive and quirky exhibition that spotlights Taiwanese comic and animation artists. The entire show is designed like a playful bento shop, where books, plushies and installations are laid out like food offerings — with a much deeper cultural bite. Visitors first enter what looks like a self-service restaurant. Comics, toys and merchandise are displayed buffet-style in trays typically used for lunch servings. Posters on the walls present each comic as a nutritional label for the stories and an ingredient
RSS