The Taiwanese connection

Famed for exploring gender and sexuality on film, German director Monika Treut returns to local screens with paranormal love story ‘Ghosted.’ She explains why attacking taboos is no longer fun and how she became enchanted with Taiwan

By Andrew C.C. Huang / CONTRIBUTING REPORTER

TT: Have you watched any of the gay-themed films from Taiwan? What do you think about them?

MT: I very much like, for example, Formula 17 (十七歲的天空) by D.J. Chen, the fun comedy about a gang of gay boys, and Spider Lilies (刺青), the beautifully shot romance of two girls by Zero Chou (周美玲), among others. Most of the gay-themed movies coming from Taiwan express a poetic quality which is lacking in European or American gay-themed films.

TT: Which sexy screen actress, dead or alive, would you fancy going to bed with (or kiss, or just hug)?

MT: I’m no spring chicken any more and as a filmmaker I’m not so easy to fall for actresses. So a long time ago, before being a filmmaker, I fell for Susan Sarandon in The Hunger and the young Suzanne Pleshette, (RIP) in The Birds, both warm, sensual women with a husky voice.

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