Huang Yu-siang (黃裕翔) was born with a gift and a devastating disability. He has a huge talent for music, but he is blind. His story has become a movie that has captivated audiences nationwide.
The film, Touch of the Light (逆光飛翔), marks a double triumph for the 25-year-old. First he overcame overwhelming odds by becoming a successful pianist in real life. Then he beat the odds once more by playing himself on the big screen.
“I was surprised by the warm reactions at home and abroad. Many people told me they were encouraged by the film to persist in their dreams,” Huang said in an interview.
Photo: AFP
His musical gift was discovered at the age of two when he could play on the piano songs he had heard only once. He went on to win many competitions and became the first blind person in Taiwan to obtain a bachelor’s degree in music, majoring in piano.
His story was made into a short film in 2008 by Taiwanese director Chang Jung-chi (張榮吉), which attracted the attention of acclaimed Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar-wai (王家衛), who encouraged Chang to develop it into a full-length feature.
It has become the top-grossing movie in Taiwan since its September release, winning over fans including President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), who praised its “subtle character portrayals” on his Facebook page.
The film has also been welcomed by civil groups that hope it will sharpen the focus on the plight of the nation’s blind.
While attitudes toward those with disabilities have improved in recent years, support groups and charities say society still has some way to go when it comes to equality.
Although facilities for the physically impaired can be impressive — wheelchair ramps abound in cities — the fact remains that blind people face drastically limited opportunities.
“The visually impaired are a minority among the minorities, as employers are more willing to hire the physically or hearing-impaired,” said Chiang Pei-fen, a spokeswoman for the Taiwan Foundation for the Blind.
“Most visually impaired people are still limited to working as masseurs or in telemarketing, and even though general workplace acceptance is improving, there is still a big gap between the number of job seekers and employers willing to hire them,” Chiang said.
Despite his gift, Huang himself has suffered discrimination. He said he was mocked by fellow students at school and was rejected by a junior-high school music program because he could not see the scores.
The real shock came when Huang left home to attend university, where he struggled to cope, with some classmates reluctant to accommodate him.
“It was a difficult time adjusting to a new environment, but I came to realize that I could not always sit back and wait for other people to come to me. I had to take the initiative to make friends,” he said.
His adjustment process and the friendships he eventually developed form the bulk of the plot in Touch of the Light.
The experience has transformed Huang from a “shy, introverted” boy who dared not respond to people greeting him, he said, to a celebrity musician and actor who mingles with fans and has traveled abroad to promote his work.
“Acting makes me feel more confident and I have become more outgoing and more active, reaching out to other people,” said Huang, who is now a household name and often approached in the street by fans.
Even though the movie is based on Huang’s experiences, Chang stressed that it is really about “pursuing dreams and breaking stereotypes.”
“In the movie the character’s friends are not overly protective and do no treat him like an ‘endangered species’ as I want to break the sentimental pitying or worrying for the blind or other minority groups,” Chang said.
Huang has been nominated for the Outstanding Taiwanese Filmmaker category that encompassed actors, directors and other aspects of filmaking at this month’s Golden Horse Film awards, regarded as the Chinese-language Academy Awards. Chang is vying for best new director.
However, the jury is still out on whether the film’s success will translate into greater acceptance of the blind.
“It draws attention to the challenges visually impaired people face, but it remains to be seen how much can be translated into actual support for them,” Chiang said.
An increase in Taiwanese boats using China-made automatic identification systems (AIS) could confuse coast guards patrolling waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast and become a loophole in the national security system, sources familiar with the matter said yesterday. Taiwan ADIZ, a Facebook page created by enthusiasts who monitor Chinese military activities in airspace and waters off Taiwan’s southwest coast, on Saturday identified what seemed to be a Chinese cargo container ship near Penghu County. The Coast Guard Administration went to the location after receiving the tip and found that it was a Taiwanese yacht, which had a Chinese AIS installed. Similar instances had also
GOOD DIPLOMACY: The KMT has maintained close contact with representative offices in Taiwan and had extended an invitation to Russia as well, the KMT said The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) would “appropriately handle” the fallout from an invitation it had extended to Russia’s representative to Taipei to attend its international banquet last month, KMT Chairman Eric Chu (朱立倫) said yesterday. US and EU representatives in Taiwan boycotted the event, and only later agreed to attend after the KMT rescinded its invitation to the Russian representative. The KMT has maintained long-term close contact with all representative offices and embassies in Taiwan, and had extended the invitation as a practice of good diplomacy, Chu said. “Some EU countries have expressed their opinions of Russia, and the KMT respects that,” he
VIGILANCE: The military is paying close attention to actions that might damage peace and stability in the region, the deputy minister of national defense said The People’s Republic of China (PRC) might consider initiating a hack on Taiwanese networks on May 20, the day of the inauguration ceremony of president-elect William Lai (賴清德), sources familiar with cross-strait issues said. While US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s statement of the US expectation “that all sides will conduct themselves with restraint and prudence in the period ahead” would prevent military actions by China, Beijing could still try to sabotage Taiwan’s inauguration ceremony, the source said. China might gain access to the video screens outside of the Presidential Office Building and display embarrassing messages from Beijing, such as congratulating Lai
Four China Coast Guard ships briefly sailed through prohibited waters near Kinmen County, Taipei said, urging Beijing to stop actions that endanger navigation safety. The Chinese ships entered waters south of Kinmen, 5km from the Chinese city of Xiamen, at about 3:30pm on Monday, the Coast Guard Administration said in a statement later the same day. The ships “sailed out of our prohibited and restricted waters” about an hour later, the agency said, urging Beijing to immediately stop “behavior that endangers navigation safety.” Ministry of National Defense spokesman Sun Li-fang (孫立方) yesterday told reporters that Taiwan would boost support to the Coast Guard