The Women Make Waves International Film Festival is to open on Oct. 16, with 76 films featured in the 10-day event.
The theme of the festival, which is to take place at SPOT Huashan cinema (光點華山) in Taipei, is “Femture,” an amalgamation of “feminism” and “future,” said the Taiwan Women’s Film Association, which organizes the event.
In a year marked by big challenges, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, racial violence and injustice, as well as misogyny, the festival seeks to provide a platform for discussion and to inspire audiences to imagine the future of the world and feminism, it said.
Photo: Chen I-kuan, Taipei Times
In its 27th edition, the festival includes nine programs, with one program — “Master in Focus: Kira Muratova” — highlighting five films by the late Soviet and Ukrainian award-winning director, including the 1967 film Brief Encounters.
Fifteen movies selected from more than 100 entries by female Taiwanese directors are to compete in the seventh edition of the “Taiwan Competition,” with five winners to be awarded at a ceremony on Oct. 22.
Other programs in the festival include “Memory in Future Tense,” “Intruder Alert,” “Queer Reflection,” “Proud to Fail,” “Shorts Shouts,” “Asian Shorts Shouts,” and “French Female Pioneers.”
The festival’s opening film is Italian director Maura Delpero’s Maternal, which deals with the experiences of teenage mothers and is based on Delpero’s experience working in a church asylum shelter, the association said.
The festival is to close on Oct. 25 with Bangladeshi director Rubaiyat Hossain’s Made in Bangladesh, a film that tells the story of a female factory worker’s fight against patriarchy and resistance against exploitation, the association said.
Alongside film screenings, the association is to hold several talks, including a “Fem-lecture” series, forums co-organized with Fountain (新活水) magazine, and post-screening discussions, it said.
One forum, titled “Life in Film-TV Industry as a Woman,” is to be held on Oct. 18 and moderated by festival director Pecha Lo (羅珮嘉), according to the festival program.
From 2pm to 5pm on Saturday next week, the festival is to host an introduction event in which four members of the film selection committee, including Lo and festival program manager Chen Huei-yin (陳慧穎), are to present festival highlights and recommendations, the association said.
Singer 9m88, who received three nominations at this year’s Golden Melody Awards — including in the Song of the Year category — is to serve as the ambassador of the festival, the association said.
Festival tickets can be purchased starting at 1pm on Sunday, the association said.
More information and the festival’s screening schedule can be found at wmw.org.tw.
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