The Taiwan International Documentary Festival is to showcase what is presumably the biggest retrospective of Philippine cinema ever shown outside the Philippines, the organizer said in a statement on Friday.
The main program of the festival, titled “Necessary Fictions: Negotiating Realities in Post-national Philippine Documentaries,” would be a comprehensive retrospective of Philippine cinema, featuring 46 films organized in 11 sub-themes from 32 directors that span 40 years of cinematic history, the Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute said.
The selection of works showcase independent Philippine cinema in all its diversity by exploring the country’s history, culture, folklore, religion, ethnicities and geography, presenting multiple realities that go far beyond the impression of a single country, the institute said.
The extensive section would also offer a glimpse into the creative trajectory of independent Philippine cinema through online forums and screenings, it added.
Many internationally renowned directors are also featured in the main program, including Lav Diaz, 2016 laureate of the Venice Film Festival’s Golden Lion; Raymond Red, who won the Golden Palm at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival in the Short Film category; and Kidlat Tahimik, widely regarded as the “father of Philippine independent cinema,” it said.
One of the films featured, Tahimik’s Why Is Yellow the Middle of the Rainbow? from 1994, uses the rainbow as a metaphor for the changes in the Philippines, reflecting on the relationship between the individual and the nation, providing a new interpretation for the term “third-world cinema,” the statement said.
Another feature, Sacred Ritual of Truth from 2002, documents the return of Manila-based director Auraeus Solito to his hometown on Palawan Island to learn about his own indigenous cultural background.
The program is jointly planned with independent Philippine curator and film programmer Merv Espina, the institute said.
Festival program director Wood Lin (林木材) said Espina chose the term “necessary fictions” to sum up the powerful and creative works to be shown, which are representative of aesthetic choices that filmmakers had to make in the face of harsh reality.
The 13th edition of the festival is to be held from May 6 to 15 at four Taipei venues — the Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute, SPOT Huashan, Viewshow Cinemas Taipei Qsquare and Taiwan Contemporary Culture Lab.
The festival is to present more than 150 films, as well as public and educational programs such as question-and-answer sessions, workshops and exhibitions.
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