TAIWAN FILM FESTIVAL INDIGENOUS REPRESENTATIONS AND RESPONSES 1 3 DECEMBER 2017 THE AUDITORIUM, FELLOWS LANE AUSTRALIAN CENTRE ON CHINA IN THE WORLD THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY
Event Information All screenings are free and open to the public. Bookings are essential. Register https://goo.gl/2m3yd3 Venue The Auditorium CIW Building #188, Fellows Lane The Australian National University All films have English subtitles. About Indigenous cultures form the foundation of contemporary Taiwan. Yet representation of indigenous people in Taiwan cinema has at times been controversial. These films range from stereotypical portrayals of Taiwan s aboriginal peoples in the 1960s to popular contemporary works by indigenous directors. This diverse program features documentaries and feature films that engage with cultural, social, ecological and political issues pertinent to Taiwan s past and present. Partners Australian Centre on China in the World The Australian Centre on China in the World gratefully acknowledges the generous support of our opening night partner, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Australia. Friday, 1 December 5:30pm Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale I (2h24m) Saturday, 2 December 10:00am Song of Orchid Island (1h34m) 11:45am 2:00pm 4:30pm 7:30pm How Deep is the Ocean (60m) Asia is One (1h36m) Lokah Laqi (1h30m) Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale II (2h12m) Sunday, 3 December 10:00am Voices of Orchid Island (1h13m) 11:20am 1:30pm 4:15pm 4:30pm 7:30pm Old Seafarer (25m) Connection by Fate (1h53m) Children in Heaven (13m) My River (60m) Wawa no cidal (1h39m) Old Seafarer
FRIDAY 1 DECEMBER OPENING NIGHT FILM Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale I UNESCO Award, Asia Pacific Screen Awards (2012) Audience Award, Osaka Asian Film Festival (2012) Wei Te-sheng 2011 2h24m MA15+ This epic film, produced by John Woo and one of Taiwan s all-time box office hits, recounts the violent events of the Wushe Incident, a Seediq uprising against Japanese rule in 1930. Beautifully set in Taiwan s Central Mountain Range and generating both praise and controversy, this film offers a compelling take on violent responses to colonisation. Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale I Screening: 5:30pm, 1 December 2017
SATURDAY 2 DECEMBER Song of Orchid Island Pan Lei 1965 1h34m Produced by the world-famous Shaw Brothers studio of Hong Kong, this is one of the earliest film representations of Taiwan s indigenous peoples. Filmed on this idyllic island southeast of Taiwan, Song of Orchid Island employs common stereotypes to deliver a romantic story of a civilized doctor s encounter with a native island girl, played by the popular Chinese actress Cheng Pei-pei. Asia is One Screening: 10:00am, 2 December 2017
How Deep is the Ocean Best Short Documentary, Golden Harvest Awards (2000) Screened at Hawaii International Film Festival (2000) Screened at Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival (2005) Asia is One Tang Shiang-chu NDU (Nihon Documentary Union) 2000 60m PG 1972 1h36m M Dislocation and despair, return and recovery, this film documents one Yami (Tao) man s journey from Orchid Island to Taipei and back again, escaping addiction through the healing powers of community and the ocean. Filmed by activist documentary makers from Tokyo, this rediscovered underground film takes us from Taiwanese migrant workers in American-occupied Okinawa to a small Atayal village in the mountains of eastern Taiwan. This film is generously provided by the Taiwan Cinema Toolkit. Screening: 11:45am, 2 December 2017 Screening: 2:00pm, 2 December 2017
Lokah Laqi (Hang in There, Kids!) Laha Mebow 2016 1h30m PG BIFAN Children s Jury Award Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (2016) Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale II Wei Te-sheng 2011 2h12m MA 15+ UNESCO Award,Asia Pacific Screen Awards (2012) Audience Award, Osaka Asian Film Festival (2012) Discover the challenges and joys of life from the perspective of three charismatic boys living in Sqoyaw village near Taichung. This engaging and affirming story is the latest film focused on indigenous life to enjoy a wide release and popular reception in Taiwan. Continuing from the first film, shown on Friday night, the conflict between the Seediq and the Japanese forces escalates with brutal consequences. Screening: 4:30pm, 2 December 2017 Screening: 7:30pm, 2 December 2017
SUNDAY 3 DECEMBER Voices of Orchid Island Best Documentary Film, Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival (1993) Silver Plaque Award, Documentary Film, Chicago International Film Festival (1994) Hu Tai-li 1993 1h13m PG Everyday life on Orchid Island is revealed in this important film by one of Taiwan s most eminent ethnographic film makers. Hu Tai-li examines the social and ecological problems the Yami (Tao) people face, especially the government s controversial and continued use of the island as a nuclear waste dump. Connection by Fate Screening: 10:00am, 3 December 2017
Old Seafarer Cheng Yu-Chieh 2015 25m PG Special Screening at Golden Harvest Awards (2015) Connection by Fate Wan Jen 1998 1h53m PG Best Music, Asia Pacific Film Festival (1998) Based on a story by Syaman Rapongan, a noted writer of Orchid Island s Yami (Tao) tribe, this gentle short film looks at the complexities of young love in the martial law period (1949 87) while evoking deep economic and spiritual connections with the ocean. This film is generously provided by the Taiwan Cinema Toolkit. Starring Amis musician Chang Chen-yue /Ayal Komod, this is one of the few films of Taiwan s famed New Cinema movement to consider indigenous Taiwan. Director Wan Jen hauntingly explores intersections of the afterlife and daily struggle in a gritty and lonely fin de siècle Taipei. This film is generously provided by the Taiwan Cinema Toolkit. Screening: 11:20am, 3 December 2017 Screening: 1:30pm, 3 December 2017
Children in Heaven PTS Special Mention, Taiwan International Documentary Film Festival (1998) My River International Long Film (Nominated) Screening at Taiwan International Documentary Film Festival (2010) Mayaw Biho 1997 13m Mayaw Biho 2009 60m Children in Heaven documents the aboriginal community living under the Sanying Bridge in New Taipei City. The film addresses aboriginal people s right to housing by observing how the community faces the annual cycle of forced eviction and subsequent home construction. Ten years after Children in Heaven and following the umpteenth demolition of the residences of Sanying in New Taipei City, Mayaw Biho returned with his camera to meet the family he had filmed. The film takes a close look at the dire situation faced by many Taiwanese aborigines. Screening: 4:15pm, 3 December 2017 Screening: 4:30pm, 3 December 2017
Wawa no cidal Audience Choice Award, Taipei Film Festival (2015) Best Original Film Song, Golden Horse Film Festival (2015) Cheng Yu-Chieh 2015 1h39m PG and Lekal Sumi Cilangasan Conflicts surrounding family, real estate development and traditional agricultural lifestyles on Taiwan s east coast are at the core of this warm film. With a soundtrack produced by the innovative Amis musician Suming, Wawa no cidal also offers an excellent introduction to popular and contemporary indigenous music. Contact Details Australian Centre on China in the World Building 188, Fellows Lane The Australian National University Canberra ACT 2601 Australia T: +61 2 6125 9060 E: ciw@anu.edu.au Register https://goo.gl/2m3yd3 Screening: 7:30pm, 3 December 2017
CONNECT WITH US CONNECT WITH US ciw.anu.edu.au thechinastory.org @ANU.Chinaintheworld @anu_china Wawa no cidal