News

Singapore director Chiang Wei Liang and co-director Yin You Qiao’s “Mongrel,” a portrayal of disenfranchised migrant workers in Taiwan, won Best Asian Feature Film at the 35th Singapore International Film Festival (Sgiff).

The jury praised the film’s “dense, shadowy and violent world” and its innovative approach to depicting contemporary issues of forced migration. The film has previously won awards at the Cannes and the Golden Horse festivals and at the Asia Pacific Screen Awards.

Lou Ye’s “An Unfinished Film” won the newly-revised Audience Choice Award. The docufiction drama follows a director attempting to complete a decade-old project during the Covid-19 pandemic, blending footage from Lou’s previous films with new material. The film previously won Golden Horse and Tokyo FILMeX awards.

In the Asian Feature Film Competition, Vietnamese filmmaker Truong Minh Quy received Best Director for “Viet and Nam,” a queer love story about two coal miners facing separation.

The 35th edition of the Singapore International Film Festival (Sgiff) concluded with its highest-ever box office earnings. Total ticket sales saw a 10% increase from last year’s edition, with attendance numbers also surpassing the previous edition’s record.

At the festival’s Silver Screen Awards, Mongrel, directed by Singapore’s Chiang Wei Liang and Yin You Qiao, clinched the award for Best Asian Feature Film, for its “stark portrayal of disenfranchised migrant workers in Taiwan.”

The Audience Choice Award went to Lou Ye’s Covid docufiction drama An Unfinished Film.

The Southeast Asian Short Film award went to Thai director Thaweechok Phasom’s Spirits of the Black Leaves, for its “poetic exploration of how an individual’s life is connected to the roots of nature and history.”

Singaporean filmmaker Calleen Koh won the Best Singapore Short Film award for animated short My Wonderful Life, which follows a burnt-out mum who...

The 35th Singapore International Film Festival (Sgiff) opened on the evening of 28 November, setting the stage for a vibrant celebration of Asian cinema. Held at the iconic Capitol Theatre, the evening saw the Southeast Asian premiere of Singaporean director Yeo Siew Hua‘s award-winning psychological thriller Stranger Eyes, marking the first of 105 films from over 48 countries — 80% of which are from Asia — to be showcased during the festival.

The evening’s red carpet was graced by Guest of Honour President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Distinguished Guest Minister Josephine Teo, as well as Stranger Eyes director Yeo Siew Hua and cast members Lee Kang-sheng, Wu Chien-ho, and Xenia Tan. Lee was also honoured with the festival’s Screen Icon Award, which pays homage to an actor’s exceptional contributions to bringing Asian stories to life on screen.

Other stars, including Sgiff’s inaugural festival ambassador Mediacorp Artiste Rebecca Lim, and the Small Hours of the Night team,...

Lou Ye’s Wuhan-set Covid drama An Unfinished Film took top honours at the 61st Golden Horse Awards, winning both best film and best director, while fellow mainland Chinese director Geng Jun’s LGBTQ+ black comedy Bel Ami won a hat-trick of prizes including best actor.

John Hsu’s Taiwanese supernatural comedy Dead Talents Society snatched the most prizes, walking away with five awards mostly in the technical categories.

Scroll down for full list of winners

The best narrative feature award for An Unfinished Film was presented by Golden Horse Awards chairman, renowned DoP Mark Lee Ping-bing and Hong Kong New Wave director Patrick Tam.

Winner of Best Director at San Sebastian, along with a number of other awards in festivals around the world, “A Journey in Spring” is a distinctly art-house film that focuses on grief and the (inter) personal issues families and married couples face, even in their old age.

A Journey in Spring is screening at Five Flavours

Aging married couple Khim-Hok and Siu-Tuan leave a meager life in the wooded hills outside Taipei, where they fight, bicker and in general feel the misery of their life and age. An issue with the plumbing of the house and their disagreement over the way to fix it highlights their situation, with their interactions being dominated by irony, sarcasm, and an overall lack of patience and communication, which mostly seem to derive from the husband. However, when Siu-Tan dies unexpectedly, Khim-Hok finds himself at intense loss, keeping her body in an old freezer, remembering his past with her,...

The highly anticipated 2025 flagship Taiwanese series The World Between Us II held its grand teaser premiere on November 6, 2024 on the main stage of the 2024 Taiwan Creative Content Fest (Tccf). Reuniting the award-winning original team, this new chapter presents a fresh cast and storyline, with Golden Bell Awards-winning producer Jayde Lin, acclaimed writer Lu Shih-yuan, and celebrated director Lin Chun-yang leading the project. Leading actors Vic Chou (Meteor Garden) and Hsueh Shih-ling (Taiwan Crime Stories), alongside rising stars Liu Tzu-chuan and Ryan Pai (Old Fox), attended the premiere event, where the latest teaser was unveiled to much excitement.

The teaser announcement at Tccf drew industry professionals and media from Taiwan and abroad, eager for a first look at The World Between Us II. Shaped by five years of script development and an expanded production scale, the two-minute teaser revealed a 20-year storyline following six intertwined families affected by incidents like a police stabbing,...

Taiwanese stars Vic Chou and Hsueh Shih-ling and rising talents Liu Tzu-chuan and Ryan Pai, will headline the cast of the second series of hit local series The World Between Us for Taipei-based production and sales company Screenworks Asia, the production subsidiary of Catchplay.

Chou, well known for Meteor Garden, and Shih-ling, who won best supporting actor for Taiwan Crime Stories at last year’s Asia Contents Awards & Global Ott awards (Aca & G.Ott) in Busan, took to the stage on the second day of the Taiwan Creative Content Fest (Tccf) on November 7. Yang Kuei-mei and Hsieh Hsin-ying, who were not present at the event,...

It was standing room only as the follow-up to 2019 Taiwanese series “The World Between Us” debuted its teaser at Taiwan Creative Content Fest (Tccf), with “Meteor Garden” star Vic Chou leading an ensemble cast.

The series, set for a 2025 release, comes after five years of script development. The story opens with an arson case and explores themes of choice, healing, and gaps in social support systems, drawing inspiration from judicial cases.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

The two-minute preview introduced a sprawling narrative spanning two decades and following six families impacted by various incidents including a police stabbing, a train derailment and parliamentary confrontation.

Director Lin Chun Yang, who returns alongside Golden Bell Award-winning producer Jayde Lin and writer Lu Shih Yuan, likened the production scale to “producing three dramas at once.”

Chou portrays Ma Yi-sen, a character dealing with the loss of his wife and child in an accident. “Ma Yi-sen is a heavy,...

The 35th edition of the Singapore International Film Festival has unveiled its full lineup, which features 105 films from 45 countries, with 80% of the selections hailing from Asia.

Held from 28 November to 8 December, the festival will hold special gala presentations for two films, The Fable and The Unseen Sister, with selected talents from each film in attendance.

International highlights this year include the horror-comedy Nightbitch featuring Amy Adams, The Shrouds by David Cronenberg, Grand Tour by Cannes-award winning director Miguel Gomes, and a newly restored version of Bong Joon-ho’s debut feature Barking Dogs Never Bite, which will have its international premiere at Sgiff.

The festival will also present the Screen Icon Award, which recognises exceptional Asian talents, to Yang Kuei-mei and Lee Kang-sheng.

For the first time, each festival section will have an opening film that embodies the spirit of its category, with all of them hail from the Asian region.

Singapore International Film Festival (Sgiff) has unveiled the full programme for its 35th edition, which includes honorary awards for Taiwanese actors Lee Kang-sheng and Yang Kuei-mei, and the launch of a Sgiff Industry Days conference.

Set to run from November 28 - December 8, the festival will continue to champion local and regional voices, with Asian cinema representing 80% of the line-up. The full selection comprises 105 films from 45 countries and features recurring themes of migration and displacement as well as the influence of technology on the medium of film.

The Asian Feature Film Competition, the festival’s main competition section, showcases nine features by promising directors across Asia,...

The Singapore International Film Festival is marking its 35th edition with 105 films from 45 countries, with Asian titles comprising 80% of the program.

Running Nov. 28-Dec. 8, the fest will host three world premieres of Singapore features, including Ong Keng-Sen’s “The House of Janus,” Wong Chen-Hsi’s “City of Small Blessings,” adapted from Simon Tay’s novel, and Jason Soo’s documentary “Al Awda.”

Among the international highlights are Amy Adams-starrer “Nightbitch,” David Cronenberg’s “The Shrouds,” Miguel Gomes’ “Grand Tour,” and a restored version of Bong Joon-ho’s feature debut “Barking Dogs Never Bite.”

Two special gala presentations are scheduled: Raam Reddy’s “The Fable,” starring Indian actor Manoj Bajpayee, and Myanmar-born Taiwanese filmmaker Midi Z’s “The Unseen Sister,” featuring Zhao Liying and Xin Zhilei.

The fest will present its Screen Icon Award to Taiwanese talents Yang Kuei-mei and Lee Kang-sheng. Yang, a four-time Sgiff performance award winner, recently appeared in “Yen and Ai-Lee,...

John Hsu’s Taiwanese supernatural comedy Dead Talents Society has scored 11 nominations for the 61st Golden Horse Awards, followed by Tom Lin’s Yen And Ai-Lee and Geng Jun’s Bel Ami, with eight nods each.

Dead Talents Society and Bel Ami are among the five films competing in the best film category, along with Ray Yeung’s All Shall Be Well, Yeo Siew Hua’s Stranger Eyes and Lou Ye’s An Unfinished Film. The same five films are also running in the best director category.

They reflect the overall representation at this year’s Golden Horse Awards, with the participation of Hong Kong,...

John Hsu’s horror comedy Dead Talents Society heads the race for this year’s Golden Horse Awards with 11 nominations, including Best Narrative Feature, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress for Sandrine Pinna.

The film, set in a fictional underworld where ghosts can linger in the mortal realm by competing to haunt humans, is produced by Taiwan’s Activator Co, Sony Pictures International Productions and several other local companies.

It was followed in the awards race by Tom Lin’s Yen And Ai-Lee and Geng Jun’s Bel Ami, which both received eight nominations.

Dead Talents Society and Bel Ami are both nominated for Best Narrative Feature, along with Ray Yeung’s All Shall Be Well, Yeo Siew-hua’s Stranger Eyes and Lou Ye’s An Unfinished Film. All five of these films are also nominated for Best Director.

Best Leading Actor nominations include King Jieh-wen (A...

The 29th Busan International Film Festival, held Oct 2 (Wed) to Oct 11 (Fri), has revealed its selections for the Asian film competition section, ‘New Currents‘ and ‘Jiseok.

New Currents is the representative competition section of the Busan International Film Festival, focusing on the first or the second feature of emerging Asian filmmakers. This year, 10 films, including two Korean films, have been selected to be showcased. The two Korean films are The Land of Morning Calm and Waterdrop. The Land of Morning Calm is directed by Park Ri-woong, whose first feature, The Girl on a Bulldozer (2022), received great acclaim. It dynamically unravels the story of a young fisherman’s disappearance and an old captain mysteriously involved in this case. Waterdrop is the debut feature of director Choi Jongyong. It portrays the survival journey of a thirteen-year-old child left alone in the world, capturing a range of emotions and an intense, suspenseful narrative.

The 29th Busan International Film Festival has revealed the line-ups for its competitive New Currents and Jiseok sections, which include the latest features from award-winning filmmakers Brillante Mendoza, Rima Das and Tom Lin.

The Jiseok strand, launched in 2022, is reserved for Asian filmmakers who have directed at least three features and this year comprises eight titles.

Scroll down for full list of titles

They include Motherland by Filipino director Mendoza, which explores the bloody Mamasapano incident of 2015, when 44 police commandos and more than 20 others were killed in a deadly operation. The filmmaker has previously played in competition at Berlin, Cannes...

Winner of Best Director at San Sebastian, along with a number of other awards in festivals around the world. “A Journey in Spring” is a distinctly art-house film that focuses on grief and the (inter) personal issues families and married couples face, even in their old age.

A Journey in Spring screened at Mulan International Film Festival

Aging married couple Khim-Hok and Siu-Tuan leave a meager life in the wooded hills outside Taipei, where they fight, bicker and in general feel the misery of their life and age. An issue with the plumbing of the house and their disagreement over the way to fix it highlights their situation, with their interactions being dominated by irony, sarcasm, and an overall lack of patience and communication, which mostly seem to derive from the husband. However, when Siu-Tan dies unexpectedly, Khim-Hok finds himself at intense loss, keeping her body in an old freezer,...

Island View

The Taipei Film Festival has set “A Journey in Spring” as the Taiwan flagbearer in its international competition section. Directed by Peng Tzu-hui and Wang Ping-wen, the film was shot on Super 16 mm film stock and stars King Jieh-wen and Yang Kuei-mei. The festival runs June 21-July 6 at the Zhongshan Hall, Vieshow Cinema Xinyi and Spot-Huashan Cinemas.

Its other competition titles include: “Beyond the Fog,” by Murase Daichi; “Brief History of a Family,” by Lin Jianjie; “Encounters,” by Dmitry Moiseev; “The Featherweight,” by Robert Kolodny; “Foremost by Night,” by Víctor Iriarte; “Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person,” by Ariane Louis-Seize; “My Sunshine,” by Okuyama Hiroshi; “Scream,” by Kenzhebek Shaikakov; and “Who Do I Belong To,” by Meryam Joobeur.

The winners of the new talent competition will be decided by a jury that is headed by mainland Chinese director and multiple Berlinale Silver Bear winner Wang Xiaoshuai. Other jurors...

Awards News

Hit crime thriller “The Pig, The Snake and The Pigeon” received 13 nominations for the upcoming Taipei Film Festival’s Taipei Film Awards. These include nominations for best feature, best director, best screenplay, best actor, best supporting actress, and best supporting actor. It was followed by “Old Fox” with ten nominations and “Big,” with eight.

The film tells the story of a gangster who discovers that he is only the country’s third most wanted criminal and, before he dies, sets out to eliminate those ranking above him.

The best film contenders are “Salli,” “Trouble Girl,” “Big,” “Old Fox” and “The Pig, The Snake and The Pigeon.”

The best actor nominees include Frederick Lee for “Fish Memories,” Bai Run-yin for “Old Fox,” Vic Chou for “Be With Me,” Ethan Juan for “The Pig, The Snake and The Pigeon” and King Jieh-wen for “A Journey in Spring.” The best actress...

Whereas his early films such as “Pushing Hands” and “The Wedding Banquet” often touch upon the crossroads between modernity and tradition, Taiwanese filmmaker Ang Lee found himself in a similar situation with his third film. As he reflects upon the production of his 1994 “Eat Drink Man Woman”, he describes how he felt the pressure between going mainstream with his movies or making an arthouse film, especially after winning the Golden Bear at Berlin International Film Festival for “The Wedding Banquet”. Considering this situation, it seems only fitting he would make a film which would not only pick up the thematic threads of his previous ones, but which would also discuss these issues within the circle of the family, their relationships and, of course, the world of cooking.

Eat Drink Man Woman is screening at Vesoul International Film Festival of Asian Cinema

Even though he has been planning to settle down...

Thai drama Solids By The Seashore has been acquired by Japanese distributor Foggy Cinema from Bangkok-based sales agent Diversion.

The film, which won the Netpac Award and LG Oled New Currents Award at Busan in October, will receive its Japanese premiere in competition at the Osaka Asian Film Festival on March 7. It marks the first time Foggy Cinema has picked up a film for distribution from Thailand and a theatrical release is being planned for late 2024.

Thai director Patiparn Boontarig’s debut feature set in a southern town in Thailand on the verge of an environmental crisis and revolves around...

Singapore producer Jeremy Chua, who produced this year’s Cannes Camera d’Or winner Inside The Yellow Cocoon Shell, has been appointed general manager of the Singapore International Film Festival (Sgiff).

Chua takes up the post on January 1, 2024, and will jointly lead the festival with Programme Director Thong Kay Wee. Emily J Hoe is stepping down after delivering four editions of the festival, including two that were severely impacted by the pandemic.

Founder of Singapore-based production outfit Potocol, Chua also produced or co-produced Nicole Midori Woodford’s Last Shadow At First Light, Jow Zhi Wei’s Tomorrow Is A Long Time, Makbul Mubarak’s Autobiography and Bui Thac Chuyen’s Glorious Ashes.

He was presented with the Fiapf Award for outstanding contribution to Asia Pacific Cinema at this year’s Asia Pacific Screen Awards in Australia.

Sgiff wrapped on December 10 with Inside The Yellow Cocoon Shell, directed by Vietnam’s Pham Thien An,...

Chua was lead producer on ‘Inside The Yellow Cocoon Shell’.

Jeremy Chua, producer of Cannes award-winning feature Inside The Yellow Cocoon Shell, has been appointed general manager of the Singapore International Film Festival (Sgiff).

The announcement coincided with the closing of a bumper edition of Sgiff, where Inside The Yellow Cocoon Shell was named best Asian feature film at the Silver Screen Awards.

Chua will assume the role on January 1 and jointly lead the festival with Thong Kay Wee, who has been programme director since 2021. Emily J Hoe is stepping down as executive director after delivering four editions since 2020.

Chua...

Pham Thien An’s “Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell,” which previously won the Golden Camera at Cannes, has won the Asian Feature Film Competition at the 34th Singapore International Film Festival.

Yoon Eun-Kyung won best director for “The Tenants,” which also won the Fipresci award. “Dreaming & Dying,” by Singaporean director Nelson Yeo earned a special mention. Yu Yi-Hsun won best screenplay for “A Journey in Spring” and the film also won best performance for Yang Kuei-Mei.

The Audience Choice Award went to “Goodbye Julia” by Mohamed Kordofani.

In the Southeast Asian Short Film Competition, the best Southeast Asian short film was awarded to “The River That Never Ends” by J.T. Trinidad, which also scored a special mention for actor Emerald Romero. “I Look Into the Mirror and Repeat to Myself” by Giselle Lin won best Singapore short film. Best director went to Sam Manacsa for “Cross My Heart and...

’Fired Up!’ and the sequel to ’The World Between Us’ are set to start production in December.

Taiwan-based Damou Entertainment revealed two new drama series in collaboration with HBO Asia, Public Television Service (Pts) and Catchplay in celebration of its 10th anniversary during the ongoing Taiwan Creative Content Fest (Tccf).

Both Fired Up! and the sequel to The World Between Us are set to start production in December.

Adapted from the hit Korean Kakao webtoon Itaewon Class created by GwangJin, Fired Up! marks Damou Entertainment’s third collaboration with Warner Bros Discovery, following The World Between Us and Workers, both...

’Fired Up!’ and the sequel to ’The World Between Us’ are set to start production in December.

Taiwan-based Damou Entertainment today (November 8) revealed two new drama series in collaboration with HBO Asia, Public Television Service (Pts) and Catchplay in celebration of its 10th anniversary during the ongoing Taiwan Creative Content Fest (Tccf).

Both Fired Up! and the sequel to The World Between Us are set to start production in December.

Adapted from the hit Korean Kakao webtoon Itaewon Class created by GwangJin, Fired Up! marks Damou Entertainment’s third collaboration with Warner Bros Discovery, following The World Between Us and Workers,...

Taiwanese production companies DaMou Entertainment and Koko Entertainment unveiled a starry local cast for “Fired Up,” their Taiwan remake of hit Korean series “Itaewon Class.”

At an event held within the Taiwan Creative Content Fest (Tccf) on Thursday, the two companies also confirmed plans for a second season of “The World Between Us,” a 2019 drama series that premiered on Taiwan’s Public Television Service and regional streamer Catchplay.

“Fired Up” will star Mandarin-language pop star Eric Chou, Golden Horse Film Award nominee Angela Yuen, Shao Yu-wei, Huang Guan-zhi, Cosmos Lin, Ben Wu and Sean Lin in leading roles. The show is co-directed by kao Pin-chuan and Tseng Ying-ting, working from a script headed by Chien Li-ying (“Wave Makers”).

“Itaewon Class” is a story about an ex-convict who sets up his own business after release from jail. His attempts, not always successful, drag in friends and family. It was originally a...

Warner Bros Discovery is reteaming with Taiwanese production company DaMou Entertainment to produce HBO Asia original Fired Up! (working title), an adaptation of hit Kakao webtoon Itaewon Class.

The two companies previously worked together on award-winning Taiwanese drama series The World Between Us and Workers.

Fired Up! will also be produced by Koko Entertainment, a company co-founded by DaMou Entertainment and Taiwan Creative Content Agency (Taicca) in 2021, which has credits including horror drama Urban Horror, stage show Before Outdated and musical Don’t Cry, Dancing Girls.

Scheduled to start production in December 2023, Fired Up! will star Eric Chou as a young man who is committed to preserving his family’s restaurant and embarks on a quest to uncover the truth behind his father’s tragic death.

Directed by Kao Pin-chuan and Tseng Ying-ting, the series will also star Angela Yuen, Shao Yu-wei, Huang Guan-zhi, Cosmos Lin, Ben Wu and Sean Lin.

San Sebastian premiere ‘A Journey in Spring’ takes on the nature of life, say debuting Taiwanese directors Tzu-Hui Peng and Ping-Wen Wang.

“I have a very close relationship with my family. They ground me. Losing them is my deepest fear, but it’s birth and death, come and go,” admits Wang.

Peng adds: “We can only learn how to cherish things after we experience regrets.”

Such melancholic takes echo their protagonist’s experience as well: an older man who lives with his wife somewhere in Taipei. When she passes away, he tries his best to ignore it – also by hiding her body in an old freezer. But when his estranged son finally returns home, with his new partner, Khim-Hok has to acknowledge her death.

Jason King, Kuei-Mei Yang, Wei-Hua Lan, Shu-Wei Chang, Chiasui Chen and Jack Kao act in the film, produced by Being Film and Art Co.

“I never...

Headlined respectively by “Sound of Metal” lead Riz Ahmed and “Matrix” stars Jessica Henwick and Hugo Weaving, Christos Nikou’s “Fingernails” and Kitty Green’s “The Royal Hotel” figure among seven newly unveiled films which will play in main competition at September’s San Sebastian Film Festival.

Also in the running are buzz titles “A Journey in Spring,” from Taiwan’s Peng Tzu-Hui, Wang Ping-Wen, and “Kalak,” directed by Denmark’s Isabella Eklöf.

Announced Friday, the new additions are comprised by one debut (“Spring”) and five second features from emerging talent ranging from Japan’s Kei Chica-ura to France’s Xavier Legrand, nominated for an Academy Award for best live action short film for 2013’s “Just Before Losing Everything.”

The new titles confirm a 2023 main competition which, including previously announced titles, frames three feature debuts – Raven Jackson’s “All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt,” Isabel Herguera’s “Sultana’s Dream...

The concept of one becoming a ghost and even watching their own funeral has been explored a number of times in cinema, particularly in Hollywood, with the truths raised about the deceased by the people who attend the ceremony lingering somewhere between the comedic and the dramatic. Li Nien-hsu presents a 35-minute film focusing on such a concept, based on her family and the real-life conversations they had after her father’s death.

“Can You Hear Me?” is screening at Taiwan Film Festival Edinburgh

Jhong Er wakes up and realizes that he is dead, as he watches his already bedridden body lying in the room he spent the last years of his life, taken care of by his wife. Soon, his two daughters and his only son arrive, with sadness taking over them when they realize what has happened. Not before they point some fingers, though, with the son even...

Alan Yang’s directorial debut is shaping up to be a somber, albeit entirely heartfelt, story of love and family.

Netflix has released the trailer for Yang’s “Tigertail,” which will premiere on the streaming service April 10. The film initially centers on a young Pin-Jui (Hong-Chi Lee), who relocates to the United States from Taiwan in search of a better life, though the move forces him to get an arranged marriage in lieu of staying with the woman he loves.

More from IndieWireQuibi: Watch All the Trailers From the New Streaming Service'Killing Eve' Season 3 First Trailer: Eve Is Alive and Villanelle Is an Evil Clown

When it turns out America isn’t exactly the land of opportunity that Pin-Jui had hoped for, he’s stuck in a loveless marriage, works a tiresome, thankless job, and, as the trailer explicitly states, becomes broken inside. As the film fast-forwards several decades,...

While the distribution strategies for the majority of film companies were uprooted when it comes to their work in the wake of the coronavirus, one distributor that moved ahead as scheduled was, of course, Netflix. Their next high-profile release is Tigertail, the directorial debut of Alan Yang, who is known for his work on Parks and Recreation and Master of None.

Starring Tzi Ma, Christine Ko, Hayden Szeto, Hong-Chi Lee, Yo-Hsing Fang, Kunjue Li, Fiona Fu, James Saito, and Joan Chen, the film tells a multi-generational story of a Taiwanese factory worker who embarks on a new life in America. The first trailer previews and emotionally poignant work that may make a good double feature with another drama about cultural identity and assimilation, this year’s Sundance winner Minari.

Ahead of a release in just a few weeks on April 10, see the trailer and poster.

In this poignant multi-generational drama,...

Whereas his early films such as “Pushing Hands” and “The Wedding Banquet” often touch upon the crossroads between modernity and tradition, Taiwanese filmmaker Ang Lee found himself in a similar situation with his third film. As he reflects upon the production of his 1994 “Eat Drink Man Woman”, he describes how he felt the pressure between going mainstream with his movies or making an arthouse film, especially after winning the Golden Bear at Berlin International Film Festival for “The Wedding Banquet”. Considering this situation, it seems only fitting he would make a film which would not only pick up the thematic threads of his previous ones, but which would also discuss these issues within the circle of the family, their relationships and, of course, the world of cooking.

“Eat Drink Man Woman” is screening at New York Asian Film Festival – Winter Showcase 2020

Even though he has been planning to settle down...

“What is the essence of cinema?” is the question that haunts film critics and theorists for decades. In his book “What Cinema Is!”, film scholar Dudley Andrew believes that film is a conduit to bring the audience toward others’ lived experience. Following the idea that film should be an encounter with the world, Andrew argues that the film frame leads the audience to different spaces. A threshold “functions as a passage from one to the other [space].” While Andrew drew his inspiration from André Bazin’s writings, Malaysian-Taiwanese director Ming-Liang Tsai’s film “The Hole” illustrates Andrew’s thinking of film surprisingly well.

“The Hole” is a hybrid of science fiction and musical. The film is set in 1999’s Taipei and a new epidemic, “Taiwan fever”, breaks out. Those infected by the disease will start to crawl like a cockroach and there seems to be no cure for the disease.