"The Man Who Couldn't Leave (無法離開的人)," an award-winning virtual reality film that delves into Taiwan's White Terror period in the 1950s, received the Special Cinematographic Distinction at France's New Images Festival on April 8.
The film’s director Singing Chen (陳芯宜) stated that after learning of the award, she immediately conveyed the good news to the members of the production team, including Liao Ching-yao (廖敬堯), Chuan Ming-yuan (全明遠), and Tu Shi-feng (涂碩峰). Chen highlighted that VR photography uses specialized equipment to create a complete scene as a single image. With the support of the team, she was able to challenge the limitations of space and narrative in photography while making the film, with the hopes that the film will be widely promoted to a larger audience to bring the spirit of those who sacrificed themselves due to the political repression event in the 1950s to the global stage.
According to the press release issued by the Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA), last year's edition of Taiwan Creative Content Fest showcased "The Man Who Couldn't Leave." This year, during the NewImages Festival, TAICCA collaborated with the organizer of the festival to launch the Taiwan x France XR Days program (台法 XR 人才交流計畫) and a pitch session for immersive content for Taiwanese industry professionals. The goal of the initiatives was to promote talent development and international collaboration in a continuous manner.
Launched in 2018, the NewImages Festival, which focuses on cinema, digital creation and extended reality (XR) works, enters its sixth edition this year and is now the biggest annual XR festival in France.
(Photo credit: TAICCA)