Wei Te-sheng (魏德聖), director of Taiwan's highest-grossing domestic film "Cape No. 7 (海角七號)” shared his ideas and experiences with audiences in Singapore from July 17 through 19.
Co-organized by the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' offices in Singapore and Malaysia, the "Listen to Director Wei” event series showcased Wei and his dialogue with film director Chai Yee-wei (蔡于位).
Chai is an up-and-coming Singaporean filmmaker who has directed several lauded feature films, including "Blood Ties,” "Twisted,” "That Girl in Pinafore,” and "I Want You.”
During a forum titled "A Life of Film - Realization of Dreams,” Wei noted that making a film requires planning, filming, and producing, and that the process is rather like the metamorphosis of a caterpillar to butterfly.
However, as a film is only shown for a short period of time in theaters, it is important to use time wisely, and create unique ambiance and cinematic experience to avoid being replaced by other films that crowd the market.
Wei also exchanged ideas with Chai about filmmaking from different angles, allowing audiences to understand the significance of films in one's life and how to realize one's dreams.
Regarding his future plans, Wei noted that after telling the story of the Seediq people's ancestors in "Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale (賽德克巴萊),” he would like to tell the story of Taiwanese people's ancestors in his next film.
He expects to turn the project he has planned for more than a decade into a Taiwan trilogy to tell the story of Taiwan 400 years ago from the perspective of the Han Chinese, Taiwanese plains aborigines, and Spanish colonists.
Representative Francis Liang (梁國新) of the Taipei Representative Office in Singapore noted that the New Southbound Policy will help create a mutually prosperous future through cultural exchanges and collaboration between Taiwan and Singapore.
Peggy Chou(周蓓姬), Director of the Culture Division of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Malaysia, noted that the three-day event will also invite Wei for a radio interview and screen Wei's latest film "52Hz, I love you (52赫茲我愛你)” for Singaporean audiences.