Two eminent filmmakers from Taiwan, the Cannes-winning Hou Hsiao-hsien (侯孝賢) and art-film extraordinaire Tsai Ming-liang (蔡明亮), have been named among the three filmmakers who will be honored with special retrospective programs at TOKYO FILMeX, an international film festival running at the Japanese capital from Nov. 21 to 29.
Hou, 68, is famous for anchoring his characters with long, wide-angle shots. Three of his best-known works — "The Boys from Fengkuei (風櫃來的人),” "A City of Sadness (悲情城市),” and "The Puppetmaster (戲夢人生)” — will respectively be shown on Nov. 29 (10am), 27 (2pm), and 29 (1.20pm).
Tsai, one of the world's leading filmmakers at the age of 58, compares his methodology to "painting with light.” His retrospective will cover old classics such as "Rebels of the Neon God (青少年哪吒),” "Visage (臉)” commissioned by The Louvre, and the latest installments of his "Walker (行者)” series.
FILeX ‘s special screenings segment will also include Tsai's "Afternoon (那日下午),” an afternoon of conversation between two old friends; and "Murmur of the Hearts (念念)” by Sylvia Chang (張艾嘉), a delicate study of three young people and their conflicted emotions.
Chang is also serving as a jury member of the FILMeX competition, in which "Thanatos, Drunk (酔, 生夢死)” by Taiwanese director Chang Tso-chi (張作驥) is among the ten films shortlisted for the festival's top award.
In other related news, "Autumn Days (秋日),” a special documentary by Tsai on Nogami Teruyo (野上照代), a Japanese scriptwriter who collaborated with famed director Kurosawa Akira (黒澤明), will have its world premiere on Nov. 27 at the Taiwan Cultural Center in Tokyo.
The Nov. 27 premiere and post-screening forum will be attended by Tsai, Nogami, and Tsai's own longtime collaborator, actor Lee Kang-sheng (李康生).
TOKYO FILMeX 2015
- Date: Nov. 21 - 29, 2015
- Filmmaker in Focus (1): Pierre Etaix
- Filmmaker in Focus (2): Hou Hsiao-hsien
- Filmmaker in Focus (3): Tsai Ming-liang
- Site: http://filmex.net/2015/en/
‘Autumn Days' Premiere
- Date: Nov. 27, 2015
- Venue: Taiwan Cultural Center in Tokyo
- Address: 2F, No. 1-1-12 Toranomon, Minano-ku, Tokyo, Japan
- R.S.V.P.: https://goo.gl/abAXW6
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