UBC Asian Independent Cinema Showcase 2025 x TFAI Taiwan Docs
In Search of the Self: Documentary Shorts from Taiwan + Virtual Conversation with the Filmmakers
Date: Thursday, March 13, 2025
Time: 18:30-20:30
Venue: AERL 120, Aquatic Ecosystems Research Laboratory, UBC
Address: 2202 Main Mall, University of British Columbia, Vancouver | Map | Parking
Co-curated and co-presented by the Asian Independent Cinema Showcase and TFAI x Taiwan Docs, the program features three award-winning documentary shorts from Taiwan, all exploring the theme of identity and addressing various indigenous, historical, and LGBTQ+ contexts, respectively.
Laha MEBOW’s “32 Km – 60 Years” (32公里～六十年) guides us to an indigenous village that has been abandoned for more than sixty years. Mebow is an Atayal and the first female indigenous film director in Taiwan. Directed by HUNG Wei-lin, “K’s Room–the Creation and Destruction of the World” (K 的房間——關於世界的創造與毀滅) uses the “New English Grammar,” one of Taiwan’s most popular English grammar books, to reconstruct the mental status of the author during martial law. PAN Hsin An’s “Leo ＆ Nymphia” (雙面曹里歐) follows twenty-five-year-old Leo who is also Nymphia the drag queen.
With different foci, the three films demonstrate how memory and identity are intertwined, and are impacted by social circumstances at present.
This is the first time the three films are screened in Vancouver. All three directors will join a virtual conversation following the screening.
The films will be shown in their original languages, with English subtitles. The post-screening conversation will be conducted in Mandarin, accompanied by on-site English interpretation.
Free admission. All are welcome.
Limited seats available. Registration required.
32 Km – 60 Years
32公里～六十年
Directed by Laha MEBOW
Mandarin dialogues | Chinese & English subtitles | 20 mins | 2018 | Colour
Synopsis:
After being abandoned for nearly seven decades, the old tribal village is difficult to reach with almost no roads leading to it. The only guide on our journey in search of our roots is Wilang, who drags his octogenarian body up the mountain. As we follow Wilang’s footsteps, we travel a tunnel back in time…
About the Director:
Laha MEBOW is the first female indigenous film director in Taiwan. She has devoted herself to the industry for 18 years as a scriptwriter, director and TV producer. Her works focus mostly on the shared experience of indigenous peoples in Taiwan. Her latest feature Hang in There, Kids! is awarded the Grand Prize at Taipei Film Festival 2016. She received an Annual Top 10 Outstanding Young Women Award in 2015 for her contribution to indigenous issues. She recently visited the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris as an artist-in-residence on the recommendation of Taiwan government.
導演：陳潔瑤
國語 | 中英文字幕 | 20 mins | 2018 | 彩色
故事大綱：
那年，部落年輕人又開始發起回老部落的尋根活動。快七十年沒有人住的部落幾乎沒有路可以走，Wilang拖著快八十歲的身體跟我們一起上山。隨著Wilang腳步，尋根像是一條穿越時空的路，而下山後老人家的夢境也穿越了那些時代記憶······
導演：
台灣第一位原住民女導演，泰雅族人，以拍攝原住民紀錄片、戲劇為主，也跨域與國外藝術家聯合創作南島民族攝影作品。影視相關經歷，近20年。曾在著名影視導演如張作驥、蔡明亮、瞿友寧團隊中工作。第二部劇情片《只要我長大》雙入選2016台北電影節「國際新導演導演」與「台北電影獎」競賽單元，獲台北電影獎「百萬首獎」、「最佳劇情長片」、「最佳導演」、「最佳剪接」、「最佳新演員」五項大獎。2016年亦旅法於西帖藝術村駐村創作。
K’s Room–the Creation and Destruction of the World
K 的房間——關於世界的創造與毀滅
Directed by HUNG Wei-lin
Mandarin & English dialogues | Chinese & English subtitles | 20 mins | 2018 | Colour
* 2022 Golden Harvest Awards - Best Experimental Film
* 2022 Taiwan International Documentary Film Festival - Special Mention
* 2021 Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival - Lab Competition
* 2021 Image Forum Festival - East Asian Experimental Competition
* 2021 South Taiwan Film Festival - Best Experimental Film
Synopsis:
"K’s room" is a mental space that serves as a metaphor for the complex relationship between men, boundaries, and the nation during martial law. All the lines in the film were extracted from the sentences used in the "New English Grammar", one of Taiwan's most popular English grammar books, to restructure the mental status of its author, Mr. K, during his incarceration because of the political left.
About the Director:
Graduated from Ecole supérieure d'Etudes Cinématographiques de Paris (ESEC). Her works aim at narrating the hidden History by image, connecting reality and fiction in the dying space and memory. During recent years, she participated in creative projects about the historical memories of the White Terror. Her works have been nominated in Hong Kong International Documentary Festival and Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival. She is a member of The Libera work-gang.
導演：洪瑋伶
國、英語 | 中英文字幕 | 20 mins | 2018 | 彩色
* 2022 台灣國際紀錄片影展－台灣競賽評審團特別提及
* 2022 南方影展－最佳實驗片
* 2021 法國克萊蒙費宏短片影展 實驗競賽片單元
* 2021 日本東京Image Forum Festival 東亞實驗競賽單元
* 2021 金穗獎－最佳實驗片
故事大綱：
1960年出版的《新英文法》，是台灣暢銷至今的英文文法書籍之一，然而卻少有人知道，作者柯旗化先生曾先後因為左傾思想及戒嚴時期的「叛亂罪」被逮捕入獄，前後加總長達十七年。本片將《新英文法》中的文法例句提取出來，以宛如密碼解讀的方式，描繪柯旗化關押獄中時的精神世界，並試圖尋找：當一位政治犯在晚年患有阿茲海默症後，留在記憶中的會是什麼？
導演：
畢業於巴黎高等電影學院 (ESEC)。創作多以影像書寫被隱匿的歷史，連結逝去的空間與記憶中之真實與虛構。近年多參與台灣白色恐怖歷史記憶相關之創作計畫，作品曾入圍香港國際紀錄片節、法國克萊蒙費宏短片影展。為「安魂工作隊」成員。
Leo ＆ Nymphia 雙面曹里歐
Directed by PAN Hsin-an
Mandarin dialogues | English subtitles | 27 mins | 2022 | Colour
* 2023 Thomas Edison Film Festival - Jury’s Choice Award
* 2023 Queer East Film Festival - Official Selection
* 2022 Golden Harvest Awards - Nomination
* 2022 Silver Wave Film Festival - Official Selection
Synopsis:
Twenty-five-year-old Leo is a drag queen who supports himself by performing in nightclubs. In his role as queen Nymphia, he shows his heart and desires to the public. Leo’s work is bizarre, constantly challenging social boundaries and norms, and full of curiosity about the world.
About the Director:
At age 11, Hsin–An hosted a children’s program for Da Ai TV, which marked his entry into the world of video. At university, he founded the Taloan Society Marketing Video Workshop. The more Hsin–An filmed, the more he found that every film is like a journey of pursuit of its own.
導演：潘信安
國語 | 英文字幕 | 27 mins | 2022 | 彩色
故事大綱：
二十五歲的曹里歐是一位變裝皇后，在夜店表演維生；他也是個創作者，透過變裝呈現出妮妃雅這個角色，向社會展示內心的批判與渴望。同樣二十五歲的潘信安是一名導演，透過鏡頭為弱勢發聲；他得過青年獎章、和總統合照過，絕對是主流價值認定的有為青年。起初只是接到拍攝曹里歐的任務，沒想到卻越陷越深。
導演：
畢業於慈濟大學傳播學系。兒少時期擔任大愛電視台主持人。曾參與怪咖系列紀錄片計畫，共同執導《在他的獎牌中迷惘》。
About the Asian Independent Cinema Showcase:
The Asian Independent Cinema Showcase (AICS) is a UBC-based film festival that aims to foster a film appreciation community within and beyond the university; cultivate media literacy and cross-cultural understanding; and give voices to independent stories told by Asian filmmakers. Broadly speaking, an "independent film" is considered to be a creative work produced outside big or mainstream studios. Through the lens of independent cinemas, the AICS is committed to serve as a participatory platform for publication and dialogue between independent storytellers, underrepresented groups, cultural practitioners, emerging talents, academics, students, and members of the public.
The AICS is co-convened and co-organized by Dr. Helena Wu, Canada Research Chair in Hong Kong Studies, and Jimmy Lo, award-winning filmmaker and film educator, who is also a UBC alumnus (MFA Film Production '24).
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More about the UBC Asian Independent Cinema Showcase
This event is part of the Asian Independent Cinema Showcase program co-organized with Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute x Taiwan Docs; is supported by UBC Hong Kong Studies Initiative, UBC Department of Asian Studies, and SFU Institute for Transpacific Cultural Research.
Special acknowledgement: Ying E Chi.
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