Taiwanese director Hou Chi-jan surprised by success of Ode to Time

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      For those who've fallen under the spell of the island once known as Formosa, this weekend's Vancouver Taiwanese Film Festival offers much to reinforce that magical feeling.

      This evening, Taiwanese director Hou Chi-jan will be at the screening of his beloved Ode to Time, which shows how folk music underscored the fight against martial law in the 1970s.

      "I'm glad to see the Vancouver Taiwanese Film Festival has been able to select such a wide variety of Taiwanese films that can show the different colours of Taiwan," Hou said through a translater at a Vancouver news conference earlier this month.

      His film captures what he sees as the emergence of Taiwan's identity 40 years ago.

      "I didn't expect for the film to gather this much and this wide of an audience," Hou noted. "I'm very happy to see that.

      He's also the director of Green Island Serenade and Rose Boy.

      Hou also said at the news conference that it's the first time this film has been screened overseas. And he plans to answer questions from the audience after the show, which starts at 6 p.m. 

      It's one of nine films that will be shown this weekend. My colleague Adrian Mack wrote about Ode to Time, as well as two others that he's recommended: Formosa Betrayed and The Tag-Along.

      Formosa Betrayed depicts politically motivated crimes committed during the era of martial law. It's being screened to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the February 28 Incident, in which Kuomintang-ruled China massacred 10,000 people in response to their demonstrations for greater freedom.

      One of the stars of the film, Will Tiao, will attend the screening.

      Watch the trailer for Hang In There, Kids.

      Another film, Hang In There, Kids!, was Taiwan's entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 2016 Academy Awards. Directed and written by Laha Mebow, it focuses on three indigenous children in Taiwan who remain in good spirits despite their troubled family lives.

      And for those who can't get enough of Asian crime thrillers, White Lies, Black Lies is about a journalist who is drawn into a murder case. This suspense film was inspired by a murder in the 1960s.

      Watch the trailer for White Lies, Black Lies.

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