The 5th annual Taiwan Film Days (TFD) begins with Zone Pros Site: The Moveable Feast on Friday evening, November 1. This year’s films will all be screened at the Vogue Theatre on 3290 Sacramento (Presidio/Lyon), San Francisco. The initial showing at 6:30 pm will be followed by the opening night reception at the Paul Mahder Gallery on 3378 Sacramento Street, just a block away. The San Francisco Film Society will be hosting the opening reception with light appetizers and wine to kick off this three-day festival.
With eight films in this year’s line-up, it is a robust exhibition of Taiwan’s filmmaking talents. Among the directors and producers scheduled to appear at the 2013 TFD are Mimi Wang, the producer for Ripples of Desire, Hsieh Chun-yi, the director of Apolitical Romance, and Hou Chi-jan, the director of When A Wolf Falls In Love With A Sheep. Be sure to catch their films this weekend and learn more about their filmmaking process during the Q&A session that follows.
Zone Pro Site: A Moveable Feast (November 1 at 6:30 and 9:30 pm) – The film gets its name from a “zone pro site” chef – someone who shows up at a banquet with nothing but their skills and the tools of their trade – before coming up with an impromptu menu from the given ingredients. The film introduces several struggling chefs as they come up with winning recipes to advance themselves to a national cooking contest. It’s a romantic comedy, heavy with physical humor.
A Time in Quchi (November 2, 2 pm) – The story centers around Bao, a boy suddenly sent to live with his grandfather in rural Quchi, unplugged from his technology infused, bustling city life, he is left adrift in a slower and quieter pace of living. There he begins to find the simple pleasures in connecting with those around him. The film has drawn favorable comparison to Hou Hsiao-hsien’s classic film A Summer at Grandpa’s in its pacing and plot.
Taipei Factory (November 2 at 4:15pm and November 3 at 1:30 pm) – A collaborative effort between the Cannes Film Festival’s Director’s Fortnight and the Taipei Film Commission, the project pairs eight emerging filmmakers from Chile, France, Iran, and South Korea. Each pair then writes and directs a 15-20 minute short film based on their collaborative efforts.
Forever Love (November 2, 6:30 pm) – Growing up in Taiwan’s Beitou district, Hsiao-Jie is skeptical of her grandparents’ claims to cinematic fame until one day her grandfather tells her of the legendary love story that took place in the 30s in Beitou, then considered to be Taiwan’s Hollywood. The film infuses 1930s classic film genre in the retelling.
Soul (November 2, 9 pm) – Following a breakdown, A-Chuan is released from the hospital into his father’s care and taken to their home in the mountains. It soon becomes clear that A-Chuan is deeply disturbed, and his body might even be possessed. This darkly violent psychological thriller was a Toronto International Film Festival selection.
Ripples of Desire (November 3, 3:15 pm) – Set in 17th century Ming Dynasty, this movie enters around the life of two beautiful sisters who are courtesans at the Flower House. Deeply devoted to each other, their closeness begins to splinter with their differing attitudes toward love and illness. A darkly erotic and tragic film.
Apolitical Romance (November 3, 6 pm) – A-Zheng, is a young bureaucrat with Taiwanese civil affairs. Charged with producing a manual on Taiwanese-Chinese cross cultural etiquette, he gets far over his head. He meets Chin Lang, a hip young woman from Beijing whom he charms into helping him with his assignment. In return, A-Zheng promises to use his connections to help Chin Lang to find her grandmother’s lost love. From there, a shaky partnership is formed with hilarious results.
When a Wolf Falls in Love with a Sheep (November 3, 8:30 pm) – Derived from a Taiwanese pop fable, it’s an unfolding romance amidst anonymous notes, animated doodles and community organizing. When Tung awakes to read a Dear John post-it note from his girlfriend, he is determined to win her back. He takes a job at a nearby copy shop, where he begins to come across intriguing drawings on the exams, and leaves a few of his own in response, thus beginning an unusual “pen pal” courtship.
To purchase tickets or to read more about the films, please visit: .