Two lottery winners express their gratitude towards God with an Avatar DVD; an old woman doggedly runs her little grocery despite the proliferation of convenience stores; a new singer makes her debut on television in 1968. These are just some of the threads in the Taiwanese omnibus movie, 10+10.
Nearly half of the 20 five-minute shorts provide glimpses of the Taiwan of the past few decades.
Commissioned by the Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival, 10+10 - which made its international premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival last week, and should reach Hong Kong in April - celebrates the dynamism of contemporary Taiwanese cinema. It features work from 20 filmmakers ranging from veterans such as Hou Hsiao-hsien, Sylvia Chang Ai-chia and Chu Yen-ping, to younger directors including Wei Te-sheng (Seediq Bale), Leon Dai Li-jen (No Puedo Vivir Sin Ti), Chung Mong-hong (Parking) and Arvin Chen (Au Revoir Taipei).
As the coordinator of the project, Hou - who was in Berlin with eight of his co-directors - says the idea came together as part of the celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the Republic of China last year.
With no limitations on the subject matter, the directors were free to express their thoughts and feelings about the island. 'Taiwan is a diverse society. Some people see Taiwan as the land of kindness and humanity, but for some people, Taiwan is a [picture of] cruel reality where dreams are crushed. The project allows us to see Taiwan from different perspectives,' Chu says.
Some of the filmmakers paint a humorous, compassionate and sometimes sentimental picture of Taiwanese society in the past. But Sylvia Chang's segment, The Dusks of the Gods, examines the lives of young people on the island today through a tale of a remorseful juvenile delinquent on death row. She says she originally wanted to make a feature-length film from the idea 'but unfortunately investors are not interested. It's good that I can still make it here. 10+10 provides a perfect chance for Taiwanese film people to get together. I am glad to witness the resurgence of Taiwanese cinema these days.'