Politically charged Hong Kong films, including Ten Years, headline prestigious Taipei festival
Banned in China and named best picture at Hong Kong Film Awards, Ten Years is one of three politically sensitive films on the list at Taipei Film Festival
Controversial Hong Kong film Ten Years will receive its Taiwan premiere at the 18th Taipei Film Festival, which will run from June 30 to July 16. Comprising five short films that depict a dystopian future for Hong Kong under communist Chinese rule, the omnibus feature was named best picture at this month’s Hong Kong Film Awards, but was heavily criticised and banned in China.
In a Thursday announcement that reveals the first four titles included in its programme, the Taipei festival organisers also confirmed premieres for two other politically sensitive Hong Kong crime dramas: the Johnnie To-produced Trivisa , which hints at Hong Kong’s drop in standing under Chinese rule after the 1997 handover; and The Mobfathers , director Herman Yau’s ultra-violent universal suffrage allegory.
Rounding out the early line-up is New York-based Kazuhiro Soda’s documentary Oyster Factory, which investigates the myriad problems facing people working at Japan’s provincial shellfish processing plants.
Visit taipeiff.org.tw for future programme updates.