Singing Chen: Director’s Q&A
Director Singing Chen will join our Taiwan Post-New Wave Cinema Project audience to answer questions on her featured works and share her perspective
2 July, 2021 1:30 pm
Dawang’s home is about to be demolished. The pig he has painstakingly raised is about to become a religious offering at a Temple Fair. Meanwhile, it hasn’t rained in Taipei for ages. Dawang recalls the Buddhist fable of a benevolent king who sacrificed himself to end his city’s long drought. Dawang’s neighbour, A-Mao, a showgirl with pink hair, worries about being outcompeted by younger girls. In this parched city, two lost souls come together in a struggle for survival.
In 2013, Taipei Film Commission launched Taipei Factory I, a joint project with Cannes Directors’ Fortnight. The project brought together Chen and Korean director, Jéro Yun for the short film, “The Pig”. The story was inspired by the demolition of Huaguang Community due to urban renewal, a controversial government decision Chen had long protested against. At the same time, Yun’s eye painted a magical Taipei City using elegant light and shadow, composition and colour. Together, Chen and Yun create a modern urban fable of sacrifice, lost memories and abandonment.
