Cinema of Taiwan
| Cinema of Taiwan | |
|---|---|
Mingshen Theater
|
|
| Number of screens | 574 (2011) |
| Gross box office (2011) | |
| Total | $136 million |
| National films | $23.7 million (17.46%) |
The cinema of Taiwan is deeply rooted in the island's unique history. Since its introduction to Taiwan in 1901 under Japanese rule, cinema has developed in Taiwan through several distinct stages. It has also developed outside of the Hong Kong mainstream and the censorship of the People's Republic of China.
In recent years, Taiwan's film industry has been supported by a group of internationally respected filmmakers. Hou Hsiao-hsien and Edward Yang have built solid positions as Taiwanese directors. In addition, the Malaysian-Chinese Tsai Ming-liang has gained the world's attention as a Taiwanese director.
Though a number of Taiwanese directors have chosen to explore themes of nostalgia and historical memory, Tsai Ming-liang has focussed his feature films on the lives of urban men and women. Rebels of the Neon God observed the empty life of young people, while Vive L'Amour touched on lonely urban men and women licking each other's wounds. Tsai's film gives a feeling of a modern fable, but it is at times difficult to understand.
In the 1990s, other Taiwanese directors such as Chen Kuo-fu, Tsui Siu Ming, and independent producer Huang Ming-chuan Lai, have created important work.
Since the late Japanese colonial period to martial law in Taiwan, the development of Taiwanese film has been dominated by the official camp studio development. In fact, the production of film at that stage is mainly news footage taken by the government-run studio (Taiwan film companies, the Central Motion Picture Corporation, China Film Studio) and the production of political commercials. Until today, the Taiwan government-funded "Film Fund" is still an important way to explore Taiwan's film talent; this film grant brings a lot of criticism. However, from the "creative, active point of view of Taiwan's film industry" point of view, it remains its subject certainly. In fact, many people believe that the grant is in fact a counseling structure of the Taiwanese culture.
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Wikipedia