Edinburgh's Taiwan Festival returns for third year

Line-up aims to shine a light on people and events outside the mainstream

by Amber Wilkinson

When The Dawn Comes
When The Dawn Comes Photo: Courtesy of Edinburgh Taiwan Film Festival

The 3rd edition of Edinburgh's Tawian Film Festival kicks off this weekend, with screenings until October 20 at Summerhall and the Everyman.

This year's theme is the (un)Usuals, with six features and a clutch of shorts that aim to shine a light on people, events and relationships that fall outside mainstream experience.

Highlights include When The Dawn Comes, a documentary on gay rights activist Chia Chie Wei, who was the first person in Taiwan to publicly come out as gay and a retrospective of the eclectic career of Chen Yi-Wen, the long-time collaborator of Edward Yang who went on to become a celebrated writer/director in his own right.

Liu Kuan-Ping, chief Curator at the festival, said: “Although streaming at home is a comfortable and convenient way to enjoy cinema, I still prefer sitting in the dark with other people, people who enjoy the big screen experience as much as I do. I am so glad that we can meet our audiences in person this year!”

Talking about this year’s theme, Kuan-Ping added: “People think of Asian cultures as collective cultures. You are told not to stand out, not to be different, since childhood. We want to show people that being unusual is not all that bad.”

We'll be bringing you reviews from the festival and you can see the full line-up on the official site.

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Movies out this week include:

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Talking to strangers Tracie Laymon on laughing at pain together and Bob Trevino Likes It

Punching through the glass ceiling Chee Keong Cheung and Ioanna Karavela on new opportunities for Women In Action

What goes around, comes around Bobbi Jo Hart and June Millington with Ed Bahlman on Fanny: The Right To Rock

Light at the end of the tunnel Michel Hazanavicius on childhood memories, Holocaust survival, Ukraine and animation

Taking their time Ryan J Sloan and Ariella Mastroianni on spiral stories and creating Gazer

Honorary Palme d’Or for De Niro the perfectionist Cannes organisers announce award for Taxi Driver veteran on opening night

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