Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival opens with 177 films
The opening film’s team at the festival. Photo: Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival
The Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival opened on November 6 and runs through November 22. Over 17 days, audiences will be offered 177 films from 56 countries and territories. Organizers have scheduled 427 screenings and 133 post-screening discussions, with 304 film-industry guests confirmed. That figure covers the whole festival, not just opening night.
Interest was evident before the first screening. Organizers said more than 72,000 tickets had been purchased since advance sales began on October 25. More than 192 screenings were sold out or nearly full. A cinema-themed bazaar is also taking place in the Xinyi Vieshow atrium over the November 7–8 weekend.
The event opened with the Asian premiere of The Age of Goodbyes by Malaysian director Edmund Yeo. He was joined by Vivian Sung Yun-Hua, Stanley Yau Sze-Chun and Liu Zi-Quan. The novel adaptation connects two narrative strands and almost a century of family history against painful events in Malaysia’s past. It has four Golden Horse nominations: directing, adapted screenplay, cinematography and art direction.
The lead performers received no acting nominations, a subject that came up at the opening. Stanley Yau, known as a member of MIRROR, admitted being disappointed: he wants to establish himself as an actor rather than remain solely a pop idol. Vivian Sung said that missing out on nominations had previously made her doubt herself. This time, a demanding role she loves helped her view recognition differently: she believes in the film regardless of her individual outcome.
Edmund Yeo called the Asian premiere at Golden Horse a great honor and emphasized the festival’s importance to Malaysian and Singaporean filmmakers. The Age of Goodbyes opens in regular Taiwanese cinemas on November 13. The 63rd Golden Horse Awards ceremony will be held on November 22 at Taipei Music Center.
Sources: Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival, CNA
