Taiwan was praised as a prime location for filmmaking by acclaimed U.S. film director Martin Scorsese while speaking about his most recent work “Silence” at a news conference Jan. 20 in Taipei City.
“Silence” was filmed entirely in Taiwan with the assistance of local governments, notably the Taichung City Government, whose Information Bureau provided considerable support to the film crew. On Jan. 24, the movie was nominated for an Academy Award in the cinematography category.
“[The film] was brought to fruition here in this extraordinary country,” the director said. “This is something that has been a dream of mine for so many years. I hope it will be received as a gift to Taiwan and the Taiwanese people who made this possible.”
Scorsese added that in the future he would like the opportunity to make a movie set against the backdrop of modern Taiwan cities like Taipei and the central municipality of Taichung.
The filming of “Silence,” which portrays Jesuit priests struggling to keep their faith in 17th century Japan, took place in 2015 in Taipei and New Taipei City as well as eastern Taiwan’s Hualien County.
Following a suggestion from Academy Award-winning director and Taiwan-native Ang Lee, the crew also traveled to Taichung City to film at one of the world’s largest wave-making pools. The facility was first used by Lee in 2011 when he made the movie “Life of Pi,” which brought home multiple Oscars.
Local governments are increasingly encouraging foreign filmmakers to come to Taiwan by providing administrative and technical support. The Kaohsiung and Taichung city governments, for example, have established departments exclusively responsible for movie industry-related affairs.
In Taichung City’s Wufeng District, work is currently underway on construction of central Taiwan’s largest movie-making base. It is scheduled for completion in 2018.
Write to Taiwan Today at ttonline@mofa.gov.tw