A Taiwan-made short film has been selected to screen at the 70th Cannes Film Festival, which is taking place May 17-28 in the southern French city.
The short film, titled “Towards the Sun,” was directed by local college student Wang Yi-ling and tells the story of two loners who embark on a road trip along Taiwan’s eastern coast. It is set to make its French debut May 26 at the Bunuel Theatre.
Wang’s film was among several local productions that received high praise May 20 during Taiwan Cinema Night, an event organized by the Ministry of Culture’s Taiwan Film Institute.
The cinema night is held annually at the renowned French film festival to highlight Taiwan’s motion picture achievements. According to the TFI, the event also aims to connect members of the local film industry with their international counterparts.
“Towards the Sun,” which runs approximately 28 minutes, was selected from among more than 2,400 entries by Cinefondation, an organization operating under the film festival that aims to discover and support burgeoning cinematic talents. Wang’s film is the first Taiwan production to be chosen by Cinefondation in 18 years.
This is not the first time Taiwan has had a presence at Cannes, with several films taking home prestigious honors over the years. Most recently, Hou Hsiao-hsien won the best director award in 2015 for his film “The Assassin.”
The Cinefondation Prizes this year will be announced May 26 at an Awards Ceremony in the Bunuel Theatre following a screening of the films. (CPY-E)
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