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HHH:
A Portrait of Hou Hsiao-Hsien
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by Olivier Assayas
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A Time to Live, A Time to Die
(1985)
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This film is about my childhood,
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and my memory of my father.
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He was from Meixian, a district
in the province of Guangdong.
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In 1947, 40 days after I was born,
he led a basketball team to Guangzhou,
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for the Guangdong Area Games.
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He was Meixian's
commissioner for education.
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In Guangzhou, he ran into
an old school pal, Li Gui.
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Li was then Mayor of Taichung, Taiwan.
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He invited my father to come to Taiwan
to be his executive secretary.
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A year later, my father
wrote home to us from Taiwan:
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He said, "I live well here,
there is running tap water."
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and that he wanted
the family to join him.
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In 1949, my father was transferred to Taipei,
and made commissioner for education.
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Our home was in Hsin-chu.
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The weather in northern Taiwan
was extremely humid,
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and my father was troubled
by asthma attacks.
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We moved to Fengshan
when I was in first grade,
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hoping the move south might
improve his health.
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My grandmother used to make
lots of silver offerings,
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to be used for her stay
in the afterlife.
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She was over 80 years old then.
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My father was a good son.
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He would not start
dinner without her,
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but she never started it
until she got me home.
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She dooted on me a lot,
because a fortune teller once told her
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that I would grow
up to be powerful.
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Her pet name for me was A-ha,
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which stuck and soon
everyone called me it.
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Taiwan and its capital Taipei, are located
on the south eastern coast of China.
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Japan colonised the island in 1885
before surrendering it in 1945.
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By the end of the 1949 civil war, with
the impending victory of the Communists,
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the Kuomintang's nationalist
army withdrew to Taiwan.
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Taipei was named the capital of
the 'Republic of China' in exile.
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With the support of the United States,
Chiang Kai-shek marshalled an army
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oriented towards the hypothetical
goal of reconquering the mainland.
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Martial law,
limiting freedom of expression
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and prohibiting any political
opposition was maintained until 1987.
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A-Ha!
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Who's turn now?
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It's mine, I won!
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This here is Kaohsiung.
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Later we'll arrive in Fengshan.
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It's straight ahead, this direction.
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Kaohsiung is the largest city
in the south.
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Fengshan is nearby.
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In the past,
it was a 20-minute bus ride.
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And then we rode bikes to school.
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Sometimes we walked there.
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There was a track through the paddies,
a track leading to the school.
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I loved walking through
the rice fields because,
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on harvest day, we would often
see a man catching birds.
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We called him the 'Birdman'.
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Like in my film,
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A Summer at Grandpa's.
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In that film, he would set up a trap,
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a huge net,
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and then he would blow on a tiny whistle.
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The sparrows would fly down
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into the net
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Once caught, there was no escape.
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He wore a wide brim hat and off it came
to scoop up the birds.
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Then "pop"... he'd snap their necks.
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He never wanted the birds alive,
he'd sell them to barbecue vendors.
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This is Fengshan temple,
we enter through there.
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In the past, it was the
residence of the county chief.
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Once there was this large garden,
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and next to it, a huge mango tree.
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The wall was here,
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and the mango tree was here...
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There was a garden,
trees,
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artificial rocks...
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I would slip inside
through this alley,
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and I climbed the mango tree.
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Right about there...
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was the mango tree.
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I'd steal the mangoes.
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I ate some of them quite leisurely,
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pocketed others
and then I was off.
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From the top of the tree,
I strongly felt space and time.
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And I also felt a...
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... certain loneliness.
Yeah, I felt a strong sense of solitude.
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This left a deep impression on me.
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Maybe that's why
that I took to filmmaking.
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As if, from a given angle, you can
stop and experience sense of being,
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and feel immersed
in space and time.
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This temple
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is surrounded by
a network of alleys.
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When we were fighting,
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and the cops were trying
to catch us,
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we'd escape through the
small pathways in the alleys.
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As a child with all my
time ahead of me,
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I'd always come here.
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When I was a teenager,
all my friends were here too.
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We'd chat, make bets,
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eat sugar cane,
anything really.
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There used to be a big tree there,
one over there too.
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We'd hang up a pair of gymnastic rings,
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and we'd try doing sports like that.
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Or we would sing.
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Do you see the stage?
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It is in this temple that
the regional competition
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for the seven south
opera companies was held:
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Glove puppets, marionettes, theatre,
Taiwanese opera...
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The season could last
up to two months.
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When someone dies,
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their soul comes to the temple.
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Look at this inscription.
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It means: "You are here".
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When you are dead,
you come here.
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"You are coming,"
you were destined to come.
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Inside, there is
a large abacus,
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as those who serve
to do the accounts.
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It takes stock of the good
and bad deeds.
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When I was a kid,
I heard it said
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that at night you could hear
the sound of the abacus clicking.
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The midnight count!
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You've been here since 1949, right?
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Since 1954.
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1954? How old are you?
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80 years old.
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- I am Old Chen.
- I know!
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- And who are you?
- I am Aha.
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Have you forgotten?
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I have often thought of you!
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At first glance,
I didn't recognize you.
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I have grown old!
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Some said you came here
to shoot a film.
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It slipped my mind!
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I am too old...
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- Do you make nice films?
- Yes.
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No one comes back anymore?
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I went to see Ah-Fu.
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Shui-tsai
doesn't live here anymore?
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Shui-tsai lived
behind the station.
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- Has he moved?
- He left.
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- The factory has closed.
- To-hsi is dead.
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- Who?
- To-hsi.
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The big brother of Shui-tsai?
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- How? Was he ill?
- Yes, of illness.
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Chong-yuan is dead too,
he was...
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He was murdered.
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- He was gunned down by Chih-shan?
- Yes, right.
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People of my father's generation,
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like old Chen;
on arrival in Taiwan,
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thought it would be a short stay,
no more than two or three years.
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But there you have it: at 80 years old,
he's still stuck here.
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My father, when he first came here,
thought he'd work for a few years
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and then we'd leave and return home.
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All the furniture he bought then
was makeshift stuff.
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Bamboo, the cheapest
and the simplest.
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He thought,
he felt like...
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there was no family graveyard.
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It was not his home country.
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Assayas: Had China left a major impression
on your father during his youth?
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No, not at all.
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Every day my grandmother
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prepared for our
return to the mainland.
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She would say to me:
''Come, let's go that way.''
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She believed Guangdong
was just around the corner!
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She wanted to die
in her homeland.
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In 1981 or 1982, I went to
Hong Kong for the first time.
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A festival of Taiwanese cinema
had been organised.
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We all wanted to see
films from the mainland.
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Such films were banned
here in Taiwan.
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Even in Hong Kong we had to see
them in secret.
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Many of us saw the mainland films
and we were all deeply moved.
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Not by the plot or the
stories they were telling,
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but more by the language
and the tongue,
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as well as the landscapes
that we saw.
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I understood when I saw them,
that my early education
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cultivated in me a mental universe formed
under the influence of the mainland.
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There was this profound excitement
about seeing your native land.
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Assayas: Does he consider himself a
Chinese or Taiwanese filmmaker?
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I'm a Taiwanese director.
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From a cultural point of view,
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you can't deny
that you are Chinese.
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But in the current context,
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the political reality...
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with this separation
into two nations,
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you also cannot deny
that you are Taiwanese.
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I am a Taiwanese director.
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Our esteemed director is here!
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I grew up with you,
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fighting and gambling!
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I started gambling
because of Lo-kuo.
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When I was in the first grade, he took
me home to gamble, starting with marbles.
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Where's Wu-hsiung? Is he still here?
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The family house is still here,
but he moved to Niaosong long ago.
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Wu-hsiong was a slick guy.
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Here are the king size marbles.
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Our balls were different.
They were much smaller.
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They are bigger now.
These are standard.
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They were made of glass,
out of soda bottles.
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Shall we play a game of spinning top?
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A-Ha Ku!
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A-Ha!
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00:16:25,920 --> 00:16:32,515
Assayas: His friends from back then,
have they all become gangsters?
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00:16:33,178 --> 00:16:36,552
A few of them, yes.
But the groups aren't run like a...
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a well-oiled organisation.
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They existed more as enforcement
if something arose in the neighbourhood.
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As society evolved,
the underworld became highly complex,
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because the interests at stake
were increasingly important,
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such as the engineering
projects in this place.
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They took advantage of the
opportunities to get into construction
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and getting others to invest in
the projects taking place here.
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With these benefits,
others want to come and get a taste.
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Add to this generalised
trafficking,
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in particular drug smuggling,
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each aided by advanced transportation
and sophisticated communication networks.
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The range of influence
is always expanding,
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becoming so complex that
everyone is involved.
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For some,
this process is deadly.
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They die from drug use,
or get killed in shootings,
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as my friends just informed me.
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My elder sister and brother
were convinced
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that I was a hopelesss case.
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I gambled away the family's money.
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Many things of this nature.
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When it came time for the draft,
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I was very happy
to join the army.
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I had this self-awareness that I had to
break with my previous life - ka-cha!
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It was overwhelming.
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There was a mountain of
receipts from the pawnshop.
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I'd taken valuables from home,
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my father's watch,
for example,
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and sold them off.
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At that time I left everything behind
and tore up all the receipts.
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In the army,
I decided to make films.
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On Sundays, on leave,
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I went to the cinema,
and I sometimes saw
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four films in a day.
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So I decided that when
I got out of the military,
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I would go into the film industry,
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whether I went to film school or not.
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Back then, I had no clear
concept of anything at all,
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I just liked movies.
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If the question was asked,
"What exactly do you want to do?"
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I actually had no idea.
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I started working
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00:19:35,304 --> 00:19:39,723
as soon as I left university
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as an assistant and scriptwriter,
without thinking about becoming...
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a director.
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00:19:50,228 --> 00:19:54,768
At the very beginning,
I wanted to be an actor.
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During my studies,
I participated
248
00:19:57,463 --> 00:19:59,804
in the preliminary round
of a singing competition.
249
00:19:59,872 --> 00:20:02,272
I loved singing,
but I was nervous.
250
00:20:03,053 --> 00:20:04,269
I seized up with stage fright.
251
00:20:05,820 --> 00:20:08,574
It was in this grand hall.
My voice was gone.
252
00:20:08,923 --> 00:20:12,516
The first step was singing acapella,
253
00:20:13,242 --> 00:20:16,411
and if you had talent, you could get to
the first round with accompanying music.
254
00:20:19,559 --> 00:20:21,813
I was eliminated in
the preliminaries.
255
00:20:27,461 --> 00:20:29,280
Translator: Was it cancelled later?
256
00:20:29,503 --> 00:20:31,981
No, but there were no more
contests for me, ever.
257
00:20:33,184 --> 00:20:38,911
In my early days, I discovered that
the major actors, the big stars
258
00:20:39,749 --> 00:20:41,986
had to be 6 feet tall
259
00:20:42,267 --> 00:20:43,911
and very handsome.
260
00:20:44,548 --> 00:20:48,987
Since I'm that short,
I knew acting wasn't for me,
261
00:20:49,270 --> 00:20:51,387
so I decided to work
behind the scenes.
262
00:20:51,947 --> 00:20:57,070
However, films at that time
were commercially oriented
263
00:20:57,593 --> 00:21:02,159
It had to be funny, comedic.
264
00:21:02,751 --> 00:21:05,329
You had to make them very funny.
265
00:21:06,676 --> 00:21:10,717
So, my first and second films
266
00:21:11,065 --> 00:21:13,007
were both funny and
made a lot of money.
267
00:21:14,944 --> 00:21:16,384
Assayas: They were comedies?
268
00:21:16,775 --> 00:21:17,444
Comedies.
269
00:21:18,852 --> 00:21:19,648
A-Digu!
270
00:21:19,883 --> 00:21:21,017
A-Digu, hurry up!
271
00:21:21,055 --> 00:21:21,523
A-Digu!
272
00:21:23,153 --> 00:21:26,199
A Summer at Grandpa's
1984
273
00:22:16,869 --> 00:22:21,328
My father's family retreated with the
nationalists from Shandong, in 1949.
274
00:22:22,466 --> 00:22:26,328
My mother's family,
in her words, it was almost...
275
00:22:28,493 --> 00:22:32,382
100 years ago when they migrated
from Guangdong province
276
00:22:32,712 --> 00:22:34,241
and settled here.
277
00:22:34,375 --> 00:22:36,113
Chu Tien-wen
Screenwriter
278
00:22:36,138 --> 00:22:39,700
Probably because my father and
mother both wrote manuscripts,
279
00:22:40,067 --> 00:22:44,686
many of the friends
who visited our house
280
00:22:44,711 --> 00:22:47,960
all belonged to the literary world.
281
00:22:47,985 --> 00:22:49,603
Whether it be writing essays or novels.
282
00:22:50,117 --> 00:22:52,483
This likely influenced me.
283
00:22:55,307 --> 00:22:57,561
I started writing in secret.
284
00:22:59,101 --> 00:23:01,624
Then I submitted some of it
to the local newspapers.
285
00:23:01,679 --> 00:23:07,183
I don't know if the editor knows
us or what, I just used my name.
286
00:23:07,351 --> 00:23:09,915
After this,
I naturally kept writing.
287
00:23:10,029 --> 00:23:11,953
I started when I was 15.
288
00:23:12,317 --> 00:23:16,362
Next, the newspaper published
a 5000 word story,
289
00:23:16,446 --> 00:23:19,203
"Xiao Bi's Story"
290
00:23:19,940 --> 00:23:23,203
Hou read it and was interested.
291
00:23:23,228 --> 00:23:27,897
He wanted to buy the rights
and adapt it to film.
292
00:23:28,344 --> 00:23:31,659
At that time, there was no such
thing as buying copyrights in Taiwan.
293
00:23:32,819 --> 00:23:38,087
When we made an appointment,
my parents were very worried.
294
00:23:38,112 --> 00:23:41,808
They coached me on what
to do and what to say
295
00:23:41,837 --> 00:23:45,847
It was said that people in the
film industry were very devious
296
00:23:45,872 --> 00:23:48,679
and difficult to work with.
297
00:23:49,615 --> 00:23:52,529
So I dressed myself
up to look older.
298
00:23:52,596 --> 00:23:54,627
I think I wore
high heels and a skirt.
299
00:23:55,710 --> 00:23:58,333
But when I saw Hou,
this idea totally evaporated...
300
00:23:58,433 --> 00:23:59,535
I thought...
301
00:24:00,609 --> 00:24:04,438
he was nothing like our
imaginary filmmaker.
302
00:24:05,107 --> 00:24:10,554
Since our ideas were so closely aligned,
our first collaboration was very pleasant.
303
00:24:11,246 --> 00:24:15,877
I first came across
Chu Tien-wen in a newspaper,
304
00:24:17,289 --> 00:24:19,094
when I read her novelette
'Love Story', right?
305
00:24:19,502 --> 00:24:21,070
- 'Love Story', right?
- Right.
306
00:24:21,672 --> 00:24:26,430
I used it as the scenario
for the film Growing Up.
307
00:24:28,766 --> 00:24:33,039
I thought the story was really
good, so I called her.
308
00:24:34,071 --> 00:24:38,224
We met in an old café in Taipei.
309
00:24:40,062 --> 00:24:44,250
We hit it off
immediately as we spoke,
310
00:24:45,172 --> 00:24:49,648
and so I asked her to
help me with the script.
311
00:24:49,766 --> 00:24:53,149
The film was well received
and made quite a bit of money,
312
00:24:53,305 --> 00:24:56,590
so, for her, she got sucked into
screenwriting and couldn't get away.
313
00:24:56,922 --> 00:24:58,891
and our collaboration
continues to this day.
314
00:25:00,195 --> 00:25:03,598
- If it hadn't done so well...
- That would have been the end of it.
315
00:25:03,672 --> 00:25:05,595
Ever since our work together
began with Growing Up,
316
00:25:05,874 --> 00:25:08,842
she has worked on each and
every script for my films.
317
00:25:08,999 --> 00:25:11,242
The Boys from Fengkui
captured some of my early life,
318
00:25:11,359 --> 00:25:14,296
while A Summer at Grandpa's,
was inspired by her own.
319
00:25:14,499 --> 00:25:17,788
Between the films, we began to
gradually come to understand
320
00:25:17,813 --> 00:25:20,742
that our families were quite
different from one another.
321
00:25:20,976 --> 00:25:22,687
Our upbringings were quite distinct.
322
00:25:23,632 --> 00:25:28,234
It became really clear when filming
A Summer at Grandpa's at her home.
323
00:25:28,327 --> 00:25:29,656
Her grandpa,
324
00:25:30,054 --> 00:25:35,835
her grandfather had an old motorbike
that was 40 or 50 years old.
325
00:25:35,968 --> 00:25:38,893
There was a clock that was similarly old.
326
00:25:38,952 --> 00:25:41,984
The grandfather also
had an old gramophone...
327
00:25:42,210 --> 00:25:44,335
At the time, everything was
about half a century old.
328
00:25:44,367 --> 00:25:45,796
Now it's all about
60 years old.
329
00:25:45,835 --> 00:25:47,640
Looking at all these belongings,
330
00:25:47,665 --> 00:25:50,812
you come to see
how much our elders
331
00:25:50,837 --> 00:25:53,179
must have treasured them.
332
00:25:53,335 --> 00:25:54,468
Additionally,
333
00:25:54,515 --> 00:25:58,148
although Tien-wen is a child
of the Mainland on her father's side.
334
00:25:58,601 --> 00:26:01,456
However, her maternal
grandparents are natives,
335
00:26:01,481 --> 00:26:04,117
and so you can feel like you
really belong to this place,
336
00:26:04,142 --> 00:26:09,320
and experience a sense of stablility
rooted in living here for generations.
337
00:26:09,968 --> 00:26:13,093
In the case of my own family,
everything was different.
338
00:26:13,118 --> 00:26:13,959
For my parents,
339
00:26:13,982 --> 00:26:17,320
everything was temporary, from
the furniture to the house itself.
340
00:26:17,804 --> 00:26:19,015
With this psychology at work,
341
00:26:19,040 --> 00:26:21,125
you felt like you were going
to leave at any moment.
342
00:26:21,507 --> 00:26:23,812
The constant doubt and anxiety...
343
00:26:26,046 --> 00:26:27,827
ate away at me without
really knowing it.
344
00:26:29,968 --> 00:26:33,765
Understanding another's family background,
345
00:26:33,814 --> 00:26:36,859
can help you understand your own.
346
00:26:36,890 --> 00:26:41,623
So I decided that I would
film my own life story,
347
00:26:41,648 --> 00:26:42,476
A Time to Live, A Time to Die.
348
00:26:43,257 --> 00:26:48,485
While I was shooting A Summer at Grandpa's
and The Boys from Fengkuei back to back,
349
00:26:48,510 --> 00:26:50,174
a lot of those who had studied
the cinema abroad returned.
350
00:26:50,627 --> 00:26:54,299
They began sharing what they learned,
"This is a master shot, this is this and so on".
351
00:26:54,581 --> 00:26:58,433
It became clear that there were many ways
to shoot films that left me at a loss.
352
00:26:58,510 --> 00:27:01,693
At this time, the script for
The Boys from Fengkuei was ready,
353
00:27:03,467 --> 00:27:05,014
it was written and complete.
354
00:27:05,209 --> 00:27:08,372
However, I didn't know how
to put the script on film.
355
00:27:08,630 --> 00:27:12,441
Tien-wen listened to my concerns
356
00:27:12,466 --> 00:27:13,731
and agreed that something
may not be right.
357
00:27:14,099 --> 00:27:15,427
Then she gave me
a book to read.
358
00:27:17,044 --> 00:27:21,170
It's name was
'The Autobiography of Shen Congwen'.
359
00:27:21,567 --> 00:27:23,084
After finishing it,
360
00:27:23,109 --> 00:27:25,274
I felt it had a strange
but intuitive structure.
361
00:27:25,299 --> 00:27:26,911
It has a standpoint,
362
00:27:27,583 --> 00:27:29,513
a point of view.
363
00:27:29,538 --> 00:27:31,974
The view is looking
down upon all events.
364
00:27:34,614 --> 00:27:39,373
Looking down and observing
all the woes of the world
365
00:27:39,398 --> 00:27:41,412
and watching objectively.
366
00:27:42,193 --> 00:27:44,928
There was an extreme
breadth of mind.
367
00:27:45,217 --> 00:27:46,772
When I was shooting
The Boys from Fengkuei
368
00:27:46,797 --> 00:27:48,460
I kept saying to the photographer,
369
00:27:48,485 --> 00:27:49,482
"Back a little, back a little."
370
00:27:49,827 --> 00:27:50,264
Chu: And detached.
371
00:27:50,303 --> 00:27:51,740
"More detached, More detached."
372
00:27:53,670 --> 00:27:56,896
One year after The Boys from Fengkuei,
373
00:27:57,154 --> 00:27:59,022
it was time to shoot
A Summer at Grandpa's.
374
00:27:59,639 --> 00:28:01,335
I was facing the problem of form again.
375
00:28:01,967 --> 00:28:04,490
What stylistic choices can
I make to express the story?
376
00:28:04,787 --> 00:28:06,936
As before then,
form had never been an issue on my mind.
377
00:28:07,506 --> 00:28:11,537
It was then on one occasion when
I was at Edward Yang's house,
378
00:28:11,772 --> 00:28:16,107
that he showed me
Pasolini's Oedipus Rex.
379
00:28:17,920 --> 00:28:19,389
I watched the film
and I thought,
380
00:28:19,414 --> 00:28:20,600
"Wow, it's so clear."
381
00:28:20,811 --> 00:28:24,115
I totally understood why the director
was choosing his shots and perspectives.
382
00:28:24,787 --> 00:28:26,116
The point of view,
383
00:28:26,141 --> 00:28:28,688
whether it's the objective one,
384
00:28:29,256 --> 00:28:32,545
or the ''subjective'' view
of the character,
385
00:28:33,045 --> 00:28:35,467
and sharing what the
actor or actress sees.
386
00:28:36,506 --> 00:28:37,670
This is point of view.
387
00:28:37,873 --> 00:28:39,178
After the film, I felt – "Ah!"
388
00:28:39,951 --> 00:28:41,482
My feeling, when I was shooting
A Summer at Grandpa's,
389
00:28:41,795 --> 00:28:44,639
was that there were three points of view
or perspectives in the film.
390
00:28:44,664 --> 00:28:46,982
The objective one,
that of the filmmaker, me.
391
00:28:47,350 --> 00:28:49,975
What the director's mind
and eyes think and see.
392
00:28:50,561 --> 00:28:53,198
The other is that of the actor.
393
00:28:53,772 --> 00:28:57,037
What the characters' mind
and eyes think and see.
394
00:29:00,178 --> 00:29:00,983
Actually, there are only two.
395
00:29:01,008 --> 00:29:02,842
There aren't three perspectives,
there are only two.
396
00:29:05,709 --> 00:29:09,248
A-Gong, have you seen
A Summer at Grandpa's?
397
00:29:09,485 --> 00:29:09,896
Yes.
398
00:29:09,920 --> 00:29:12,633
Yes, he did. He saw it in Taipei.
399
00:29:12,673 --> 00:29:13,305
Right.
400
00:29:13,961 --> 00:29:15,852
Have you seen
A Summer at Grandpa's?
401
00:29:16,962 --> 00:29:18,165
I can't recall.
402
00:29:20,094 --> 00:29:23,421
When the film was being
screened in Taipei.
403
00:29:23,446 --> 00:29:25,352
I took my grandparents
to see it.
404
00:29:27,165 --> 00:29:29,805
They said it was done beautifully!
405
00:29:30,657 --> 00:29:35,293
After you saw
A Summer at Grandpa's
406
00:29:35,340 --> 00:29:36,957
what did you think?
407
00:29:39,465 --> 00:29:40,340
This is hopeless.
408
00:29:40,965 --> 00:29:41,965
I remember...
409
00:29:42,142 --> 00:29:44,481
I remember him saying
after the screening
410
00:29:44,506 --> 00:29:48,731
"My goodness, the house in the film
is more beautiful than in real life!"
411
00:29:50,139 --> 00:29:51,139
That was then.
412
00:29:51,419 --> 00:29:53,724
Later he felt that it
was a good memorial,
413
00:29:54,224 --> 00:29:57,747
because the area has
changed completely since.
414
00:30:13,911 --> 00:30:19,919
The first time Hou
and I met was in 1980.
415
00:30:21,638 --> 00:30:24,083
It was shortly after I first
entered the film world.
416
00:30:24,108 --> 00:30:25,669
I'd just entered the industry
417
00:30:25,694 --> 00:30:27,931
and began work as a screenwriter
at Central Motion Picture
418
00:30:28,357 --> 00:30:29,286
Wu Nien-Jen
Director and screenwriter
419
00:30:29,311 --> 00:30:33,982
Central Motion Picture was in reality a
Kuomintang propaganda agency.
420
00:30:34,536 --> 00:30:37,158
Before the abolition
of martial law in 1987,
421
00:30:37,183 --> 00:30:40,517
it was the largest
production company in Taiwan,
422
00:30:40,970 --> 00:30:47,345
and already, before I joined,
a partly state-run company.
423
00:30:47,525 --> 00:30:51,705
It's strange that I
got a job there at all,
424
00:30:52,759 --> 00:30:54,869
as it was a very
conservative organisation
425
00:30:54,894 --> 00:31:00,103
and many of the films produced
beforehand were heavily propagandistic.
426
00:31:01,173 --> 00:31:05,080
In 1980, Ming Ji was appointed the
new director of Central Motion Picture,
427
00:31:06,705 --> 00:31:10,117
and was of the view that
Taiwanese films were entirely lacking
428
00:31:10,142 --> 00:31:13,642
and that the industry
was in need of new blood.
429
00:31:14,181 --> 00:31:15,502
A lot of my friends
tried to dissuade me
430
00:31:15,527 --> 00:31:17,916
as many at the time
opposed the Kuomintang.
431
00:31:17,941 --> 00:31:23,337
They'd say, "Why are you, a novelist,
working for the Kuomintang?"
432
00:31:26,099 --> 00:31:30,564
However, at that time in Taiwan,
novelists were subject to strict censorship.
433
00:31:31,580 --> 00:31:34,301
As a result, I thought that
literature was too limited,
434
00:31:34,326 --> 00:31:37,213
and that the cinema was more likely
to affect the greatest number of people.
435
00:31:37,494 --> 00:31:44,377
It just so happened that a number of
filmmakers had returned home from the USA.
436
00:31:44,791 --> 00:31:48,634
It was serendipitous that we were
looking for them and they us,
437
00:31:48,659 --> 00:31:51,119
so we looked at
their work and chose our men.
438
00:31:51,634 --> 00:31:54,716
Given the urgency of
needing new directors,
439
00:31:54,741 --> 00:31:57,532
allowing one director to make
one film wasn't efficient.
440
00:31:57,680 --> 00:32:00,733
So, we thought if we had
four directors work together,
441
00:32:00,758 --> 00:32:03,362
we'd produce four at once.
442
00:32:03,948 --> 00:32:05,668
In Hong Kong, at the time,
443
00:32:05,693 --> 00:32:09,536
there was a lot of discussion
regarding the "New Wave" filmmakers.
444
00:32:10,004 --> 00:32:14,115
When I met them
in Hong Kong,
445
00:32:14,140 --> 00:32:18,630
I found their way of
working very interesting.
446
00:32:18,882 --> 00:32:23,882
They were a team,
they worked together.
447
00:32:24,710 --> 00:32:30,674
It was mainly Tsui Hark,
Ann Hui and Allen Fong.
448
00:32:31,135 --> 00:32:34,356
Hou Hsiao-hsien
and Chen Kun-hou,
449
00:32:34,381 --> 00:32:37,955
they had taken charge of production.
450
00:32:38,065 --> 00:32:44,606
The directors were Hou,
Tseng Chuang-hsiang and Wan Jen.
451
00:32:45,039 --> 00:32:49,057
Each of them made an episode
of The Sandwich Man.
452
00:33:09,394 --> 00:33:11,456
Chen Kuo-fu
Critic and Filmmaker
453
00:34:12,479 --> 00:34:15,916
At that time,
454
00:34:16,280 --> 00:34:19,911
you could feel a burning
energy in these people.
455
00:34:20,562 --> 00:34:25,797
It was comparable to that of
the young revolutionaries,
456
00:34:27,004 --> 00:34:29,838
who had, in the past,
answered Sun Yat-sen,
457
00:34:30,125 --> 00:34:32,959
and his call to a
republican revolution,
458
00:34:33,246 --> 00:34:35,715
which overthrew the Qing dynasty.
459
00:34:36,168 --> 00:34:37,806
While we were not so young anymore,
460
00:34:38,088 --> 00:34:41,399
in the cinema,
we were novices,
461
00:34:41,690 --> 00:34:43,408
without pasts or prejudices.
462
00:34:43,690 --> 00:34:46,000
We shared that same momentum.
463
00:35:57,757 --> 00:36:02,549
It was in 1983 that, with the help of the
New Cinema guys on The Sandwich Man,
464
00:36:04,039 --> 00:36:08,796
the potential of this
movement became clear to me.
465
00:36:09,601 --> 00:36:15,996
Through my experience on the film I
began to understand
466
00:36:16,284 --> 00:36:23,674
that it was possible to
think and act through film.
467
00:36:24,206 --> 00:36:28,324
Right after that anthology film,
Hou shot The Boys from Fengkuei.
468
00:36:28,349 --> 00:36:29,933
It took me by surprise,
469
00:36:29,958 --> 00:36:32,417
as he had broken entirely with
the style of his previous films,
470
00:36:32,441 --> 00:36:36,010
to assert a totally
confident and idiosyncratic approach.
471
00:36:36,035 --> 00:36:38,647
In the cinema of Hou,
472
00:36:38,932 --> 00:36:41,970
The Boys from Fengkuei represents
a decisive step and turning point.
473
00:36:42,253 --> 00:36:46,885
A leap from the
ground level to the apex.
474
00:36:49,215 --> 00:36:52,014
His 1985 film,
A Time to Live, A Time to Die.
475
00:36:52,297 --> 00:36:54,652
Which remains, in my eyes
476
00:36:54,937 --> 00:36:58,693
the very best film in the
whole of the Taiwanese cinema.
477
00:38:56,061 --> 00:38:59,145
I would come here sometimes
when I had free time,
478
00:38:59,169 --> 00:39:03,474
to think, read and take notes.
479
00:39:03,499 --> 00:39:09,225
Almost all my scripts, ever since
A Time to Live, A Time to Die
480
00:39:09,459 --> 00:39:12,253
have been completed here.
481
00:39:12,518 --> 00:39:17,100
It's like an office that's totally mine.
482
00:39:18,037 --> 00:39:21,383
I have my own habits here,
483
00:39:21,408 --> 00:39:24,106
and the space clears my
mind for the creativity needed.
484
00:39:24,340 --> 00:39:31,754
I'll jot up notes, as in here,
485
00:39:31,778 --> 00:39:38,835
on moods,
plot lines and characters.
486
00:39:39,780 --> 00:39:43,944
When all of this has been considered,
I move on to the actual filmmaking,
487
00:39:44,382 --> 00:39:47,257
imagining the tone
of the opening scene,
488
00:39:47,647 --> 00:39:49,647
after which each scene follows.
489
00:39:49,913 --> 00:39:54,760
I write everything down,
constantly revising the scenes,
490
00:39:54,785 --> 00:39:59,200
as I repeat this process every day,
over and over until I'm satisfied.
491
00:39:59,957 --> 00:40:01,801
Afterwards, I'll discuss it all with her.
492
00:40:01,826 --> 00:40:04,158
Basically, I listen to him,
493
00:40:04,183 --> 00:40:07,910
and aim to give him feedback.
494
00:40:09,668 --> 00:40:12,799
I may explore some adjacent notions,
495
00:40:13,045 --> 00:40:16,356
and come back with ideas
not present in the script,
496
00:40:17,177 --> 00:40:19,528
or that have nothing to do with the film.
497
00:40:19,802 --> 00:40:22,380
If he likes them,
he'll integrates them.
498
00:40:22,489 --> 00:40:26,195
Our sessions are quite different
to those of other creative teams.
499
00:40:27,430 --> 00:40:31,758
We talk about our lives.
Everything, in full.
500
00:40:32,265 --> 00:40:36,380
A personal detail of mine may
cause a cascade of memories,
501
00:40:36,404 --> 00:40:38,297
and from that new ideas flow.
502
00:40:38,648 --> 00:40:39,992
I'm too lazy to write.
503
00:40:40,017 --> 00:40:41,273
I get tired of it all the time,
504
00:40:41,298 --> 00:40:44,406
and it used to be a
one-man struggle.
505
00:40:44,961 --> 00:40:48,933
They are brilliant writers,
506
00:40:48,958 --> 00:40:51,245
so I write down my ideas,
507
00:40:51,269 --> 00:40:53,555
basically some key words,
which we then discuss.
508
00:40:54,234 --> 00:40:57,743
Chu then takes them
away and starts to write,
509
00:40:58,125 --> 00:41:00,586
and I just relax and
wait for her to finish.
510
00:41:01,141 --> 00:41:03,015
This is my next film,
Flowers of Shanghai.
511
00:41:03,040 --> 00:41:06,326
Chu and I have already
discussed the structure,
512
00:41:06,351 --> 00:41:11,160
and she's completed the full outline.
513
00:41:11,185 --> 00:41:14,410
However, I want a different
approach this time.
514
00:41:14,435 --> 00:41:16,902
This time I wanted
to write the screenplay
515
00:41:16,927 --> 00:41:19,770
and all of the dialogue myself.
516
00:41:20,980 --> 00:41:23,910
I'm doing a first draft,
517
00:41:23,935 --> 00:41:28,504
after which we'll discuss it,
and perhaps have her then do a rewrite.
518
00:41:28,684 --> 00:41:33,236
It's not finalised yet,
this is just a first draft.
519
00:41:33,328 --> 00:41:35,711
This is my notebook.
520
00:41:36,054 --> 00:41:38,953
It was the basis for the script.
521
00:41:39,281 --> 00:41:41,632
He asked me to bring it.
522
00:41:42,607 --> 00:41:44,065
It's A City of Sadness.
523
00:41:45,719 --> 00:41:49,172
After discussing the
script that's pretty much it.
524
00:41:49,203 --> 00:41:53,516
Changes are made if something isn't right,
or the actors don't like something.
525
00:41:54,047 --> 00:41:58,951
I want the actors to be
able to get into the part.
526
00:41:59,568 --> 00:42:02,894
I want them to
understand the scenarios,
527
00:42:02,919 --> 00:42:05,285
and also feel like
they can improvise.
528
00:42:07,933 --> 00:42:10,993
The script moves around a lot.
529
00:42:12,446 --> 00:42:15,964
They sometimes think that
all the writing was for nothing.
530
00:42:16,196 --> 00:42:22,215
I don't write the script for Hou.
531
00:42:22,553 --> 00:42:27,162
I do it for Nien-jen,
as he needs it to write the dialogue.
532
00:42:27,225 --> 00:42:29,279
I do it for the crew,
533
00:42:30,021 --> 00:42:31,912
as they need to prepare sets,
534
00:42:31,943 --> 00:42:34,209
and get the actors ready
and everything else right.
535
00:42:34,404 --> 00:42:35,764
So, I write it as a guide,
536
00:42:36,264 --> 00:42:37,623
- And hope it doesn't restrain him.
- She doesn't show it to me!
537
00:42:37,732 --> 00:42:42,568
He doesn't want to read it,
it's basically a blueprint for the crew.
538
00:42:43,154 --> 00:42:45,904
Sometimes, if I can't figure a scene out,
539
00:42:46,607 --> 00:42:50,467
if I'm having trouble
getting a scene wrapped,
540
00:42:51,084 --> 00:42:52,350
or if I think it is bad,
541
00:42:52,375 --> 00:42:56,162
I'll shift to another scene.
542
00:42:57,201 --> 00:42:59,646
One with similar atmosphere.
543
00:43:01,209 --> 00:43:04,943
This preserves
the mood for the actors,
544
00:43:06,535 --> 00:43:09,472
because I almost
never do rehearsals.
545
00:43:10,253 --> 00:43:13,041
I explain the scene to them,
546
00:43:13,066 --> 00:43:14,675
and when they've
understood everything with an,
547
00:43:15,285 --> 00:43:15,621
"Ah!",
548
00:43:15,910 --> 00:43:17,074
then we're "shooting."
549
00:43:17,308 --> 00:43:19,800
Often, right after he calls cut,
you realise you never wrote this.
550
00:43:26,593 --> 00:43:27,147
Fuck you!
551
00:43:29,124 --> 00:43:30,226
You deserve to be dead by now!
552
00:43:30,406 --> 00:43:31,234
Why aren't you?
553
00:43:32,452 --> 00:43:35,874
You pulled one hell of a
dirty trick on Wen-leung!
554
00:43:37,369 --> 00:43:38,717
A City of Sadness
1989
555
00:43:40,937 --> 00:43:42,202
You piece of shit!
556
00:43:42,601 --> 00:43:43,234
Huh!?
557
00:43:45,460 --> 00:43:47,179
- What do you want?
- What do I want?
558
00:43:48,491 --> 00:43:51,406
You know what you've done...
559
00:43:51,906 --> 00:43:53,366
Don't say things
that you'll regret!
560
00:43:54,671 --> 00:43:55,913
You wouldn't dare!
561
00:43:56,062 --> 00:43:56,882
Try me!
562
00:43:58,820 --> 00:43:59,681
Couldn't I?
563
00:43:59,781 --> 00:44:00,749
You've got guts!
564
00:44:01,085 --> 00:44:01,882
All talk!
565
00:44:04,389 --> 00:44:07,147
Bastard!
I'll get you!
566
00:45:14,647 --> 00:45:15,803
Boss!
567
00:45:18,657 --> 00:45:19,710
Are you okay?
568
00:45:22,282 --> 00:45:23,845
Call a doctor!
569
00:45:23,939 --> 00:45:25,337
How bad is it?
570
00:45:36,542 --> 00:45:38,167
Put the knife awayy.
571
00:45:39,472 --> 00:45:40,620
Go and get the doctor quickly!
572
00:46:04,094 --> 00:46:04,954
Wen-leung!
573
00:46:27,063 --> 00:46:29,703
I came here a few times,
574
00:46:30,224 --> 00:46:34,504
when we did A City of Sadness.
575
00:46:34,786 --> 00:46:37,585
The gold mines had closed,
the town was very rundown,
576
00:46:38,067 --> 00:46:40,628
because there were
no residents anymore.
577
00:46:40,908 --> 00:46:44,743
You could feel the passage
of time very palpably.
578
00:46:45,030 --> 00:46:50,151
When the mines were booming,
the bars flourished.
579
00:46:50,432 --> 00:46:53,425
They were girl bars.
580
00:46:53,713 --> 00:46:57,468
This place was perfectly
suited for the movie,
581
00:46:58,394 --> 00:47:01,476
it had the exact
atmosphere I was looking for.
582
00:47:01,632 --> 00:47:06,189
Especially in winter,
because it rains constantly.
583
00:47:07,078 --> 00:47:10,196
Let's sit in here and have some tea.
584
00:47:11,119 --> 00:47:14,795
Do you charcoal-roast your oolong?
585
00:47:15,320 --> 00:47:16,640
Of course.
586
00:47:16,921 --> 00:47:21,439
Most stores don't make
it this way anymore.
587
00:47:21,755 --> 00:47:24,013
Yes, it has a different flavour,
when the oolong is roasted.
588
00:47:24,419 --> 00:47:25,341
We'll have that.
589
00:47:26,404 --> 00:47:28,161
How are the watermelon seeds?
590
00:47:28,185 --> 00:47:29,622
The best, of course.
591
00:47:29,677 --> 00:47:31,286
You'll know when you eat them.
592
00:47:31,310 --> 00:47:31,982
We'll take them!
593
00:47:35,448 --> 00:47:36,456
Would you like some tea?
594
00:47:36,480 --> 00:47:36,971
Yes.
595
00:47:38,689 --> 00:47:43,526
A Time to Live, A Time to Die
earned me violent attacks.
596
00:47:43,811 --> 00:47:47,600
The clear message
behind the film was,
597
00:47:47,969 --> 00:47:53,288
that this notion that we could
reclaim Mainland China was, ultimately,
598
00:47:53,854 --> 00:47:55,811
a bunch of lies and
an impossible dream.
599
00:47:57,896 --> 00:48:01,287
I was aware of the
political pressure.
600
00:48:01,311 --> 00:48:02,730
It was harsh back then.
601
00:48:03,300 --> 00:48:06,389
The slightest criticism
meant big trouble,
602
00:48:06,776 --> 00:48:10,331
and no film was made without
the approval of the censor.
603
00:48:10,620 --> 00:48:14,006
Ever since the nationalist
government had taken power,
604
00:48:14,031 --> 00:48:16,654
our history books had
been China-oriented.
605
00:48:16,983 --> 00:48:20,943
Our native history as
Taiwanese people was obscured,
606
00:48:20,968 --> 00:48:24,741
and deliberately shortened
and oversimplified.
607
00:48:25,226 --> 00:48:27,946
Before A City of Sadness,
608
00:48:27,971 --> 00:48:31,280
I only knew Taiwan's
story in fragments.
609
00:48:31,350 --> 00:48:36,861
Through the film, I wanted to
honour the dignity of the people,
610
00:48:36,886 --> 00:48:41,589
especially those who had been
subjected to especially harsh oppression.
611
00:48:41,872 --> 00:48:46,264
I knew I was at risk
addressing this issue.
612
00:48:46,793 --> 00:48:51,027
However, I knew
it would be fine,
613
00:48:51,637 --> 00:48:55,971
there was no need to be afraid
because I wasn't being critical.
614
00:48:56,518 --> 00:49:02,869
I wasn't aiming to castigate,
but to look at everything objectively.
615
00:49:04,000 --> 00:49:08,458
The interesting thing about
the film is its approach,
616
00:49:08,483 --> 00:49:12,224
I wanted to explore the passage
of major power transitions,
617
00:49:12,249 --> 00:49:17,322
from the Japanese to Nationalist
governments, to martial law,
618
00:49:19,245 --> 00:49:22,044
through
the misfortunes of one family,
619
00:49:22,686 --> 00:49:26,044
and, within that story,
620
00:49:27,008 --> 00:49:29,603
explore a political and
economic turning point.
621
00:49:30,449 --> 00:49:36,121
I was interested in this from a both
familial and individual perspective.
622
00:49:37,532 --> 00:49:40,617
This is a very sensitive
point of history,
623
00:49:40,642 --> 00:49:43,724
and we had our share
of troubles back then.
624
00:49:44,014 --> 00:49:47,073
Fortunately for me, at the time,
martial law had lifted.
625
00:49:47,925 --> 00:49:50,073
Furthermore, the...
626
00:49:50,776 --> 00:49:54,439
the opposition
had gained ground.
627
00:49:54,464 --> 00:49:57,649
Basically, I knew it wasn't possible,
given the situation,
628
00:49:58,979 --> 00:50:02,451
for the KMT to bother with
the hassle of coming after me.
629
00:50:03,061 --> 00:50:07,540
It would be a headache to attack a
director popular at both home and abroad.
630
00:50:08,823 --> 00:50:13,216
Initially,
the censors demanded two cuts,
631
00:50:14,105 --> 00:50:16,495
but the press
attacked them mercilessly,
632
00:50:16,826 --> 00:50:18,818
so they backed off.
633
00:50:19,827 --> 00:50:23,136
However, I learned that
in the south of the country,
634
00:50:24,389 --> 00:50:28,429
based on some agreement between
the production company and the censors,
635
00:50:28,830 --> 00:50:33,017
sensitive scenes had
been cut from the film.
636
00:50:35,593 --> 00:50:38,890
From doing my own research,
637
00:50:38,915 --> 00:50:42,115
I could see that in families
in Taiwan, no one spoke.
638
00:50:42,915 --> 00:50:45,714
Adults said "keep silent".
639
00:50:46,476 --> 00:50:51,506
Despite the policy changes
and a more benign government,
640
00:50:51,789 --> 00:50:54,350
after four decades,
people still wouldn't speak out.
641
00:50:54,639 --> 00:50:59,311
When the film was released,
everyone began to speak.
642
00:50:59,601 --> 00:51:04,802
There were a lot articles and reviews,
all one after the other, like a fad.
643
00:51:05,803 --> 00:51:10,435
It was as if a wave was breaking,
and now everything was out in public.
644
00:51:10,965 --> 00:51:13,321
People let out what was buried inside,
645
00:51:13,516 --> 00:51:15,359
and felt truly liberated.
646
00:51:19,488 --> 00:51:23,642
It used to be that all
films were dubbed.
647
00:51:24,490 --> 00:51:27,936
There were only a few
dubbing artists,
648
00:51:27,961 --> 00:51:31,563
so, in the end, everyone's
voices sounded the same.
649
00:51:32,053 --> 00:51:37,047
I prefered to have my
actors voice themselves.
650
00:51:37,535 --> 00:51:38,885
For A City of Sadness,
651
00:51:38,910 --> 00:51:42,682
we decided to shoot with
synced sound.
652
00:51:43,577 --> 00:51:47,010
After discussion
with Tu Du-che,
653
00:51:47,498 --> 00:51:48,870
we rented a Nagra.
654
00:51:49,619 --> 00:51:52,737
We shot with a Nagra
and two microphones.
655
00:51:53,448 --> 00:51:56,693
This meant there was,
on A City of Sadness,
656
00:51:56,982 --> 00:52:01,261
a radically different nature
to the edit and assembly.
657
00:52:02,264 --> 00:52:05,143
The sound became
a key element.
658
00:52:05,758 --> 00:52:07,196
Tu Du-che
Sound engineer
659
00:52:07,221 --> 00:52:09,494
Just like Director Hou said,
660
00:52:09,947 --> 00:52:12,302
we did some tests
with Lee Tien-lu's voice.
661
00:52:12,587 --> 00:52:18,947
We had done some tests
with sync sound on 16mm film.
662
00:52:19,230 --> 00:52:21,215
Prior to A City of Sadness,
663
00:52:21,240 --> 00:52:25,702
our experience was limited
to synchronised recording.
664
00:52:25,992 --> 00:52:30,146
We were not as familiar
with sound editing.
665
00:52:30,392 --> 00:52:33,109
The "New Cinema" era
was a milestone,
666
00:52:33,395 --> 00:52:36,149
as the young directors
brought major changes,
667
00:52:36,436 --> 00:52:39,292
and we technicians,
also got in on the act,
668
00:52:39,317 --> 00:52:42,993
taking advantage of it to
push for what we needed.
669
00:52:45,519 --> 00:52:50,117
It was Hou who enabled us
to realise our dream,
670
00:52:50,142 --> 00:52:54,078
of shooting a whole
film in live sound.
671
00:52:54,483 --> 00:52:56,474
On A City of Sadness,
672
00:52:56,499 --> 00:52:59,799
we had very
rudimentary equipment,
673
00:52:59,824 --> 00:53:04,834
just a Nagra,
a mono track and two microphones.
674
00:53:05,126 --> 00:53:09,041
Hou later decided to back me up
and buy me additional equipment.
675
00:53:09,332 --> 00:53:13,084
When I gave Mr. Tu money,
676
00:53:13,293 --> 00:53:18,881
I told him not to worry
about paying me back.
677
00:53:19,171 --> 00:53:23,530
So long as he was
making a secure living,
678
00:53:23,813 --> 00:53:27,602
the principle was
that it buy equipment,
679
00:53:27,895 --> 00:53:29,785
and fund the training of new people.
680
00:53:30,135 --> 00:53:34,813
This equipment laid the
foundation for Taiwanese cinema
681
00:53:34,838 --> 00:53:38,910
to improve the quality
of the sound recording.
682
00:53:39,099 --> 00:53:42,570
As there was no
financial burden on me,
683
00:53:42,595 --> 00:53:44,977
as Hou had paid for it all,
684
00:53:45,261 --> 00:53:51,622
the money I was saving personally
meant I could buy things I needed.
685
00:53:51,903 --> 00:53:56,456
This allowed me to help on
low-budget films,
686
00:53:56,716 --> 00:53:59,863
with operational finance
coming from big-budget projects.
687
00:54:01,347 --> 00:54:03,816
The box office was very good.
688
00:54:03,841 --> 00:54:06,099
A City of Sadness
was a huge success.
689
00:54:06,629 --> 00:54:09,303
The biggest of 1989.
690
00:54:09,726 --> 00:54:12,346
This made it easier to find investors.
691
00:54:12,523 --> 00:54:15,237
I've always refused
interference,
692
00:54:15,262 --> 00:54:20,428
or the idea of relinquishing
control to get funded.
693
00:54:20,714 --> 00:54:23,229
That had made fundraising
difficult in the past.
694
00:54:24,035 --> 00:54:25,693
Prior to A City of Sadness,
695
00:54:25,718 --> 00:54:31,099
some of my films had received
awards at European festivals like,
696
00:54:31,124 --> 00:54:35,308
Rotterdam, Nantes or Berlin.
697
00:54:36,677 --> 00:54:38,990
None had won major awards.
698
00:54:39,320 --> 00:54:41,994
The Taiwanese press ignored me.
699
00:54:42,281 --> 00:54:48,197
Some dubbed me the winner
at a provincial festival.
700
00:54:48,733 --> 00:54:53,357
When A City of Sadness
won the Golden Lion at Venice,
701
00:54:53,645 --> 00:54:56,444
suddenly investors
showed up everywhere.
702
00:54:57,007 --> 00:55:00,683
Before, I'd had to mortgage my house,
703
00:55:01,728 --> 00:55:04,084
borrow heavily,
704
00:55:04,369 --> 00:55:06,679
just to co-produce my films.
705
00:55:06,970 --> 00:55:08,882
I hadn't been able
to pay any of this off.
706
00:55:09,171 --> 00:55:11,970
A City of Sadness
changed all of that.
707
00:55:45,001 --> 00:55:50,297
Media attention and critical
recognition internationally
708
00:55:50,322 --> 00:55:54,342
attracted the attention
of the government,
709
00:55:55,028 --> 00:56:01,060
which, based on the success,
started to promote the cinema culturally,
710
00:56:02,270 --> 00:56:07,392
and to even set plans in motion
to finance filmmakers.
711
00:56:08,592 --> 00:56:12,049
In addition, every year,
712
00:56:12,074 --> 00:56:15,511
festival managers
from around the world
713
00:56:15,536 --> 00:56:20,425
came to Taiwan
to search for films.
714
00:56:21,471 --> 00:56:25,631
As a result, art films
became big business.
715
00:56:57,736 --> 00:56:58,853
Lee Tien-lu
Puppeteer and actor
716
00:56:58,891 --> 00:57:01,401
After the funeral
of my father-in-law,
717
00:57:01,825 --> 00:57:04,766
we returned to Taipei.
718
00:57:05,493 --> 00:57:09,123
I had only 50 cents in my pocket.
719
00:57:10,554 --> 00:57:12,566
What could I do with 50 cents?
720
00:57:12,730 --> 00:57:15,165
I rented a rickshaw
721
00:57:15,788 --> 00:57:18,332
to take my wife, daughter,
722
00:57:18,618 --> 00:57:20,848
and baby home.
723
00:57:21,139 --> 00:57:22,970
My son, Hong, and me,
724
00:57:22,995 --> 00:57:26,537
we walked back to Duanlungtong,
taking 13 breaks along the way.
725
00:57:27,161 --> 00:57:29,817
The Puppetmaster
1993
726
00:57:29,842 --> 00:57:35,655
By a happy coincidence,
I met a former disciple when I arrived.
727
00:57:36,022 --> 00:57:41,226
Since the defeat of Japan,
he played on Ping-chiang Street,
728
00:57:41,251 --> 00:57:45,464
and he started a busy
season there on July 7th.
729
00:57:45,543 --> 00:57:47,803
He came to see me on July 13th,
730
00:57:47,828 --> 00:57:50,263
knowing I would be home.
731
00:57:50,654 --> 00:57:54,630
He came to see me,
and he started by saying:
732
00:57:54,655 --> 00:57:57,664
''Master,
the whole company is waiting for you,
733
00:57:57,689 --> 00:57:59,572
''come and play with us.''
734
00:58:00,689 --> 00:58:03,550
I replied by saying that I
still got malaria attacks.
735
00:58:03,685 --> 00:58:05,035
What could I do?
736
00:58:05,756 --> 00:58:10,432
He said not to worry about it.
737
00:58:10,604 --> 00:58:13,896
A bed would be set up backstage,
738
00:58:13,941 --> 00:58:18,839
and I could lie down if the
malaria attacks ever started,
739
00:58:18,864 --> 00:58:24,654
he would take over
performing the show.
740
00:58:55,843 --> 00:58:57,280
Dui, take my puppet.
741
00:59:03,444 --> 00:59:04,358
He's shaking now.
742
00:59:04,383 --> 00:59:05,234
Hurry, hurry.
743
00:59:14,421 --> 00:59:15,350
He's shaking now.
744
00:59:17,444 --> 00:59:22,069
Assayas: When was it possible for a Taiwanese
film to shoot on location in China?
745
00:59:23,046 --> 00:59:25,356
I went there in 1988.
746
00:59:25,847 --> 00:59:30,718
It had become as martial
law had been lifted in 1987.
747
00:59:31,169 --> 00:59:37,004
In fact, it wasn't Beijing
that had forbidden us,
748
00:59:37,571 --> 00:59:41,009
but Taiwan that was reluctant to let
us doing film and TV programs there.
749
00:59:41,256 --> 00:59:44,804
China embraced us.
750
00:59:45,303 --> 00:59:48,732
The film is set in old Taiwan,
751
00:59:48,757 --> 00:59:52,168
but the Taiwan of old
no longer exists.
752
00:59:52,358 --> 00:59:55,655
So I went looking for it
on the mainland.
753
00:59:57,129 --> 01:00:02,250
Rice fields, landscapes,
houses and period clothing.
754
01:00:02,781 --> 01:00:06,806
Both places are
similar in many ways.
755
01:00:06,942 --> 01:00:09,503
Everything looks
identical to old Taiwan.
756
01:00:10,525 --> 01:00:15,759
In particular,
country villages and rural landscapes.
757
01:00:15,845 --> 01:00:17,825
We made this a police station.
758
01:00:17,908 --> 01:00:22,147
Lee Tien-lu had worked
closely with the police,
759
01:00:22,901 --> 01:00:28,662
doing a lot of promotional
work for them with his puppets.
760
01:00:29,047 --> 01:00:32,553
Lee Tien-lu is like a walking
encyclopedia of Taiwanese history.
761
01:00:32,578 --> 01:00:36,424
He has spent all of his life in Taiwan,
762
01:00:36,890 --> 01:00:41,114
ever since the initial
Japanese occupation of Taiwan.
763
01:00:41,146 --> 01:00:45,994
In my childhood,
I watched a lot of puppet theatre.
764
01:00:46,114 --> 01:00:51,028
Lee's style was very
traditional.
765
01:00:55,036 --> 01:00:57,875
The puppets are smaller,
about the size of your palm,
766
01:00:57,900 --> 01:01:00,036
It's very refined.
767
01:01:03,356 --> 01:01:07,116
I find his performances to be
very beautiful and fluid.
768
01:01:07,528 --> 01:01:12,836
He also has in-depth
knowledge of Peking opera.
769
01:01:12,861 --> 01:01:14,801
He sings it very well.
770
01:01:15,098 --> 01:01:19,364
This type of theatre
is a local tradition,
771
01:01:19,389 --> 01:01:22,608
but its repertoire
is closely linked to
772
01:01:22,633 --> 01:01:25,762
to the model
of the Peking opera.
773
01:01:25,926 --> 01:01:28,051
He is a very funny person,
774
01:01:28,076 --> 01:01:31,770
as an artist, totally
unselfconscious.
775
01:01:32,411 --> 01:01:36,934
He does not think of
himself as an artist.
776
01:01:37,653 --> 01:01:39,629
He's bursting with
life and energy.
777
01:01:40,137 --> 01:01:43,614
Despite our age difference,
778
01:01:43,864 --> 01:01:48,217
I feel very close to him,
we are kindred spirits.
779
01:01:49,313 --> 01:01:51,266
Like me, he was always fighting,
780
01:01:51,290 --> 01:01:53,834
very temperamental,
781
01:01:54,508 --> 01:01:57,365
and very strong-willed.
782
01:01:57,591 --> 01:02:00,696
When I went to shoot
in China,
783
01:02:00,721 --> 01:02:04,260
I brought my whole team with me.
784
01:02:04,990 --> 01:02:08,060
There was about 100 of us.
785
01:02:09,591 --> 01:02:12,426
Twenty on the Mainland side,
and eighty on ours,
786
01:02:12,451 --> 01:02:17,232
and about a dozen trucks.
787
01:02:17,396 --> 01:02:21,386
Lee brought along
a puppet troupe,
788
01:02:21,411 --> 01:02:24,263
because I wanted the real thing.
789
01:02:24,576 --> 01:02:27,950
They were all
older men,
790
01:02:27,975 --> 01:02:30,279
50 or 60 years old.
791
01:02:30,630 --> 01:02:34,869
If they made mistakes,
he would glare at them.
792
01:02:35,201 --> 01:02:36,513
They were terrified,
793
01:02:36,904 --> 01:02:39,607
despite their age
and experience.
794
01:02:50,761 --> 01:02:54,806
I came here when I
was an assistant director.
795
01:02:56,197 --> 01:03:00,655
There are many tunnels in
mountainous areas like this.
796
01:03:04,484 --> 01:03:08,681
As a child,
I would get carsick,
797
01:03:09,171 --> 01:03:11,655
so I always took the train.
798
01:03:15,694 --> 01:03:20,413
Lee really is an encyclopedia.
799
01:03:21,132 --> 01:03:26,655
He knows all about our
traditional customs and rites.
800
01:03:26,680 --> 01:03:31,968
every detail about things we
no longer understand.
801
01:03:31,993 --> 01:03:33,763
Thanks to his vision of the past,
802
01:03:33,788 --> 01:03:35,887
my creative work can
access those dimensions,
803
01:03:35,912 --> 01:03:39,212
and take on a wider view,
804
01:03:39,236 --> 01:03:42,536
covering how we
Taiwanese acted in the past,
805
01:03:42,561 --> 01:03:48,493
and interacted with
traditional Chinese values.
806
01:03:48,593 --> 01:03:51,934
From mining my own experience,
807
01:03:51,959 --> 01:03:54,738
I've tried to develop
a form of creation
808
01:03:54,763 --> 01:03:58,708
that allows me to reflect
on myself.
809
01:03:59,067 --> 01:04:01,613
Seeing my past and
background more clearly,
810
01:04:01,638 --> 01:04:04,378
thinking about how I
have become who I am,
811
01:04:04,410 --> 01:04:08,074
has allowed me to
understand others better.
812
01:04:08,685 --> 01:04:13,122
My earlier films tended to be
more dramatic and romantic.
813
01:04:13,169 --> 01:04:16,536
I often wanted to take
a different direction.
814
01:04:16,732 --> 01:04:20,438
However, modern life
seemed hard to decipher,
815
01:04:20,463 --> 01:04:23,547
and I had to take time and
consider how to look at it.
816
01:04:23,572 --> 01:04:28,094
I wanted to reflect on it
with some distance.
817
01:04:28,391 --> 01:04:30,211
It's just like when we
reflect on your past.
818
01:04:30,236 --> 01:04:33,189
I wanted to make a movie
that does that with "now".
819
01:04:33,458 --> 01:04:35,278
Man 1: Excuse me.
820
01:04:35,317 --> 01:04:37,051
Man 2: Give us a hand, please.
821
01:04:37,778 --> 01:04:39,762
Hou: Back up a little.
822
01:04:40,536 --> 01:04:41,200
Hou: Bye.
823
01:04:43,544 --> 01:04:44,919
Hou: It's Da Hua.
824
01:04:45,583 --> 01:04:47,840
Assayas: How long until we arrive?
825
01:04:48,137 --> 01:04:50,354
Hou: When will we arrive in Shih-fen?
826
01:04:50,379 --> 01:04:52,496
How long will it take?
827
01:04:54,520 --> 01:04:56,685
I shot two films here:
828
01:04:56,710 --> 01:05:00,119
Dust in the Wind in 1986,
829
01:05:00,144 --> 01:05:02,176
and Goodbye South, Goodbye
in 1996.
830
01:05:02,504 --> 01:05:06,223
I wanted to film
in the present tense,
831
01:05:06,248 --> 01:05:11,590
and no longer with
a look to the past,
832
01:05:11,615 --> 01:05:13,401
then see the difference.
833
01:05:13,775 --> 01:05:17,275
It feels like that
modern life moves fast,
834
01:05:17,300 --> 01:05:20,651
and you can go anywhere
because it's convenient.
835
01:05:20,676 --> 01:05:27,595
Filming in the present, as a result,
takes on another mood and form.
836
01:05:27,650 --> 01:05:28,947
She is from Ping-hsi.
837
01:05:28,972 --> 01:05:31,415
We became friends
when I shot there.
838
01:05:35,025 --> 01:05:37,619
Did you shoot in Che-tong?
839
01:05:37,644 --> 01:05:41,908
A long time ago,
but I rarely go there now.
840
01:05:42,752 --> 01:05:45,742
I am very curious about
the thoughts of people,
841
01:05:45,767 --> 01:05:48,017
those in the past and
of my contemporaries.
842
01:05:48,041 --> 01:05:51,525
as well as the
world itself today.
843
01:05:51,550 --> 01:05:56,369
If I see a man,
in a café,
844
01:05:56,394 --> 01:05:59,173
who smokes constantly,
845
01:05:59,198 --> 01:06:01,158
I want to know what
he is thinking about.
846
01:06:01,183 --> 01:06:06,033
I would like talk to him,
get inside his head.
847
01:06:06,058 --> 01:06:07,884
It's a new experiece.
848
01:06:07,909 --> 01:06:11,189
Maybe sometimes on
my way somewhere,
849
01:06:11,214 --> 01:06:14,619
a group on motorbikes
stop for the light.
850
01:06:14,644 --> 01:06:18,187
Their thoughts on the world
must be totally different to mine.
851
01:06:18,212 --> 01:06:20,470
Their way of
thinking about life,
852
01:06:20,495 --> 01:06:24,674
their mindset and logic
must be different to mine.
853
01:06:24,699 --> 01:06:26,627
This sparks my curiousity.
854
01:06:26,666 --> 01:06:29,580
Now I've changed
in this direction.
855
01:06:29,955 --> 01:06:34,212
The Puppetmaster was
about Lee and his family.
856
01:06:34,237 --> 01:06:37,148
Then there was
Good Men, Good Women,
857
01:06:37,172 --> 01:06:40,960
following Annie Yi and her life,
858
01:06:40,985 --> 01:06:42,947
I still didn't feel it was enough.
859
01:06:42,972 --> 01:06:46,477
After that I moved on to
Goodbye South, Goodbye,
860
01:06:46,502 --> 01:06:51,869
and trying to capture the savvy
and ideas of real people today,
861
01:06:51,894 --> 01:06:57,405
the authentic rhythms of
their lives and behaviours.
862
01:07:16,169 --> 01:07:17,419
How about pak choi?
863
01:07:18,176 --> 01:07:20,958
Do you have salted cabbage?
864
01:07:21,395 --> 01:07:22,887
What's that?
865
01:07:23,051 --> 01:07:24,762
Fried cabbage.
866
01:07:49,174 --> 01:07:51,673
Assayas: How long has
it been like this in Taiwan?
867
01:07:52,299 --> 01:07:53,166
Does he have any comment?
868
01:07:53,509 --> 01:07:58,144
When the value of the Hong
Kong dollar fell and ours rose,
869
01:07:58,169 --> 01:08:03,504
Taiwanese producers
invested heavily in films there,
870
01:08:04,578 --> 01:08:07,947
so a lot of Hong Kong
films were imported.
871
01:08:09,091 --> 01:08:12,748
However,
over the last three years,
872
01:08:12,773 --> 01:08:16,958
audiences have
started to shun them,
873
01:08:16,983 --> 01:08:20,240
as the stories and
casts are all the same.
874
01:08:20,714 --> 01:08:27,438
As a result, distributors
started to buy in Western films,
875
01:08:27,648 --> 01:08:31,713
They snatched up anything from any
studio, festival or filmmaker.
876
01:08:32,555 --> 01:08:35,125
In the past, the import of
Western films was limited,
877
01:08:35,150 --> 01:08:37,483
in order to protect the local
market from competition.
878
01:08:37,508 --> 01:08:42,992
so the number of prints available
was set at a maximum of eight.
879
01:08:43,273 --> 01:08:48,398
That's finished, so now
there are at least 50 prints around.
880
01:08:48,719 --> 01:08:52,375
Western films
monopolise the rooms.
881
01:08:53,063 --> 01:08:55,914
It looks like a supermarket,
882
01:08:55,939 --> 01:08:59,820
where the only product
would be foreign cinema.
883
01:08:59,969 --> 01:09:04,617
Have you considered ways in which
you could distribute your own films,
884
01:09:04,642 --> 01:09:08,281
perhaps by renting screening
rooms or opening a cinema?
885
01:09:08,430 --> 01:09:10,664
My dream is to build a theatre.
886
01:09:11,102 --> 01:09:13,922
Distribution here has been
monopolised by the major chains.
887
01:09:14,891 --> 01:09:21,093
My films should be released
in a few venues,
888
01:09:21,118 --> 01:09:22,680
and stay there longer,
889
01:09:22,705 --> 01:09:25,328
in what in Europe you call
an arthouse run.
890
01:09:25,353 --> 01:09:27,939
In the current chain system,
891
01:09:27,964 --> 01:09:31,323
if a film is to be distributed,
892
01:09:31,348 --> 01:09:32,815
it will be in 40
theatres at a time,
893
01:09:32,840 --> 01:09:34,242
and require 40
prints of the film,
894
01:09:34,267 --> 01:09:37,894
Imagine the cost for
40 prints of your film?
895
01:09:37,919 --> 01:09:41,151
And then you factor in
the costs of promotion.
896
01:09:41,308 --> 01:09:45,073
If the film doesn't work,
897
01:09:46,003 --> 01:09:49,167
it's a complete disaster.
898
01:09:49,542 --> 01:09:51,612
Some films are ideal
for an arthouse run,
899
01:09:51,637 --> 01:09:54,097
an extended screening period
on only one or two screens.
900
01:09:55,440 --> 01:09:59,987
I've been mulling over if I could
develop an arthouse cinema,
901
01:10:00,167 --> 01:10:04,784
with only a screening
room or two,
902
01:10:06,370 --> 01:10:08,222
a small coffee shop,
903
01:10:08,769 --> 01:10:12,917
where people can meet
and talk all about movies,
904
01:10:12,942 --> 01:10:19,745
and buy special publications
and film merchandise.
905
01:10:19,909 --> 01:10:22,019
They're abundant abroad.
906
01:10:23,480 --> 01:10:27,433
It could be next to a university.
907
01:10:28,511 --> 01:10:32,347
Students and cinephiles
could find their way there.
908
01:10:33,447 --> 01:10:36,230
It should be a nice
place to socialise,
909
01:10:36,255 --> 01:10:40,503
like the temple was for me
and my friends back then.
910
01:10:42,065 --> 01:10:46,144
Now, for young people today,
it's McDonald's.
911
01:10:46,169 --> 01:10:47,425
This is where they meet.
912
01:10:47,605 --> 01:10:54,370
Interpreter: Does Hong Kong's
return to China affect Taiwan?
913
01:10:55,011 --> 01:10:59,487
Of course, Hong Kong acted as an
intermediary between Taiwan and China.
914
01:10:59,512 --> 01:11:02,870
Direct relations
were prohibited.
915
01:11:04,995 --> 01:11:07,378
Now that's all changed.
916
01:11:07,542 --> 01:11:10,440
There's just the Mainland now.
917
01:11:10,933 --> 01:11:15,675
We've lost this
intermediary point.
918
01:11:15,700 --> 01:11:20,558
How will the Taiwanese
government respond to this?
919
01:11:20,612 --> 01:11:24,253
Before it was Taiwan and
Hong Kong investing in China,
920
01:11:24,278 --> 01:11:27,105
now China is getting
global attention.
921
01:11:27,269 --> 01:11:30,253
Before, the relationship between
Taiwan and the Mainland was –
922
01:11:30,278 --> 01:11:32,730
they used to want us to come
923
01:11:32,755 --> 01:11:34,925
Now we must push for it.
924
01:11:34,950 --> 01:11:39,769
The relationship is
not the same anymore.
925
01:11:39,831 --> 01:11:41,815
Dealing with this
issue requires wisdom,
926
01:11:41,840 --> 01:11:45,636
but I sincerely doubt the
capabilities of our decison-makers.
927
01:11:46,730 --> 01:11:50,815
This is why there was the missle crisis
between Taiwan and the Mainland in March.
928
01:11:50,840 --> 01:11:52,870
It's a question of wisdom.
929
01:11:53,073 --> 01:11:57,557
When a U.S. aircraft carrier
sailed through the Taiwan Strait,
930
01:11:57,582 --> 01:12:01,883
China understood that it was
really dealing with Washington.
931
01:12:02,109 --> 01:12:04,757
So now China negotiates
with the United States,
932
01:12:04,782 --> 01:12:06,258
and entirely ignores Taiwan.
933
01:12:06,751 --> 01:12:11,368
United States also wants to patch up
relations with Communist China,
934
01:12:11,393 --> 01:12:12,938
and ensure that
relationship is strong,
935
01:12:13,149 --> 01:12:17,243
because the market
in Asia is booming.
936
01:12:17,868 --> 01:12:22,142
For the best interests
of its own economy,
937
01:12:22,167 --> 01:12:28,147
Washington has to re-establish
good relations with the CCP.
938
01:12:28,172 --> 01:12:32,357
In my opinion,
regarding the current situation,
939
01:12:32,382 --> 01:12:36,490
Taiwan's future is likely
to get more difficult,
940
01:12:37,350 --> 01:12:41,123
unless our politicians
can begin to act wisely.
941
01:13:13,324 --> 01:13:19,401
In my filmmaking,
the character is decisive,
942
01:13:21,086 --> 01:13:25,001
and the character is based
on real people I encounter.
943
01:13:25,288 --> 01:13:27,849
Who Jack Kao will play,
944
01:13:28,609 --> 01:13:33,204
or who Lee Tien-lu, Annie Yi,
Wu Nien-jen will be,
945
01:13:33,229 --> 01:13:36,224
It is only when they
have been defined,
946
01:13:36,248 --> 01:13:39,242
that a story is
developed around them.
947
01:13:39,533 --> 01:13:42,571
I begin with the people.
948
01:13:43,695 --> 01:13:49,009
Lim Giong has a
background as a musician.
949
01:13:49,577 --> 01:13:52,411
He will struggle to make
the transition to acting,
950
01:13:52,698 --> 01:13:55,008
unless he can access the bigger
picture in a way he understands.
951
01:13:55,299 --> 01:13:57,530
However, with Jack Kao,
I give him less,
952
01:13:57,820 --> 01:14:00,733
otherwise his imagination
runs wild with ideas.
953
01:14:02,581 --> 01:14:07,054
I direct the actors in a simple way,
with only a small amount of discussion.
954
01:14:07,423 --> 01:14:12,783
They're free to move and
develop their own rhythms.
955
01:14:14,145 --> 01:14:16,580
They know what needs
to be said in a scene.
956
01:14:16,866 --> 01:14:19,746
I'm there to remind them to not
focus to entirely on the words,
957
01:14:20,028 --> 01:14:24,022
to draw their
attention to others,
958
01:14:24,309 --> 01:14:27,666
the space and how they
could interact with it.
959
01:14:30,311 --> 01:14:32,462
The script is there to
give them a direction,
960
01:14:32,952 --> 01:14:36,343
to let them know what is
there to be said in a scene,
961
01:14:36,634 --> 01:14:39,945
but they need to be free
to think while they perform.
962
01:14:40,235 --> 01:14:43,148
The dialogue must be
the result of a reaction.
963
01:14:44,076 --> 01:14:45,396
Speech is always spontaneous.
964
01:14:45,677 --> 01:14:49,637
Sticking to script can,
sometimes will,
965
01:14:50,759 --> 01:14:52,078
make a performance unnatural.
966
01:14:52,359 --> 01:14:55,352
It's much more powerful and moving,
I believe,
967
01:14:55,640 --> 01:14:58,474
if the reactions are spontaneous.
968
01:14:58,762 --> 01:15:00,957
Generally, my rule is
not to have a rehearsal,
969
01:15:01,242 --> 01:15:03,359
as I think rehearsal makes
the scenes too familiar.
970
01:15:03,843 --> 01:15:06,802
It restricts the actors if they
know the material too well.
971
01:15:07,085 --> 01:15:10,874
In general, I find one or
two takes are enough.
972
01:15:11,166 --> 01:15:13,601
If it's taking too long,
I'll stop,
973
01:15:13,887 --> 01:15:16,607
and attempt the scene
the next day.
974
01:15:17,088 --> 01:15:20,206
If the scene still isn't
working, I'll cut it,
975
01:15:20,489 --> 01:15:22,606
and figure out an alternative.
976
01:15:23,290 --> 01:15:25,101
If I have to design
another scene,
977
01:15:25,126 --> 01:15:27,285
I make sure it's
new for them,
978
01:15:27,572 --> 01:15:30,770
to ensure that it's
novel and unfamiliar.
979
01:15:43,258 --> 01:15:46,968
A film is a world
that you create,
980
01:15:47,259 --> 01:15:49,569
and a place to put
all that you feel.
981
01:15:49,860 --> 01:15:51,293
You can't do this in real life.
982
01:15:51,581 --> 01:15:53,716
If you expressed all of
your feelings in daily life,
983
01:15:53,741 --> 01:15:55,201
for some it would be unbearable,
984
01:15:55,226 --> 01:15:56,740
some people find it
very hard to handle.
985
01:15:56,765 --> 01:15:58,990
I think this what I am like,
986
01:15:59,143 --> 01:16:01,453
and I always will be.
987
01:16:01,744 --> 01:16:04,543
It's only by making films,
988
01:16:04,825 --> 01:16:08,058
that I can understand
myself better.
989
01:16:08,347 --> 01:16:11,146
As in Goodbye South, Goodbye,
990
01:16:12,188 --> 01:16:14,498
I find myself drawn to
these characters.
991
01:16:14,789 --> 01:16:19,421
I especially like their energy,
992
01:16:19,711 --> 01:16:22,784
their passion, their vitality.
993
01:16:23,072 --> 01:16:26,907
I can't be critical
of my characters.
994
01:16:27,193 --> 01:16:29,025
I present them as they are.
995
01:16:29,514 --> 01:16:32,996
If you love what you see,
996
01:16:33,021 --> 01:16:34,032
you need to present it.
997
01:16:34,316 --> 01:16:36,387
Then I observe them objectively.
998
01:16:36,677 --> 01:16:40,172
About them I feel...
not tragedy,
999
01:16:40,196 --> 01:16:42,873
but a kind of
inescapable isolation.
1000
01:16:43,159 --> 01:16:48,360
They seem trapped by history
and their own experience,
1001
01:16:48,641 --> 01:16:51,281
as if it were destiny or fate.
1002
01:16:53,723 --> 01:16:57,306
Many filmmakers in
their fifties get preachy,
1003
01:16:57,331 --> 01:17:00,556
their work is brimming
with their philosophy of life.
1004
01:17:00,580 --> 01:17:03,465
They get every idea in there.
1005
01:17:03,490 --> 01:17:05,357
As a result,
the films are bad.
1006
01:17:05,647 --> 01:17:08,606
Whereas before,
with these directors,
1007
01:17:08,798 --> 01:17:12,480
their first films were strong,
precise and affecting.
1008
01:17:13,450 --> 01:17:17,809
People were genuinely
touched by them.
1009
01:17:18,092 --> 01:17:20,561
So I think we should
all try and return to that,
1010
01:17:20,853 --> 01:17:25,006
the approach seen in
these early films that was...
1011
01:17:26,015 --> 01:17:28,165
powerful and direct.
1012
01:17:28,455 --> 01:17:32,052
Just like when we
first got out of school,
1013
01:17:32,377 --> 01:17:35,097
and learnt that we had
to begin to face the world.
1014
01:17:35,378 --> 01:17:37,256
That is the way we should be.
1015
01:17:51,784 --> 01:17:54,348
Goodbye South, Goodbye
1996
1016
01:18:14,872 --> 01:18:18,947
Its exhaust system
looks fucked up.
1017
01:18:32,038 --> 01:18:34,792
Is your bike going to explode?
1018
01:19:47,887 --> 01:19:51,816
"Ha! Go! You're nothing special"
1019
01:19:52,043 --> 01:19:56,683
"Everything's about you,
while I depress myself"
1020
01:19:56,824 --> 01:20:01,183
"Although I love you,
you can't be so childish"
1021
01:20:01,535 --> 01:20:05,816
"Not even a lonely duck
would want you"
1022
01:20:06,769 --> 01:20:10,910
"Ha! Go! You're nothing special"
1023
01:20:11,066 --> 01:20:15,714
"Everything's about you,
while I depress myself"
1024
01:20:15,848 --> 01:20:20,223
"Although I love you,
you can't be so childish"
1025
01:20:20,527 --> 01:20:22,754
"Not even a lonely duck
would want you"
1026
01:20:23,278 --> 01:20:26,955
When I met Jack Kao,
I felt this he was very capable.
1027
01:20:27,363 --> 01:20:30,520
He brings a real presence with him,
when he is on screen,
1028
01:20:31,175 --> 01:20:33,313
especially with his eyes and face.
1029
01:20:33,634 --> 01:20:34,632
How long have I known Hou?
1030
01:20:34,657 --> 01:20:36,964
Almost 10 years.
1031
01:20:37,949 --> 01:20:38,887
Jack Kao
Actor
1032
01:20:40,089 --> 01:20:42,604
The first time I met him,
1033
01:20:43,777 --> 01:20:44,855
he didn't give
me anything to do.
1034
01:20:44,880 --> 01:20:49,649
He made me wait for two days.
1035
01:20:49,933 --> 01:20:53,449
My work began on the
third day of the shoot.
1036
01:20:54,095 --> 01:20:55,157
Lim Giong
Musician and actor
1037
01:20:57,576 --> 01:20:59,886
For me it began with
The Puppetmaster.
1038
01:21:01,217 --> 01:21:03,971
Yeah, The Puppetmaster.
1039
01:21:04,538 --> 01:21:06,291
I was just starting out in film,
1040
01:21:06,779 --> 01:21:08,213
I knew nothing about it.
1041
01:21:08,900 --> 01:21:12,098
I was looking at
how they worked.
1042
01:21:12,661 --> 01:21:15,772
I didn't know how
to talk to the crew,
1043
01:21:15,797 --> 01:21:17,811
the cinematographer
and lighting technicians.
1044
01:21:18,103 --> 01:21:19,776
Hou: You were meant
to be busy creating.
1045
01:21:20,064 --> 01:21:25,015
With experience,
you learn to manage quite well,
1046
01:21:25,306 --> 01:21:28,663
creating the details of
your role is quite fulfilling.
1047
01:21:30,027 --> 01:21:33,066
If you mention it to Hou later,
1048
01:21:33,429 --> 01:21:37,264
he will say:
"Oh, you were creating for yourself.''
1049
01:21:38,871 --> 01:21:40,782
I wasn't really doing anything!
1050
01:21:45,273 --> 01:21:48,789
I wasn't very confident
with my acting.
1051
01:21:49,795 --> 01:21:50,750
He is a musician.
1052
01:21:51,235 --> 01:21:54,672
Perhaps he wanted my help at the
box office, since I was doing well?
1053
01:21:56,277 --> 01:21:58,473
I saw you in concert,
1054
01:21:58,758 --> 01:22:02,274
I noticed the energy
you were giving off.
1055
01:22:04,120 --> 01:22:07,591
I hoped to get this
energy into the movie,
1056
01:22:08,641 --> 01:22:10,872
but first he had to
make the adjustment.
1057
01:22:11,162 --> 01:22:13,417
The two are quite different,
you need to adjust.
1058
01:22:13,442 --> 01:22:16,113
Then you could be more controlled.
1059
01:22:16,844 --> 01:22:19,803
It was when doing
Goodbye South, Goodbye,
1060
01:22:20,085 --> 01:22:22,725
that you finally
made the transition.
1061
01:22:23,207 --> 01:22:25,482
I was very conscious
of the camera.
1062
01:22:25,808 --> 01:22:29,518
Hou: He's very self-conscious.
Lim: I'm always aware of it!
1063
01:22:52,097 --> 01:22:55,727
I find that, here in Taiwan,
1064
01:22:57,219 --> 01:23:01,772
the society is still imbued
with something primitive.
1065
01:23:02,421 --> 01:23:05,971
Suffused with a fierce machismo.
1066
01:23:06,262 --> 01:23:09,335
At every turn,
you have to prove you are a man.
1067
01:23:09,823 --> 01:23:11,257
Like a wild animal.
1068
01:23:11,544 --> 01:23:13,854
I find it quite fascinating,
1069
01:23:16,266 --> 01:23:21,626
the symbols of strength
in this male world.
1070
01:23:23,028 --> 01:23:27,023
Politics is a similar world, as it's all
about countering an other's power.
1071
01:23:27,510 --> 01:23:31,299
But, honestly,
I'm less interested in it.
1072
01:23:31,591 --> 01:23:35,984
Why? It's too calculating,
too base.
1073
01:23:36,273 --> 01:23:38,310
The gangster scene, though,
1074
01:23:38,794 --> 01:23:40,751
it's a world founded on machismo,
1075
01:23:41,035 --> 01:23:43,938
which is more romantic,
1076
01:23:45,676 --> 01:23:47,395
more forceful.
1077
01:23:47,877 --> 01:23:51,507
In Taiwan,
this primitive side still exists.
1078
01:23:51,799 --> 01:23:55,998
I have experienced
this male world myself,
1079
01:23:56,280 --> 01:23:58,496
and I've always been around men,
1080
01:23:58,521 --> 01:24:02,356
it takes me back to the past,
to where I grew up.
1081
01:24:03,203 --> 01:24:08,232
There, it was always necessary to
be the best,
1082
01:24:08,707 --> 01:24:14,956
to strive after
becoming the big man,
1083
01:24:15,847 --> 01:24:18,191
or the leader of the thugs,
1084
01:24:18,215 --> 01:24:20,559
otherwise you were nothing.
1085
01:24:23,010 --> 01:24:27,846
As a man, I feel that a man
has to do what a man has to do.
1086
01:24:28,132 --> 01:24:33,082
Today, men are less assertive,
more neutral.
1087
01:24:34,334 --> 01:24:37,213
Women will eventually
surpass men.
1088
01:24:37,495 --> 01:24:40,169
I am certain the world
will change completely.
1089
01:24:43,217 --> 01:24:47,815
I'm nostalgic for
the macho world,
1090
01:24:48,619 --> 01:24:50,656
its rivalries,
1091
01:24:50,940 --> 01:24:53,933
competing like
a pack of dogs,
1092
01:24:54,261 --> 01:24:57,698
fighting to be in charge.
1093
01:25:12,562 --> 01:25:20,386
"Although you and I
meet in the air every day"
1094
01:25:23,433 --> 01:25:31,937
"Because your soft
and sweet voice is cute"
1095
01:25:34,170 --> 01:25:42,383
"I can't help it"
1096
01:25:42,964 --> 01:25:47,127
"I'm lost for you"
1097
01:25:47,227 --> 01:25:55,463
I've always loved the
early pop songs of Taiwan.
1098
01:25:55,644 --> 01:25:58,796
They probably remind me of
childhood memories,
1099
01:25:59,085 --> 01:26:02,238
what I felt
towards my family.
1100
01:26:02,527 --> 01:26:05,964
They are mostly sad songs,
correlating to my past feelings.
1101
01:26:06,728 --> 01:26:08,082
I picked up a lot of them then.
1102
01:26:27,277 --> 01:26:35,949
"Although you and I
meet in the air every day"
1103
01:26:36,332 --> 01:26:38,183
My bearing is quite
different when I sing,
1104
01:26:38,208 --> 01:26:41,727
and my friends all notice
I'm very serious about it.
1105
01:26:42,734 --> 01:26:46,171
I enter a song
completely when I sing.
1106
01:26:46,455 --> 01:26:47,855
I inhabit the mood of the song,
1107
01:26:48,376 --> 01:26:51,926
its atmosphere and tone.
1108
01:26:52,898 --> 01:26:56,972
It cleanses your soul and allows
you to express your happiness.
1109
01:26:57,379 --> 01:26:59,769
When I'm writing a script,
1110
01:27:00,260 --> 01:27:02,775
or even thinking about one,
1111
01:27:03,061 --> 01:27:04,751
maybe thinking of a
time I was happy too,
1112
01:27:04,776 --> 01:27:06,499
I will start to sing,
1113
01:27:07,503 --> 01:27:10,018
or start to a hum any tune
that comes into my head.
1114
01:27:14,483 --> 01:27:20,175
"I only miss you."
1115
01:27:25,116 --> 01:27:27,543
For me, singing is an excellent
way to, you know,
1116
01:27:27,568 --> 01:27:31,518
let out pent up emotions
and express my feelings.
1117
01:27:31,542 --> 01:27:34,363
I find it exhilirating.
1118
01:27:35,021 --> 01:27:38,545
And you sing that much better
when you are in love.
1119
01:27:54,079 --> 01:27:59,332
"After many struggles,
do you ever feel tired?"
1120
01:28:00,496 --> 01:28:06,316
"I've felt that way before,
many times"
1121
01:28:06,691 --> 01:28:09,387
"When someone broke my heart"
1122
01:28:10,171 --> 01:28:13,304
"And no one understands"
1123
01:28:13,616 --> 01:28:19,788
"I think we both
feel truly exhausted"
1124
01:28:20,201 --> 01:28:26,640
"Cheers friends, let it all out"
1125
01:28:26,797 --> 01:28:34,197
"And think of the
past as a hangover"
1126
01:28:34,409 --> 01:28:40,513
"Tomorrow's wine glass is
free of yesterday's sadness"
1127
01:28:40,927 --> 01:28:48,069
"Raise your glass with
me and celebrate the past"
1128
01:28:52,798 --> 01:28:54,494
[Singing in Japanese:]
1129
01:28:54,519 --> 01:29:00,111
"After many struggles,
do you ever feel tired?"
1130
01:29:00,880 --> 01:29:06,025
"I've felt that way before,
many times"
1131
01:29:06,594 --> 01:29:09,418
"When someone broke my heart"
1132
01:29:10,088 --> 01:29:13,804
"And no one understands"
1133
01:29:13,994 --> 01:29:19,585
"I think we both
feel truly exhausted"
1134
01:29:21,546 --> 01:29:27,226
"Cheers friends, let it all out"
1135
01:29:27,528 --> 01:29:33,867
"And think of the
past as a hangover"
1136
01:29:34,950 --> 01:29:41,445
"Tomorrow's wine glass is
free of yesterday's sadness"
1137
01:29:41,724 --> 01:29:48,889
"Raise your glass with
me and celebrate the past"
1138
01:29:49,068 --> 01:29:54,736
"Cheers friends, let it all out"
1139
01:29:54,761 --> 01:29:55,572
[Singing returns to Mandarin:]
1140
01:29:55,597 --> 01:30:02,706
"And think of the
past as a hangover"
1141
01:30:03,086 --> 01:30:09,425
"Tomorrow's wine glass is
free of yesterday's sadness"
1142
01:30:09,639 --> 01:30:15,398
"Raise your glass with
me and celebrate the past"
1143
01:30:16,882 --> 01:30:23,010
"Cheers friends, let it all out"
1144
01:30:23,211 --> 01:30:29,650
"And think of the
past as a hangover"
1145
01:30:30,487 --> 01:30:37,038
"Tomorrow's wine glass is
free of yesterday's sadness"
1146
01:30:37,329 --> 01:30:43,634
"Raise your glass with
me and celebrate the past"
1147
01:30:44,360 --> 01:30:50,923
"Cheers friends, let it all out"
1148
01:30:51,179 --> 01:30:58,177
"And think of the
past as a hangover"
1149
01:31:01,636 --> 01:31:02,440
That's a wrap!