Wandering Peddlers

Thelma

September 2017 •Norwegian

A college student starts to experience extreme seizures. She soon learns that the violent episodes are a symptom of inexplicable abilities.

The Last Insurrection

May 2015 •Chinese

Martial law was lifted in Taiwan in 1987. Since then, all kinds of reform and democratization were raised. However, in May 1991, four young people were arrested by the Bureau of Investigation (MJIB). This had generated the fear in society and led to the so-called “White Terror.”

Come Hungry: A Day in the Luzhou Night Market

Invalid date •English

As dawn breaks over Taipei, a whole world comes to life around the Luzhou temple night market, only to be dismantled by sunrise. In COME HUNGRY, Oscar-winner Carol Dysinger creates a city symphony out of the rhythms, sounds, colors, and flavors of this ephemeral community that revolves around Taiwanese food, traditions, and identity.

Taiwan: The Generation After Martial Law

January 1990 •Chinese

This program illustrates how video activists have developed sophisticated use of small format video, with poetic and powerful imagery, complex mixes of sounds and scores and an effective editing style that belies the urgency under which it is being made. The video movement in Taiwan has made successful use of home cassette distribution, via both mail and street vendors. The Green Team collective has pioneered in this effort with over 100 titles in distribution, documenting the struggles of farmers, students, workers and environmentalists.

The Serpent

April 1966 •Swedish

During his military service, a man meets a woman who works in the kitchen at the camp and they start a relationship. When the man is out on combat exercises, he becomes a witness to his Sergeant being paralyzed by a snake.

A Better Tomorrow

August 1986 •Chinese

A reforming ex-gangster tries to reconcile with his estranged policeman brother, but the ties to his former gang are difficult to break.

The Snake Man

January 1972 •Khmer

After an affair with the fabled Snake King, a woman gives birth to a son she names Veasna. After Veasna finds a wife, a witch curses their daughter to be born with snakes instead of hair.

Sapera

March 2019 •Hindi

In the holy city of Varanasi, 16-year-old Ali has one of the most dangerous jobs in the world – catching poisonous snakes. The boy balances life and death on a daily basis to support his family.

A Brighter Summer Day

July 1991 •Chinese

A boy experiences first love, friendships and injustices growing up in 1960s Taiwan.

Eyes of the Buddha

January 1922 •Chinese

The story of a young Taiwanese girl who is rescued from the clutches of a Chinese official by a heroic Japanese soldier. As he savagely attempts to force the girl to marry him, the Chinese official is scared away by the flashing eyes of a Buddha statue.

The Islands

May 2022 •Chinese

This documentary film follows the journey of former student activist and current political staffer Chen Ting-hao after his decision to escape the cynical politicism of Taipei City to the political backwater of Matsu, an island group administered by Taiwan less than a dozen kilometers off the coast of China. The narrative follows Ting-hao as he reflects on how his political idealism fits in with everyday political reality and ponders Taiwan’s complex political landscape, Taiwan’s relations with a meddlesome yet surprisingly indifferent China, and the perspectives of Matsu residents on Taiwan-China affairs.

Yi Yi

September 2000 •Chinese

Each member of a family in Taipei asks hard questions about life's meaning as they live through everyday quandaries. NJ is morose: his brother owes him money, his mother is in a coma, his wife suffers a spiritual crisis when she finds her life a blank and his business partners make bad decisions.

Eat Drink Man Woman

August 1994 •Chinese

A retired and widowed Chinese master chef Chu and his family live in modern day Taipei, Taiwan. He lives with his three attractive daughters, all of whom are unattached. Soon, each of the daughters encounter new men in their lives. When these new relationships blossom, stereotypes are broken and the living situation within the family changes.

The Gamblers

June 2007 •German

Twa-Tiu-Tiann

January 2014 •Chinese

Through a famous painting "South Street Festival", a Taiwanese college boy unexpectedly travels 100 years back in time, back to the 1920's, when Taiwan was under Japanese rule. He is stuck, he panics, he wants to return to 2014 but soon changes his mind, not just because of the prettiest geisha girl in town...

Allegro non troppo

March 1976 •Italian

The film is a parody of Disney's Fantasia, though possibly more of a challenge to Fantasia than parody status would imply. In the context of this film, "Allegro non Troppo" means Not So Fast!, an interjection meaning "slow down" or "think before you act" and refers to the film's pessimistic view of Western progress (as opposed to the optimism of Disney's original).

Millennium Mambo

October 2001 •Chinese

Vicky recalls her romances with her exes Hao Hao and Jack in the neon-lit clubs of Taipei.

The Lucky Woman

October 2020 •Vietnamese

This film follows the lives of undocumented Vietnamese workers in Taiwan doing odd jobs to survive, after having been forced to flee their employers due to harsh working conditions and lack of medical care. How will living this way for more than a decade shape their lives?

Turning 18

August 2019 •Chinese

Two girls in the bloom of youth meet at a vocational training program. Afterwards, their lives move in completely different directions.

Apolitical Romance

September 2013 •Chinese

A China-Taiwan cross-cultural rom-com with an excellent, unforced chemistry between its leads, Apolitical Romance follows Mainland girl (Huang Lu) as she visits Taiwan and gets involved with a local guy (Bryan Chang) who helps her track down her grandmother’s first love from 60-odd years ago.