TPNWCP Hou Chi-Jan Series: "Ode to Time (四十年)" 5-Day Film Screening

*As part of the 2020 Taiwan Post-New Wave Cinema Project, we kindly ask that you register to view this film through Eventbrite .

Please Note: Due to licencing regulations we are required to prioritise audiences based in the UK for this film. As such, only those who have registered with a .uk email address will be provided with screening links.

Synopsis

After four decades, a group of veteran singers gather together again. The songs they wrote when they were young had once changed the fate of the island. However, time took away their youth and changed the island’s soul. Not only a new national identity has formed but so many new music genres have emerged since then. Can the innocent songs they sang back in the old days still be relevant in the new era? Or could they speak for only the souls of a particular generation?

On that memorable night in history, the veteran singers are re-united and sing those beautiful songs they wrote 40 years ago. The unpredictability in life, cruelty of fate and the complicated relations between Taiwan and China are gradually revealed in their singing.

Director Hou Chi-Jan

Director Hou’s career in film began with his first short, Stardust 15749001, which won the Grand Prize at the 2003 Taipei Film Festival. In 2005, his documentary feature Taiwan Black Movies was presented worldwide and nominated for Best Documentary at Golden Horse Awards. In 2010, HOU made his narrative feature debut, One Day, followed by When a Wolf Falls in Love with a Sheep in 2012. His works often convey his reflection on time and memories. Ode to Time is his latest documentary feature.

Contact email: ml156@soas.ac.uk

Sponsor: Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute X Taiwan Docs X Taiwan Cinema Toolkit