2020
Directed by 艾曼紐・寇克
Philosophers have long used ideas like yin and yang or lightness and weight to explain the makeup of the world. Here, I’d like to offer my own theory: the world is made up of big trees and little squirrels. The big tree stands silent, steadily pointing toward the sky. The squirrel darts between the branches—lively, charming, constantly complaining, and just a little annoying. As for me, I’m more like a complicated machine. Beyond the forces of family background and social conditioning, my free will flickers—barely there, yet stubbornly refusing to give in. Pulled in both directions, my mind constantly sways between the tree and the squirrel. That’s why I’m often drawn to films with depth and gravity—stories grounded in the weight of personal histories and quiet resilience. And especially when I come across characters who are even more chaotic squirrels than I am—that feeling of comfort? So real. So good
Try entering the keyword "intellectuals" and shift the timeline to the period after the Cultural Revolution. What kind of landscape emerges from the intricate intertwining of history and individual lives? Is it the yearning for freedom, the pursuit of art, unrestrained sexuality, or perhaps the spoken and unspoken madness and rebellion between people? The 1980s can truly be called a magnificent cultural renaissance for China.
In Anton Chekhov’s The Seagull, dreams, work, and love intertwine. Life is a constant pursuit of purpose—despite the frustration, the failures, and the sense of helplessness that may await. Yet we keep struggling, relentlessly. Absurd? Perhaps. A comedy? Undeniably. And that, too, is life. The characters on stage may not be as mad as the world we live in, yet their stories mirror our own. In the illusion of theater, we often glimpse the truest reflections of ourselves
Being misunderstood leaves wounds in people's hearts; sometimes these misunderstandings are cleared, while other times they heal with time. But to be misunderstood by the state, to be wrongfully convicted by the judiciary, means not only losing freedom and time but also all the myriad possibilities of embarking on different life paths. Coinciding with the physical screenings of the 2nd Taiwan Innocence Film Festival "Never" in 2023 (December 7th-10th, Spot Huashan Cinema), Giloo and the Taiwan Innocence Project Association jointly present "Beyond Innocence Online Film Festival." Through eight selected films related to wrongful convictions, justice, and incarceration, we invite you to explore judicial errors and prison life you may have never imagined before.