TPNWCP Director Chen Yu-hsun Series 陳玉勳系列(I) - Early Works 臺灣小人物: "Tropical Fish 熱帶魚" & Love Go Go 愛情來了" (2-Day Screening)

*As part of the 2021 Taiwan Post-New Wave Cinema Project, we kindly ask that you register to view this film through Eventbrite . (For UK email registrations only, such as: ac.uk; co.uk; org.uk; gov.uk etc.) Alternatively, please fill in and submit this form if you are currently residing in the UK OR a student of an UK institution but do not have a UK domain email address.

Please Note: Due to licencing regulations we are required to prioritise audiences based in the UK for these films. As such, only those who have registered with a .uk email address will be provided with screening links. Those registering with non-UK domain email addresses (e.g. gmail.com, hotmail.com, or edu.com.tw) will not receive links.

**Registration closes 11:59PM BST Tuesday 22nd June. Links to view these films will be sent out at 12AM BST Wednesday 23rd June.

Synopses

Tropical Fish

1995 32nd Golden Horse Award Best Suporting Actress — Wen Yin; Best Original Screenplay — CHEN Yu Hsun

1995 Locarno International Film Festival Leopard

1995 Montpellier Film Festival Best Feature Film

Ah Jiang, a graduating junior high school student, is facing the tough high school entrance examination. Because of his low grades, he frequently blamed by his parents and humiliated by his classmates. To escape from this overwhelming pressure, he spends a lot of time in the arcades playing video games. He imagines himself as the superhero in his favourite game “Street fighter” and he can defeat all evil characters.

One day, Ah Jiang sees that a little boy, Dao Nan, is kidnapped by two men. Out of curiosity, Ah Jiang follows them and intends to rescue the boy. But he ends up being kidnapped also.

While the kidnappers, Ah Ching and the Boss, are still trying to figure out how to ask for the ransom, the Boss dies in a car accident. Ah Ching, a rather kind-hearted fellow, decides to take the kids back to his hometown.
In his hometown, Ah Ching discusses with his relatives and they decide to call the kids’ parents. Both sides agree to meet in Dan Sui. The meeting falls apart because each side goes to a different Dan Sui.

Since Ah Ching was too poor to have much education, he encourages Ah Jiang to study hard. While waiting to arrange another meeting, Ah Ching provides books for Ah Jiang to prepare for the entrance examination.
Because the hometown policemen become suspicious of Ah Ching’s activities, he brings the kids onto a fishing boat. He establishes a friendly relationship with the kids. When the police catch up with them, the kids say that Ah Ching is their rescuer instead of kidnapper. Police immediately rush Ah Jiang back to Taipei to take the entrance examination.

Love Go Go

1997 34th Golden Horse Award Best Supporting Actress—Hui-Jen Liao; Best Supporting Actor—Ching-Hsin Chen

Nominated 1997 34th Golden Horse Award Best Original Film Score—Ji-Kang Wang、Ingrid Wu; Best Original Film Song—Sticky-Rice(composer/performer) 、Nien-Hsien Ma (lyricist); Best Original Screenplay—Yu-Hsun Chen; Best Visual Effects—Tony Hu; Best Makeup & Costume Design—Yu Wang

Nominated　2000 Jeonju Film Festival - Asian Indie Cine-Forum

1. Ah-Sheng is a baker. Homely and awkward, the only bright spot in his dull life is nervously observing Li-Hua, once his best friend in elementary school, now a beautiful young woman who buys lemon pies at his bakery everyday but doesn’t recognize him. He is tormented over whether and how to let her know that even after she mysteriously disappeared one day when they were young, he has never forgotten her and her friendship. He finally decides to participate in a televised singing competition to give the performance of his life.

2. Fat Sis is a typist whose head is filled with gossip and shopping. One day she finds a beeper and takes it home. Consumed with curiosity, she finally calls the person who keeps paging her and discovers a sexy male voice at the other end. Much telephone flirtation follows until Remeo insists on meeting in person, subjecting a frantic Fat Sis to two weeks of weight-loss hell. The day arrives, and clad in her best and brightest, she waits expectantly for her knight in shining armor.

3. Ah-Sung is a reluctant door-to-door salesman. Young and insecure, he goes to Li-Hua’s beauty salon to sell his wares and ends up getting a haircut because he is too tongue-tied to start his sales pitch. Suddenly, a crazed customer attacks Li-Hua, intent on killing her for having an affair with her husband. Ah-Sung saves the day, and he and Li-Hua escape up to the roof, where they end up spending a wordless afternoon together, two strangers taking comfort in their mutual isolation.

This is a movie about the heartbreak and humor of falling in love, falling in like, and the general chaos that hits our lives when we do, regardless of age, beauty or waistline.

Director Chen Yu-hsun

Born in 1962 in Taipei, Taiwan, Director Chen Yu-hsun earned an internship opportunity to work at Director Wang Shau-di's studio when he was a university student, developing a strong interest in filmmaking. Director Chen has written numerous scripts and directed for TV dramas. "Tropical Fish," his first feature film released in 1994, received the Golden Horse Awards for Best Original Screenplay. Alongside his film work, Director Chen has also directed TV commercials, music videos and TV dramas, all of which have received positive audience feedback noting Director Chen's humorous and approachable style. In 2013, Director Chen's feature film "Zone Pro Site" topped the box office at NT$300 million, becoming the highest-grossing Taiwanese film of the year.

Organiser: SOAS Centre of Taiwan Studies

Contact email: bc18@soas.ac.uk

Sponsor: Taiwan Ministry of Culture & Spotlight Taiwan