Taiwan Culture Film Series
Thursdays, starting March 10, 2005:
10:30 AM, 4:30 PM, 10:30 PM
CUNY-TV/Cable Channel 75
Films from the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office about Chinese artistic traditions, culture and folk arts as manifested in the cultural, social and economic life of Taiwan today. These films all boast beautiful imagery and music and provide expertly photographed glimpses of Chinese festivals, ceremonies, sports, martial arts, and dance and music performances, along with interview clips and informative narration.
March 10
Taiwan Festival Troupes - Coming Together in Competition (2001, 25 min.)
“Battle array” is a traditional Taiwanese form of street art whose performers must have a good background in martial arts. After undergoing several hundred years of history and various social changes, battle array has developed into a program for showing respect to Heaven and entertaining the gods. This documentary introduces the origin of battle array, including its introduction into Taiwan with ancestral immigrants, how it took root amongst farm villages, and its use by farmers as a form of physical activity during the off-season.
March 17
Sounds of the Mountains, Dances of the Ocean: The Music and Dance of Taiwan's Indigenous Peoples (1997, 30 min.)
Anthropologists classify the indigenous peoples of Taiwan as belonging to the Austronesian speech community. Taiwan's indigenous peoples can be divided into at least nine tribes, with each tribe having distinct and well-established geographical boundaries. After thousands of years in these ancestral territories, some tribes developed mountain cultures, some coastal cultures, and others having characteristics of both. This film documents the music and dance of each of Taiwan's nine indigenous tribes. It also portrays the features and characteristics of life and culture particular to each of the tribes.
March 24
A New Spring for Taiwan's Ke'tse Opera (2003, 26 min.)
Ke-tse Opera is Taiwan's only totally indigenous opera. It is believed that through operas such as “Eight Drunken Immortals” and “The Heavenly Official Gives a Blessing” in which deities are portrayed, people are able to express their gratitude to the gods and ask for continued good fortune. Ke-tse opera also portrays many aspects of life, and incorporates crude humor with the sorrow of the Weeping Melody and the traditional and contemporary styles of clowning of the hu-pei-tse opera. Ultimately it is not just a kind of opera, but an expression of the vitality of the Taiwanese people.
March 31
Taiwan's National Palace Museum in Transition (2004, 24 min.)
Established in Taiwan, the National Palace museum has been housing and protecting the treasures of human civilization for more than 50 years. The holdings cover 7000 years of history and are seen in splendid shots of museum articles from China's past including paintings, scrolls, texts, calligraphy, ceramics, musical instruments, lacquerware, and European art objects brought by missionaries. The film also covers the Museum's collaboration with other museums, traveling exhibits and lending of objects, and preservation programs.
April 7
Competition Without Medals - Folk Sports in Taiwan (2003, 25 min.)
This film captures the many faces of the folk sports, including different styles of martial arts practiced throughout Taiwan, and presents a new facet of the island's strength and grace. Today, as athletes of the world complete for the gold, the residents of this island burn with an enthusiasm of their own, fascinated with their own style of sport and recreation.
April 14
Matsu - Taiwan's Guardian Goddess
(2001, 27 min.) Matsu, Goddess of the Sea, was not a fictitious character; she was a beautiful young woman with a real name whose benevolence and heroic deeds in saving people's lives made her a goddess. The worship of Matsu has become a tremendously popular practice in Taiwan-she is the most worshipped deity on the island, and a majority of the island's temples are dedicated to her. Through pilgrimages and parades by believers, this documentary displays the great respect for Matsu held by her followers, allowing viewers to experience the goddess' importance in the people's daily lives.
April 21
Chinese Music in Taiwan: A Living Tradition
(1994, 27 min.) This three-part film provides a concise overview of traditional Chinese music in Taiwan today. First, there's an introduction to uniquely Chinese musical instruments. Second are performances of three types of traditional Chinese music in their natural settings. Finally, there's a look at the current state of development of traditional Chinese music in Taiwan.
April 28
Festivals in Taiwan
(1994, 27 min.) China has been primarily an agricultural nation. Thus it is no wonder that the lunar calendar looms large in Chinese folk customs, beliefs and festivals. In Taiwan these customs and festivals take the form of a unique culture of temple fairs with their own local flavors.
May 12
A Dancing Feast - A Documentary on Taiwan Choreography
(1995, 27 min.) Chinese dance began at the time when “Da-Jung” created “Cloud Gate” during the age of Yellow Emperor of early antiquity. Through the myriad changes of time, it has evolved from early sacrificial ceremonies to minor forms of personal entertainment and from demonstrating reverence of Heaven to go after one's own will. While based on Chinese culture, dance in Taiwan has drawn upon the sustenance of the world and developed an intriguing style. This presentation will allow you to see how Taiwan's choreographers and dancers dance froth the native as well as the global spirit in a universal language. Please come dance with us.
May 19
The Four Keys to Taiwan Folk Art
(1996, 28 min.) Fortune, success, longevity and bliss are the four principal visual motifs represented in the Taiwan folk arts. Each motif incorporates a wide range of meanings and connotations in a single Chinese word: “fu” (fortune), “lu” (success), “shou” (longevity), and “hsi” (bliss). The 21st century is here and Taiwan's culture of material prosperity is known worldwide, yet the traditional folk spirit and beliefs unique to Taiwan have never been lost. They still comprise the motive force behind Taiwan's “economic miracle.”
May 26
An Acrobat Training and Performance
(1988, 25 min.) Folk arts can be categorized into four prototypes, namely, juggles, techniques, martial arts and stunts. Originating from acrobatics during the Spring-and-Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, all these folk arts have been well preserved and handed down through generations over more than 2000 years, thanks to the ingrained grass roots popularity of folk arts. Today, Chung Hwa Acrobatic Training Center has assumed the roles of acrobatic researcher, developer, and teacher and offers a well designed training program, which is shown in this film.
Taipei Economic and Cultural Office/New York
RELATED LINKS:
www.taipei.org
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