MCLC: Kano shown in occupied Legislature

[Denton, Kirk]

MCLC LIST
From: Terry Russell <Terry.Russell at umanitoba.ca>
Subject: Kano shown in occupied Legislature
*********************************************************

Martin Winter’s report of the poem by Hong Hong composed in response to
the student protests in Taipei is worth following up on. There has, in
fact, been an outpouring of cultural activity inspired by the protests.
One of the more high-profile events was the screening of the recent film,
Kano, inside the occupied Legislature. The showing of Kano, directed by
Umin Boya and produced by Wei Desheng, who rose to prominence with his
earlier film, Cape No. 7 (Haijiao qihao, 2008), was arranged by culture
activist Zhou Xinyi, who contacted the producers and negotiated the rights
for the screening. Wei Desheng also responded by sending a letter to of
support to the students inside the legislature.

http://www.libertytimes.com.tw/2014/new/apr/2/today-taipei3.htm

Wei Desheng’s films, including the epic Seediq Bale! (2011), in which Kano
director Umin Boya, a member of the Seediq tribe, played one of the
leading roles, have been tremendously influential in the development of a
popular sense of Taiwan’s unique history. In all three of these films the
presence of Indigenous (Aboriginal) and Japanese culture are strongly
felt. This runs directly contrary to the politically motivated
Sinicization project of the KMT government that has included a rewriting
of high school history textbooks to give more emphasis to Taiwan’s
inclusion in the flow of Chinese history. The student led Sun Flower
Movement can be read as a statement of the students’ rejection of the
government’s pro-China cultural agenda, as well as of its pro-China
economic policy.

http://www.libertytimes.com.tw/2014/new/apr/1/today-life2.htm

 The following is a link to a brief English-language article on the
showing of Kano, and Wei Desheng’s letter:

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2014/04/02/2003587101

TRADE PACT SIEGE: Producer screens ‘Kano’ for students in legislatureBy
Feng Yi-en, Wang Wen-hsuan and Jason Pan  /  Staff reporters, with staff
writerWed, Apr 02, 2014

Lights were dimmed to turn the occupied legislative chamber into a movie
theater on Monday night, as the blockbuster Taiwanese film Kano was
screened for the assembled students and media corps inside for an evening
of entertainment.

The screening was a treat for the Sunflower movement protesters holed up
inside the legislature, and was arranged with the approval of Wei Te-sheng
(魏德聖), executive producer of the baseball movie set in the 1930s.
Kano, whose domestic box office receipts have already surpassed NT$250
million (US$8.23 million), is based on the true story of a high-school
baseball team from Chiayi City overcoming the odds to reach the 1931 final
of Japan’s prestigious Koshien high-school baseball championship, held
annually in Osaka.

It has made history by becoming the first full-length feature film on the
commercial circuit given a screening inside the legislature.

Wei, Taiwan’s leading movie director and producer, threw his support
behind the Sunflower movement, while the students, who were into the 14th
day of their siege of the legislature, said watching Kano was a
much-needed respite and morale booster for them.

A spokesperson for Wei’s ARS Film Production Co said: “The students
initiated contact with us. We decided to give the go-ahead for the movie
screening inside the legislature. It was our way of showing support,
because we understood that many students were worn out mentally and
physically after what they went through in the past weeks.”

The screening began at 8:30pm on Monday evening, with several hundred
students and media representatives on hand to watch the three-hour-long
feature film.

After the rally in Taipei on Sunday, Wei was moved to write a letter to
the students, which was read aloud for the audience inside the legislature
before the screening.

In the letter, Wei lauded the courage of the students in their action “in
defense of our democracy.”

He also asked: “For the cross-strait service trade pact, can we not go
back and restart the negotiations from the beginning?”

“That night, when students broke down the doors to the legislature, I felt
such shock and intense emotions as I had never experienced before. It was
not the use of force by students, but because my heart deeply felt it was
the start of an awakening movement of people defending Taiwan,” Wei wrote.

“The government should not ask the students when the protest will end, but
should ask them to help solve problems,” he added.

“I truly wish that in future years I can still listen to songs and music
belonging to Taiwan, to tell stories about Taiwan and to smell the aroma
from the land of Taiwan,” Wei wrote at the end of the letter.

“I want to thank this group of students who are defending Taiwan’s
democracy. It is because of them that I have seen the beauty and goodness
of Taiwan,” Wei said.