CDF 2011
Finalists – Shorts
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3.1415…
Qin Yuming, Gao Pan
China / 2011 / 45 min
In Mandarin with Chi & Eng Subtitles
CCTV’s “3.15 Evening Show” is the most popular show in mainland China that focuses on consumer rights, and is the source of much pride for its makers given the considerable buzz it generates. 3.1415… examines the Chinese media system through three members of the show’s production team.
Director’s Bio:
Qin Yuming, Associate Professor of Television and Film Arts at Communication University of China (CUC). In 2008, Qin established “Pandavision” at CUC to encourage documentary production. Gao Pan is a Master student in Mass Communication at CUC. This film was selected for the FIPA Film Festival in France.
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The Warriors of Qiugang 仇崗衛士
Ruby Yang
USA / 2009 / 39 min
In Mandarin with Chi & Eng Subtitles
Chang Gong Li, a peasant from Qiugang Village of Anhui Province, started a one-man crusade against a nearby chemical factory that heavily polluted the surrounding areas. It was only after a series of visits to officials and appeals, which resembled a contemporary portrayal of “David and Goliath” that Chang finally managed to get rid of the health hazard.
Director’s Bio
Ruby Yang was born in Hong Kong and immigrated to the U.S. in 1977. Yang has edited and directed many films about Chinese Americans. Her documentary The Blood of Yingzhou District won the 2006 Oscar for Documentary Short Subject film. A Moment in Time, was the second runner-up in this Festival in 2010.
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Our Home Beside the River 我家門前有大河
Mayaw Biho
Taiwan / 2009 / 55 min
In Mandarin with Chi & Eng Subtitles
Twelve years ago, Meihua and her family of seven including her parents lived as squatters under the Sanying Bridge in Taipei. The place was subsequently demolished. They managed to rebuild their home, but it was pulled down again following the birth of Meihua’s son in 2009. The film takes a close look at the dire situation faced by many Taiwan’s aborigines.
Director’s Bio:
Mayaw Biho, a Pangcah aboriginal, was born to the Makutaay tribe in Hualian. After graduated from university, he entered the Public Television Service and produced many documentaries. Currently an independent filmmaker, he has made over 30 films. In addition to making documentaries about Taiwan’s aborigines, he also helps in restoring the naming of indigenous people and places in Taiwan.
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My Fancy High Heels 我愛高跟鞋
Ho Chao-ti
Taiwan / 2010 / 55 min
In Mandarin & English with Chi & Eng Subtitles
This is a story about high heels, one that spans from spring, when fresh calfskin is processed meticulously by factory workers, to winter, when the final products are worn by fashionable women in New York. The film follows the birth of high heels from farms at the China-Russia border, all the way to factories in southern China and finally the luxurious shoe stores in New York.
Director’s Bio
Ho Chao-ti used to be a magazine editor and television reporter, her films have centered on non-mainstream subjects including hybrid contemporary culture, the costs of globalization and more. Her works, The Gangster’s God, Squeezebox on the Road and El Salvador Journal, were featured in many film festivals. El Salvador Journal was shown at this festival in 2009.
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河上風光
sang Tsui Shan
Hong Kong / 2010 / 14 min
No Dialogue
Using a montage of old photographs, this experimental film takes the viewer back in time into the memories of villagers of Ho Chung Village in Saikung.
Director’s Bio:
Tsang Tsui Shan graduated from the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts. She won the ifva silver prize in 2004 with the film Lonely Planet. She completed her first feature-length film Lovers on the Road in 2008, which won the Best Drama Award at the 8th South Taiwan Film Festival.
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The Heart of Qin in Hong Kong 海角琴心
Maryam Goormaghtigh
Hong Kong / 2010 / 52 min
In Cantonese with Chi & Eng Subtitles
The Guqin, one of oldest Chinese music instruments, was included by UNESCO as part of the world’s cultural heritage in 2003. This traditional musical instrument manages to be preserved in the modern city of Hong Kong. The film explores the art of Guqin music and how it is preserved and passed on.
Director’s Bio:
Maryam Goormaghtigh was born in Switzerland in 1982. She learnt how to play the Guqin at the age of thirteen from her father. Later on, she studied cinema at the INSAS in Belgium. Her first full-length film The Ghost of Jenny M was selected for the International Film Festival “Vision du réel” in Nyon in 2009.
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Cop Shop 差館
Zhou Hao
China / 2011 / 56 min
In Mandarin with Chi & Eng Subtitles
It is by no means easy to film a police station in China, and more so when it comes to the busiest one in Guangzhou – the police post at the train station.
The film features what resembles a cross section of society moving in and out of the station, from unpaid workers to petty thieves and scavengers.
Director’s Bio:
Zhou Hao worked as a photojournalist for Xinhua News Agency and the Southern Weekly magazine. His documentary films including Houjie, Senior Year and Using have been awarded and shown in many film festivals.
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