Taiwan Powers Into Berlinale With Four-Film Slate Led By LGBTQ+ Crime Drama

Taiwan is making a strong showing at the Berlin Film Festival with four features in official selection, anchored by queer crime thriller “Silent Sparks” and cross-border pic “Dreams in Nightmares” in the Panorama strand. The Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA) is meanwhile mounting an aggressive market push, bringing 99 titles from 45 companies to the European Film Market (EFM).

“Silent Sparks,” marking helmer Ping Chu’s feature debut, packs serious star wattage with Golden Horse winner Shih Ming Shuai and Golden Bell recipient Akira Huang headlining what’s being billed as a distinctly Taiwanese take on LGBTQ+ crime fare. The PTS Originals production, backed by TAICCA development coin, will vie for Berlinale’s Teddy Award alongside “Dreams in Nightmares,” a Taiwan-U.S.-U.K. co-production from producer Pin-Chun Liu that unites Each Other Films, Track Eight Pictures Limited and Verdant Peak Films.

The Forum section adds visual artist Su Hui-Yu’s “The Trio Hall,” an experimental take on Taiwan’s late-70s cinematic aesthetic. Shot during Su’s Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei exhibition, the film explores the era’s signature trifecta of living rooms, dining rooms and disco clubs.

Rounding out the selection is Chu Chun-Teng’s “Eel” in Berlin’s newly minted Perspectives competition strand. Set in Taipei’s Shezidao district, the drama tracks a mysterious girl and a lost boy as they unpack their buried pasts on the city’s fringes.

At EFM, TAICCA’s market slate includes Golden Horse winner Chen Yu-hsun’s “A Foggy Tale,” actor Ariel Lin’s producing debut “Blind Love” starring Wu Ke-xi, and “96 Minutes” from “The Scoundrels” helmer Hung Tzu-Hsuan.

The org is also mounting its Taiwan Spotlight pitching session on Feb. 15, with projects including Haftix Films’ psychological thriller “Child, Uninvited” and “The Teenage Psychic” director Ho-Yu Chen’s “Don’t Worry About Vampires.”

TAICCA chair Homme Tsai points to growing international attention and presence for Taiwanese creative works and filmmakers.