A Silent Gaze

Hsin-Yao Huang / Taiwan / 2022 / International Premiere / 180 min.

synopsis

Tainan County is located on the southwest coast of Taiwan. The locals have a modest lifestyle and make their living by rice farming and fishing. The filmmaker lived there for twelve years, capturing the beautiful coastal landscape and the lives of its inhabitants. This time-lapse documentary shows the transformation of nature and urban settlement by human activity as the permanence of tradition and human belonging. Static shots of sea waves and vast rice field give the impression of photographs come to life, creating a contemplative documentary film about the sense of timelessness in a Southeast Asian rural community.

“In 2021, while I was busy with the final stage of the post-production, my father suddenly passed away. I thought the best gift I could give him is this work full of sea salt and heavy wind, which very much resembled our lives and destiny.”

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Source: Director Statement, Taiwan Docs. https://docs.tfai.org.tw/en/film/6738

biography

Hsin-Yao Huang (* 1973) is a Taiwanese film director, screenwriter, and actor. He has made satirical and socially critical feature films, short films and documentaries. His film The Great Buddha + (2017) was awarded at the Toronto International Film Festival.