[New Taipei City]
The best films of the year of 2023 “New Taipei City Documentary Film Award” is going to be revealed today (29th). The New Taipei City Documentary Film Award sets no limitation on theme and region, hands the copyright back to the directors and provides both funding assistance and professional filming supervision. New Taipei City is actively aiming to become a documentary-friendly city and has been working toward this goal for 13 years. New Taipei City Documentary Film Award has also become a significant award for domestic documentaries. In order to encourage more filming production teams to bring their shooting plans to live, New Taipei City has raised the shooting fund to NT$350,000 per film this year and continued to cooperate with The Chi Po-lin Foundation to establish a specific price for recording the environment. The City wishes to see more creative production team to bring even more high-quality and heart-warming documentaries for the audience.
[New Taipei City] This year, Department of Information of New Taipei City Government cooperates with “Singapore Chinese Film Festival” to bring “Short Documentary Collection: New Taipei City Documentary Film Award” to Singapore’s Oldham Theatre. Not only opens up NTCDF’s vision but also connects New Taipei City with the world through directors’ camera shots and show the globe more about Taiwan.
As borders of various countries are gradually opened after a long impact of Covid-19 pandemic for the past two years, Taiwan will also open its doors on October 13. Not only International tourism, business activities and cultural exchanges, etc. are expected to a bouncing recovery, but many people can’t wait any longer to buy a plane ticket to fly abroad and experience foreign cultures and enjoy exotic cuisine.
"New Taipei City Documentary Awards" is all set with full preparation for all passenger! In order to let the world see New Taipei City, a friendly city known as the cradle of documentary films, and to enable international travelers to discover the unknown humanities and wonderful stories on this land, Department of Information New Taipei City Government proactively broaden the international visibility of the New Taipei City Documentary Film Award-winning films and exclusively joined in hands with EVA Air to launch “New Taipei Theater” on its in-flight entertainment system, allowing documentary film creations to accompany global travelers during their flights.
Department of Information New Taipei City Government stated that New Taipei City has held the New Taipei City Documentary Film Awards series to support all creators’ passion and original intention to documentary film creation with practical actions for 12 consecutive years, and had not been affected by the pandemic.
In addition to continuing to welcoming documentary film entries forcompetition and providing funds to award-selected creative teams. New Taipei City Government has also broaden all the channels in response to rapid change of daily habits and viewing pattern that pandemic brought about.
Especially during the hard time under the predicament of border blockades around the world, the authority not only attend international film festivals via online screening actively to maintain connection with the world, but cooperate with EVA Air to to launch the bilingual "New Taipei Film Festival" on the in-flight entertainment system of all flights, allowing travelers around the globe to appreciate and travel into stories of charming Taiwan through the works of outstanding Taiwanese directors and also feel the power “touching, everywhere” of the documentary films.
"New Taipei Film Festival” has set a playlist that features award-winning films in the past 11 years. For each season, two New Taipei City Documentary Film Award short films finalist and one cinema screening documentary film will be broadcast on the all flights of EVA Air.
From November, "Blind Cat" directed by Ye Yin-long depicts the story of the pottery artists in Sanxia, New Taipei, Lin Yin's "You are in my heart salamander” will take audience to follow the research team to the mountains, exploring the survival predicament of the salamanders’ ecology due to environmental changes, Director Li Jian-cheng “See You White House" reproduces the 10-year history of post-war Sino-American cooperation at the Yunlin Shuilin U.S. Army Nutrition Workstation 50 years ago.
In addition, the Department of Information New Taipei City Government once again cooperated with the "Taiwan Film Festival of Boston" this year, so that the award-winning documentary films in New Taipei City can still be seen through diversified channels during the pandemic. The film festival themed was held on October 1st and 2nd, themed “Crack & Light” that guide audience seeing through the shadow and light in life.
The festival features films from New Taipei City Documentary Film Award, “Passage”, a story about the career of dairy cattle veterinarian with new vitalities bring into dairy farming industry in tough time, looking forward to bring this industry new light and possibilities.
"Faces of a Taiwanese Opera Actress" walks into the current situation of Taiwanese opera, and explores the opportunity for the development and preservation of traditional culture; "Eagle's Hand" sees the gradual decline of the lotus root agricultural industry, trying to recall the glory and light of the land in the memory.
The New Taipei City Documentary Awards held its awards ceremony on October 29th with the top three finalists revealed and issued the award certificates for the 13 best films of the year
Mayor Hou You-Yi said that the New Taipei City Documentary Awards has entered its 12th year. The city government encourages and assists the development of documentary films through competitions and open screenings. Mayor Hou also thanked all the industry practitioners of documentary film production for their devotions which recorded all the bitter and sweet on this land, that all the audience could step and immerse into different pieces of stories.
Mayor Hou said that in order to encourage excellent documentary film productions, the shooting fund for the award-selected films of the competition will be increased to NT$350,000 per film next year, so that the team will have more sufficient funds for film production.
In addition, New Taipei City Documentary Awards will continue the cooperations and set up awards with The Chi Po-lin Foundation to continue focusing on environmental issues in Taiwan.
Award ceremony this year invited Ou Jin-De the Chairman of The Chi Po-lin Foundation, Director Tseng Wen-Chen, the representative of the finalist juries, Ben Tsiang, founder and chairman of CNEX Foundation, senior documentary film producer Gary Shih, senior directors Huang Ming-Chuan, Yang Li-Chou, Huang Chia-Chun, Su Che-Hsien, Chou Wen-Chin, Maso Chen, etc., to enjoy this honorable moment with all the finalists and award-winners.
"Hearing From the Dolphin” from director Zhang Hong-Jie have won the first prize in 2022, the second award goes to "Poetry of Life” from director Hsu Ching-Lun, and the third prize goes to “Relife” from Huang Sheng-Chun and Hsueh Lo-Yi. The top three award-winners have won the trophy and bonus NT$100,000, NT$80,000 and, NT$60,000 respectively.
In addition, because all the juries unanimously believed that this year's entries have great diversity in not only themes but issues, they decided to add a Special Recommendation Award and provide a bonus of NT$30,000. The winner goes to "Nut Brother" from director Dapeng Xia and Stephen Che.
This year, New Taipei City Documentary Awards cooperate with The Chi Po-lin foundation, to invite all the juries, directors and award-finalists and winners to see the documentary film “Beyond Beauty - TAIWAN FROM ABOVE” in Banqiao ShowTime theater, as a kick off to “2022 New Taipei City International Documentary Month”, screening at “Fuzhon 15 Documentary Film Theater”, where the 13 award-winning films of the year will also be premiering to the public, and welcome all the citizens to enjoy the films.
The 2023 New Taipei City Documentary Awards will call for entires via online applications. The receipt date is from January 1 to March 1, 2023. For relevant information and the 2022 New Taipei City International Documentary Month and following screening information, please visit the official website http://www.doc.ntpc.gov.tw or official Facebook fan page “New Taipei City Documentary”.