Cleveland International Film Festival at the Keybank State Theatre
Q and A -Producer Doug and Dylan from CIFF (from left to right )
Question from Li-Jen Wu to the Producer Doug
Taiwanese Group with Producer Doug
Taiwanese Group with Producer Doug
The 2024 Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF) is presenting 362 films — 137 features and 225 shorts — from 60 countries over its 11-day run at Playhouse Square in Cleveland. Founded in 1977, the CIFF is a leader in helping the world discover the power of the film arts to educate, entertain, and celebrate an inclusive human experience. This year a movie “Invisible Nation” was selected and shown on 4/9 and 4/10/2024. It caught our eyes because it’s regarding Taiwan’s transformation from an authoritarian state to a flourishing democracy determined to decide its own future. A group of Taiwanese American Association of Greater Cleveland (TAAGC) went to see this movie at the playhouse square in Cleveland, Ohio.
With unprecedented access to Taiwan's sitting head of state, director Vanessa Hope investigates the election and tenure of Tsai Ing-Wen, the first female president of Taiwan. Vanessa Hope who is an American and she spent more than 7 years to make this movie. We are very thrilled to see this movie and more people know the position of Taiwan in the nation. One China and two systems didn’t work between China and Hong Kong. It would not work with Taiwan either while Hong Kong laid a very good example.
The Q and A after movie was conducted by Dylan from CIFF and Doug Blush, Producer of this movie from MadPix, Inc. Dylan asked “How do you go about the production in Taiwan?” Doug stated “Director Vanessa Hope is a deep expert on China and Taiwan on all issues and she speaks fluent Chinese and she is able to move in to Chinese and Taiwanese societies. How do you go about the production in Taiwan? She got to know President Tsai through political party. She works well the trust and she follows the movements before President Tsai got in so at the end she has easy access to people in Taiwan after gaining the trust. We couldn’t get this movie done without the partners in Taiwan and in US. The artists, people who worked on music and graphics and so many people believe this film. I hopes people take inspiration and what you believe it mattered. President Tsai’s story is so inspirational and you don’t compromise and you actually follow through what you believe and make things happen.” Doug stated “the biggest lesson we can draw from this film is watching the conflicts of Russians and Ukrainians and we need to resolve the issue without bomb, tanks and weapons so we cannot afford as a world to have bad thing happen there and we need to come up better relationship between China and Taiwan”. Doug said history is important and many people in US do not know the history of Taiwan such as where it came from and where the relationship China has been with Taiwan. It’s got me at most was watching the Olympics athlete not being able to look at his own flag when he stands at the podium. The athlete is crying as the flag is rising it hit me and it shows politics can take away the identity of somebody or some nations. Dylan asked what the original inspiration of making this film is. Doug said “Director Hope was so inspired by the President Tsai as a female leader of Democracy and she wants to elevate the power of women in government running democracy. President Tsai is a great example of really thoughtful leadership and get inspiration of how it should be running a country and moving into democracy.”
As Taiwanese Americans we are very thrilled to see this movie and we hope this movie can introduce Taiwan history to more people who do not even know Taiwan. As Janice Liu, President of TAAGC, stated at the end of movie President Tsai Ing-Wen would like us to walk out to introduce and promote Taiwan to others. We appreciate the producer Doug, Director Hope and all those partners who helped to make this movie so we have the opportunity to express Taiwan to more people about a story of Taiwan.
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