The Taipei Cultural Center in New York is thrilled to collaborate with Film at Lincoln Center and The Museum of Modern Art to present “A Journey in Spring,” Taiwanese filmmaking duo Wang Ping-Wen and Peng Tzu-Hu’s feature debut, as a part of the 53rd edition of the New Directors/New Films (ND/NF) Festival on April 13 and 14.
Established in 1972, the ND/NF festival has brought attention to fresh cinematic talent from around the world. This year’s selection will introduce 25 features and 10 shorts, including one world premiere, 14 North American premieres, four U.S. premieres, and 16 New York premieres.
For the first time in 6 years, Taiwanese production has returned to ND/NF with “A Journey in Spring.” The film depicts the story of an old man who puts his wife’s body in an old freezer after her sudden death, showing the life experience of losing a loved one. The directors decided to film in super 16mm as they were “looking for a tender image, a poetic way to show life is imperfect and incomplete.” The film painted “a lyrical family vignette of quiet transcendence, poised on the cusp between past and future, city and countryside, life and death,” according to the introduction by Film at Lincoln Center.
La Frances Hui, a curator in MoMA’s Department of Film and a 2024 ND/NF co-chair, observes that “This year’s ND/NF lineup is a splendid exhibition of adventure, courage, and ambition. The latest class of new directors finds imaginative use of the film language to craft works that celebrate joy and love, while also reflecting on pain, conflict, and our shared humanity. Their creativity embodies profound insight and inspiration, reaffirming cinema’s relevance and essential place in contemporary expression.”
For more information, please visit: https://www.newdirectors.org/2024/films/a-journey-in-spring
A Journey in Spring
Director: Wang Ping-Wen, Peng Tzu-Hui
【Showtime】
Saturday, April 13 at 3:45 PM at MoMA/Q&A with Wang Ping-Wen and Peng Tzu-Hui
(11 West 53 Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues)
Sunday, April 14 at 3:45 PM at FLC/Q&A with Wang Ping-Wen and Peng Tzu-Hui
(165 W 5th St, north side, upper level, between Broadway and Amsterdam)
Film Title：A Journey in Spring
Running Time：90 min.
Language：Taiwanese Hokkien, Mandarin
Director：PENG Tzu-Hui (Taiwan), WANG Ping-Wen (Taiwan)
Shooting Format：S16mm Film
Country：Taiwan
Synopsis:
After placing his wife’s remains in a freezer, an old man takes his memories of her on a journey in the spring rain to face his life’s regrets. A Journey in Spring is the feature debut from artist and director PENG Tzu-Hui, and director WANG Ping-Wen, which won the Silver Shell for Best Director in 2023 San Sebastian Film Festival.
Film Festivals and Awards:
•2023 Silver Shell Award for Best Director at the San Sebastian Film Festival
•2023 Silver Screen Award for Best Performance (YANG, Kuei-Mei)
•2023 Best Screenplay at the Singapore International Film Festival
•2024 Hong Kong International Film Festival, Young Cinema Competition, nominated for Firebird Awards
About the directors:
PENG Tzu-Hui (Taichung, Taiwan, 1989), artist and filmmaker graduated from the Department of Fine Arts National Taiwan University of Arts, she began pursuing for master’s degree in Artistic Production, University Polytechnic Valencia in 2014. Her work spans painting, ceramics, and film. She has shown exhibiions in Europe and Taiwan, including Independent Land (2012), On the Verge (2019) and Transformation of the Universe (2023), as well as the video art piece A Creation Project (2012).
WANG Ping-Wen (Taipei, Taiwan 1987) studied Journalism at Chengchi National University and graduated with an MFA in Film and Television Production from Loyola Marymount University. She has directed the short films Between Us (2014), Labyrinth (2016) and Military Dog (2019). She is an alumnus of the Produire au Sud Taipei Workshop 2018 and Talent Tokyo 2019.