The 8th edition of the East Asia Film Festival Ireland (EAFFI) takes place at Irish Film Institute (IFI) this weekend, and the city’s cinema lovers can look forward to a fascinating selection of thought provoking films, as organisers present an eclectic mix of fiction, documentary, and classic titles for audiences to feast their eyes on.
In what promises to be a real treat, this year’s festival features a season of rare screenings of work by auteur filmmaker Edward Yang (1947–2007) with four masterworks from one of the most iconic figures, alongside Hou Hsiao-Hsien, of the Taiwanese New Wave film movement of the early 1980s.
Revered as “the thinker of urban culture”, Yang’s fast-moving yet melancholic ensemble pieces are grounded in a realist aesthetic – revealing the intricacies of interpersonal relationships between different generations and classes.
Each of the four special screenings will be introduced by Taiwanese film producer Chuti Chang. They include Yang’s first feature That Day, on the Beach, A Confucian Confusion, his sublime magnum opus Yi Yi, winner of the Best Director Award at Cannes, and the deeply personal epic A Brighter Summer Day immortalising the moment when teen pop culture went global, forging an effervescent but lasting bridge between East and West.
This year’s programme also includes a rich selection of fiction, documentary, and film essays by prominent and emerging writers and directors across East Asian cinema.
Fresh from the Berlin International Film festival, documentary filmmaker Kazuhiro Soda will take part in a Q&A after the screening of his new film The Cats of Gokogu Shrine, which opens the festival on Thursday March 7th.
Speaking about this year’s programme, Festival Director Marie-Pierre Richard says, “We are focused on bringing classic cinema and key film talents from East Asia to Irish audiences whether this is through our cinema screenings, commissioned online interviews or hosting in-person visits. To celebrate the wonderful Taiwanese New Wave director Edward Yang (1947–2007), we have four rarely screened works in 2K and 4K restorations, and Taiwanese producer Chuti Chang will be with us to present his films.
“Another great festival guest, Japanese documentary filmmaker Kazuhiro Soda, will take part in a series of talks and screenings in collaboration with four Irish universities, and share an In-Conversation event with Chuti Chang on producing independent cinema in a globalised environment. Soda’s fascinating new documentary The Cats of Gokogu Shrine, will open this year’s festival with a Q&A session following the Irish premiere screening.”
The festival brings works from prominent and emerging writers and directors from diverse cultural and social backgrounds across East Asian cinema to audiences in Ireland, shining a spotlight on classic cinema and key film talents from East Asia.
Check out the schedule here. It promises to be a great weekend!
The East Asia Film Festival Ireland takes place at the IFI from Thursday, March 7th to Sunday, March 10th.
Tickets are on sale now from ifi.ie
