Taiwan’s great film director passed away

Edward Yang died on 1 July. He was 60.

The only film I’ve ever seen directed by him is YiYi (One One), produced in 2000. It leaves an indelible impression on me, for its humanism, portrayal of life at various levels and human emotions and conditions, accompanied with enriching and subtle details.

No wonder the film won the Best Director Award at Cannes Film Festival 2000 and reaped many other nominations and awards, including New York Film Critics Circle Award and Humanitarian Award at the Vancouver International Film Festival 2000.

It was a shock when I learnt of the news of his passing. 60 years is not too short a life. Neither is it too long a life, particularly for a film master as Yang who could have produced more wonderful films like YiYi.

The shock partly arose from the fact that Yang and Hou Hsiao-Hsien are arguably Taiwan’s two greatest film directors. Their names and films were part of my growing up. I like that distinct eastern aesthetics behind their films, mixed with modernity, and Chinese culture elements, and presented in today’s Taiwan context. I feel a deep sense of loss from the passing of Yang.

Now Yang is gone, so is the era that belongs to his era, says Hou Hsiao-Hsien, commenting on Yang’s idealism and dedication to cinema. The two of them, of same age, once worked together to produce films, and to dream about films.