Diaspora to the Ghostly Past: A Duo of Experimental Docs

暹罗 (The Time Boat/Siam)
YANG Yuye, Mainland China 2023, 29 min. Southern Chinese Dialect with Chinese and English subtitles

此岸：一個家族故事 (This Shore: A Family Story)
Tzu-an WU, Taiwan, USA 2020, 62 min. Chinese with Chinese and English subtitles
German Premiere

This dual screening of experimental documentaries captures individual memories of the past, which, although faded, continue to haunt us, never completely vanishing. The practices of both directors span a spectrum from strictly experimental films to expanded cinema. Their collages, comprising mixed materials like texts, images, archives, audio and found footage, demonstrate the diverse possibilities found at the intersection of various media. The Time Boat/Siam documents the fragmented memories of an elderly man who returned to his hometown from Siam at the age of three, reflecting the deep feelings of separation and nostalgia of the director himself. This Shore wanders through themes of Cold War constructions, Taiwan–United States relations, diaspora across generations, family romances, and ghost stories. Here, personal and collective memories transform into another rendition of “the Flying Dutchman”, doomed to sail the oceans forevermore. (HL)