presents
AU REVOIR TAIPEI
Written and directed by
ARVIN CHEN
Starring
JACK YAO, AMBER KUO, JOSEPH CHANG, LAWRENCE KO, FRANKIE GAO
Produced by
ATOM CINEMA AND GREENSKYFILMS
CAST AND CREW
Kai
Susie
Ji-Yong
Hong
Brother Bao
JACK YAO
AMBER KUO
JOSEPH CHANG
LAWRENCE KO
FRANKIE GAO
Directed and written by
Produced by
ARVIN CHEN
IN-AH LEE
WEI-JAN LIU
WIM WENDERS
MEILEEN CHOO
OI LENG LUI
MICHAEL LEOW
MICHELLE CHO
MICHAEL FIMOGNARI
MEI CHING HUANG
JUSTIN GUERRIERI
TU DUU CHIH
WEN HSU
Executive Producers
Producer
Co-Producers
Director of Photography
Production Designer
Editor
Sound by
Music by
TECHNICAL DETAILS:
Taiwan/USA 2009
Length: 85 minutes
Format: 35mm, 1:1,85
Sound format: Dolby 5.1
WORLD SALES:
Beta Cinema
Dirk Schuerhoff/Andreas Rothbauer
Gruenwalder Weg 28d
D – 82041 Oberhaching/Germany
www.betacinema.com
[email protected]
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LOGLINE
A lovesick young man is leaving Taipei in hopes of getting to Paris, but over the course of one
extraordinary night, finds that the excitement and romance he was longing for is already there.
SHORT SYNOPSIS
Kai, a brokenhearted young man from Taipei, yearns to be with his girlfriend, who's left for Paris. He
spends his days working at his parents’ noodle restaurant and his nights trying to learn French at the
local bookstore, where he meets Susie, a sweet but lonely girl who works there. Afraid of losing his
girlfriend, and in need of money to get to Paris, he accepts a dubious offer from a local gangster –
deliver a mysterious package to Paris. It’s the beginning of a wild night for Kai, at the end of which
he realizes that leaving both Susie and Taipei will only take him further away from true love.
LONG SYNOPSIS
The never-ending bustle of life in Taipei has become meaningless to Kai since his girlfriend left for
Paris. Brokenhearted, he spends his days working at his parents’ noodle restaurant and his nights
trying to learn French at the local bookstore. It’s there that he meets Susie, a sweet but lonely girl
who takes an unusual interest in him. Kai, however, can only think about getting to Paris - he’s
convinced himself that he’ll never find happiness or love again if he’s stuck in Taipei.
When Brother Bao, a shady neighborhood gangster and real estate magnate, offers to help Kai get to
Paris, he immediately agrees. But Brother Bao’s help comes with strings attached - Kai must pick up
a mysterious delivery for him on the same night that he’s set to leave for Paris. Unfortunately there
are others after the delivery, including a group of aspiring gangsters who kidnap Kai’s best friend, and
an emotionally unstable police detective with his own romantic issues. In the middle of all the chaos,
Kai runs into Susie, and soon they are pulled together into the enchanting world of nighttime Taipei,
with its vibrant nightmarkets, twisting alleyways, abandoned temples, lively karaoke bars, and love
hotels.
Running, scooting, and even dancing through the city over the course of this one night, Kai and Susie
gradually begin to fall in love. In fact it seems as if everyone around them is also suffering from some
form of lovesickness, as Taipei itself comes alive with romance. By the early morning, Kai must make
a final decision about whether or not to go to Paris, and realizes that there maybe no need to say
“Au revoir…”
DIRECTOR’S STATEMENT
The idea for AU REVOIR TAIPEI came during a conversation I had a few years ago while filming in
Taipei. My editor and I (both of us foreigners) were riding on the elevated rail, watching the city blur
by through the window, when he turned to me and said, “You know…Taipei reminds me a lot of
Paris”. Having just finished shooting my short film MEI, which was very much about trying to find
romance in the hidden corners of Taipei, my editor’s words got me thinking - what if somehow we
were able to capture the feeling of Paris (the western ideal of both city and love) through a film that
took place entirely in Taipei, in world specific only to that city?
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Living and working here over the last few years, I had met many young people obsessed with leaving
Taiwan for the excitement of the outside world. I began to sketch out a simple storyline with this
premise in mind: a brokenhearted young man is about to leave Taipei for Paris, but over the course
of one night, he discovers that all the excitement, inspiration, and romance he was longing for is
already there - he just has to open himself up to it.
This story gave us the perfect opportunity to create a unique vision of Taipei by drawing on
inspiration from the city and its people, finding the humor, romance, and absurdity in everyday life.
Like the protagonist’s own journey in the film, AU REVOIR TAIPEI offers the audience a chance to
enter the enchanting world of nighttime Taipei, a world of love struck characters set against the
backdrop of a city waiting to reveal its magic and beauty...
Arvin Chen (Writer/Director)
ABOUT THE PRODUCTION
AU REVOIR TAIPEI is a sweet and comic story of a brokenhearted young man trying to get to Paris,
only to discover on the very night he’s leaving that all the excitement, inspiration, and romance he
was longing for is already there in Taipei. More than anything, the film is about falling in love with a
city by finding the beauty and charm of its surroundings and characters. Appropriately enough, the
making of the AU REVOIR TAIPEI began in very much the same way...
Though his parents are from Taiwan, writer-director Arvin Chen was born and raised in the United
States, moving to Taipei only in his early 20’s to work and apprentice under renowned Taiwanese
filmmaker Edward Yang (YIYI, A BRIGHTER SUMMER DAY). Early on during his time there, Chen
recalls already being “extremely inspired by Taipei...for someone like me who grew up in the suburbs
of Northern California, it was a such a huge change to be in a city so vibrant and exciting...I still
remember the first time a friend took me on a late night scooter ride through the city, just watching
all the life on the street blur by.”
After spending a few years back in Los Angeles to attend film school at the University of Southern
California, Chen returned to Taipei again in 2006 to shoot his thesis film MEI, which was set entirely
in Taipei’s bustling night markets. The film was shot in only four days, with a small cast and crew
made up of Chen’s classmates from the States as well as local Taiwanese filmmakers. “Ever since
living in Taipei, I had always wanted to make a sweet and simple little romance that took place right
in the night markets and back alleys of the city, something that really captured my impression of the
city…and that turned out to be Mei”. The short film went on to festival success, winning the Silver
Bear/Jury Prize at the 57th Berlin International Film Festival, and giving Chen the confidence to start
thinking about his first feature-length project.
The idea for AU REVOIR TAIPEI began with a conversation Chen had a few days after wrapping
production on MEI, while he and editor Justin Guerrieri were riding around the subway in Taipei.
Chen recalls: “We were staring out at the city through the window, and Justin started saying how
Taipei really reminded him of Paris. When I asked him what he meant, he couldn’t really
elaborate...he just said there was a certain feeling about the two cities that connected for him. I
thought that was really interesting though, because for me, I didn’t really see that connection. But it
did get me thinking...well, Paris is kind of an ideal...the city of love and all of that. And Paris does
suggest a certain feeling…of romance, life, music…why couldn’t we try to find the same thing in
Taipei?” Chen soon began to outline the storyline of what would become AU REVOIR TAIPEI.
“Over the years, I had met a lot of friends that would dream and obsess about leaving Taipei and
Taiwan and living overseas...whether in New York, Paris...London. I started to think about how that
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could be the premise of this story: a Taiwanese kid that feels like he has to get to Paris, but finds out
that everything Paris means to him...it’s already all there in Taipei”.
Chen admits that he also saw an opportunity to have some fun with this premise, while breaking
away from the style of traditional Taiwanese films: “I’m a huge fan of the French New Wave films,
and I thought it would be interesting to incorporate some elements of those films...the silly kids
falling in love, the funny gangsters, the dancing...I could see all of these things happening in a film
about modern Taipei and still feeling totally authentic to that world.” Chen also knew he wanted to
set the story over the course of one night in order to capture the feeling of nighttime Taipei. “Taipei
is seriously one of the most beautiful cities in the world at night...there’s just so much life on the
streets and colors and lights everywhere. I thought if we could bring that feeling to the audience...as
if they’re going on this journey with the characters from sunset to sunrise, it could be very
emotionally satisfying”.
The project really started moving after Chen was introduced to In-Ah Lee, a Korean-German
independent producer based out of Los Angeles with experience in international co-productions.
Lee had been a fan of Chen’s short MEI, and connected to the material of AU REVOIR TAIPEI too.
“Not only do I love movies about cities and food”, she explains, “and there was also something very
touching about the story that I got to me...there are no bad guys in this world...everyone is just trying
to find love”. Lee agreed to sign onto the project through her production company, Greenskyfilms,
and soon she and Chen began presenting the project at various film festival financing markets around
the world, including the PPP at the Pusan International Film Festival and L’Atelier at The Cannes Film
Festival.
Chen and Lee were also able to find a local partner in Atom Cinema, a Taipei-based production
company, also known as a boutique distributor of American and European art house films. Producer
Wei-Jan Liu welcomed this opportunity to work on the project, their first international coproduction, seeing it as “a way to try something new and unique and to make a type of Taiwanese
film that no one else has ever tried to make”. Oi Leng Lui, a Singaporean producer based in London,
came on board soon after, bringing to the project her extensive background in international sales and
distribution.
Lee, who had produced several films for award-winning German filmmaker Wim Wenders (PARIS TEXAS, WINGS OF DESIRE), felt it would also be interesting to involve him on AU REVOIR TAIPEI.
“Of course Wim’s one of the great filmmakers who everyone looks up to, so I was more than a little
intimidated and nervous when In-Ah suggested he come on board as an executive producer”, Chen
remembers. Lee began to facilitate what Chen describes as a “courtship process”. Wenders
watched Chen’s short, read his script, and even arranged a visit to one of his sets. To Chen’s relief,
Wenders loved the project and agreed to help in anyway he could, specifically drawn to the way
Chen wanted to capture the world of Taipei. "Both Arvin and I share a love for films that are
portraits of cities," says Wenders, who describes his role on the project as simply being “a guardian
angel from Germany”.
“Wim has been great, especially as a teacher and mentor”, says Chen. “He gave me a lot of creative
guidance on the film, but even more…I just like hearing him talk about his experiences as a filmmaker
and how he sets out to capture the life of cities in his films.” Wenders also made a trip to Taipei
during pre-production to meet with the Taiwanese cast and crew and to scout locations, almost 30
years after his first visit there to screen his film AN AMERICAN FRIEND. This time around,
Wenders was once again seduced by the city, which he describes as “a very elegant woman”.
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With this international producing team behind him, Chen soon began the process of putting AU
REVOIR TAIPEI together, starting with casting, which began over half a year before production. This
process proved to be quite difficult since Chen wanted very specific types of characters for this
world - each representative of a different kind of Taipei – from sleazy gangsters to everyday
convenience store employees. This required a slightly unorthodox approach to casting that was
equally specific, with Chen and his casting director looking in every imaginable place to find the right
actors. “We tried a lot of things, in many ways this film is an ensemble, with 12 key roles, and each
piece had to be perfect. So it didn’t really matter as to what the actor’s backgrounds were…they just
had to be right for that character and have the right quality in them”. Beyond just film and television
actors, Chen also auditioned pop singers, musicians, theatre students, and even people literally from
off the street. “My casting director and I would go around from college to college, and just sit in the
cafeteria during lunch and look at hundreds and hundreds of kids at a time. As soon as we saw
someone that looked promising, we’d run over and say hey, do you want to audition for a film?” The
result was a combination of veteran actors and non-professionals, including entertainers from other
fields who had never before acted on film, all coming together to help shape the world of the film.
The toughest role to cast proved to be the one that Chen thought would be one of the easiest: Susie
the bookstore girl. “Susie is based on a type of girl I see everywhere in Taipei…the sweet, but kind
of sad city girl who’s in search of love…but once we started looking for an actress to play her, we
discovered that Susie wasn’t as ubiquitous as we had assumed.” Despite months and months of
searching and auditions, Chen still hadn’t found the right actress. It wasn’t until the shooting of the
film was moved back a few months that Chen and his casting director remembered that there was a
popular young singer, Amber Kuo, they had wanted to audition but never had the chance to meet.
“Amber was shooting her first television show when we initially tried to contact her”, Arvin recalls,
“but there was no way her schedule would have worked out, so we had to give up on her.” Yet a
few months and hundreds of actresses later, Chen tried contacting her again: “I remember when she
walked in, the casting director and I just looked at each other and smiled. I felt like the film was
finally coming together”. Asked to describe the character of Susie, and what he saw in Kuo, Chen
says, “In many ways, she’s just like the tone of our film...bittersweet”.
To help Kuo as well as many of the non-professional actors get used to performing, Chen and his
director’s assistant began running acting workshops every weekend. “At the core of the film are
these two simple love stories between the characters of Susie and Kai (played by Jack Yao, who had
previously worked with Chen on his short film), and between Gao and Peach (newcomers Paul
Chiang and Vera Yen), all of who had little to no experience acting. It was important for us to get
them to open up and feel comfortable playing off each other.” Rather than making them rehearse
the same scenes over and over, Chen spent most of the time leading them in games and
improvisation exercises, as well as in-character improvisations that would help them get into the
mindset of their roles. For both Kuo and Yao, who were both understandably nervous about being
the lead actors in their first feature length film, this was essential in providing the two young actors
with confidence. As Kuo recounts, “Being new to acting...these workshops were so much fun...Arvin
created a very relaxed mood which helped us to forget the pressures of the film and focusing on just
interacting with each other”.
Chen also cast several established actors for the film, including Lawrence Ko (LUST, CAUTION) and
Joseph Chang (ETERNAL SUMMER), in roles unlike anything that had previously ever done. Ko, who
plays the aspiring gangster/real estate agent Hong, welcomed the challenge of playing such a quirky
character, while trying to match the tone of the world Chen was creating. “The character Hong is a
strange invention, born completely out of our heads...he’s stylized yet real...it took me a long time to
figure out how to play him”. Up until the first day of shooting, both Ko and Chen still didn’t know if
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the character would work. “I remember that day, after filming one of my first scenes, I looked over
at Arvin and he looked at me...and we both knew that Hong had emerged...it was a great feeling”.
Chang, known in Taiwan as something of a heartthrob, loved having the chance to do what he calls
“an absurdist, screwball comedy”, even having to wear a wig for the film.
Chen also made an interesting casting choice by asking Frankie Gao, a famous Taiwanese pop singer
and variety show host, to play Brother Bao, the retiring gangster with romantic yearnings. “It’s been
years since I’ve been in a film, so of course I was surprised when Arvin asked me to if I wanted to be
in AU REVOIR TAIPEI”, remembers Gao, “but I was very happy to bring what life experience I could
into that character…it was something very new to me”. For Chen, “I didn’t want to just cast a
stereotypical gangster-type actor in the role...something about Frankie...he has this kind of soul, a
weight to him that draws you in. But at the same time, he’s a little offbeat, and I thought that we
could use all of that.”
Collaborating closely with Emmy award-winning director of photography Michael Fimognari (DARE),
who Chen met during film school, and Taiwanese production designer Mei Ching Huang (THE
WAYWARD CLOUD), Chen and his team began the challenging process of bringing this vision of
Taipei to life. They set out to create a world that was “slightly hyper-real, taking the elements of
everyday life that I observed in Taipei, but then playfully romanticizing it to fit the tone of our story,
which was all about how this kid could find love and fun again in a city that he had essentially given up
on”. Chen attributes this to his own unique perspective on the city and its people: “Because I’m not
from here, I think I see things in Taipei in a very different way...I look at these old women dancing in
a park at night, and I see a musical dance sequence, I see these all-night convenience stores, and I
think they’re romantic...the real estate agents here remind of gangsters, and for some reason, I think
you can find love in a 24-hour bookstore”. For similar reasons, Chen wanted to bring an American
director of photography to Taipei, lending the film yet another unique perspective. As Fimognari
explains it, “Just stepping off the plane and being in Taipei...I feel there’s a certain sense of magic in
the air that’s so different than what I’m used to...”
With the city as inspiration, Chen, Fimognari and Huang went through hours and hours of creative
discussions, talking about color palettes, scene design, visual structures, and of course, watching films.
“It was great working with the two of them, one of the most rewarding experiences in the process”,
says Chen, “We would just sit there and talk and watch films together...everything from French New
Wave to Wes Anderson to Classic American Musicals.” Chen and Huang eventually decided that
they didn’t want to create a world where everything just looked exactly the same. Huang suggested
that “every location should have its own specific feeling, but they will all be designed and shot with
the same sense of playfulness, bringing to life the world of the characters”. With this in concept in
mind, Fimognari and Chen set out to design a visual “guideline” of colors and shots that would be
appropriate for the both the romantic and comedic tone of the film. The result of this collaboration
is what Chen describes as a “poppy, color-coated, surrealistic, romantic, magical vision of Taipei that
I think I can safely say has never quite been done like this before”.
The shoot itself took 34 days, with the crew filming every night from sunset to sunrise in order to
capture Taipei at night. “Everyone thought we were crazy when I said I wanted to shoot a film that’s
basically 99% night”, says Chen, “but after a while...I really came to love it. I think we all did. It felt
like every night we were in a new part of the city...whether it was running through the night market
or taking over an entire subway station...it was kind of exhilarating just to throw our actors into a
location and shoot.” Lawrence Ko also came to love the all-night shooting: “At some point in the
middle of every night, it would feel like the rest of the city was asleep and we were the only ones
around. The city belonged to us.” It became a ritual for the crew to watch the sunrise every
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morning as well, and sometimes that would have a profound affect on the shooting itself. Amber
Kuo remembers shooting one of the pivotal scenes of the film, “when Kai (Jack Yao) is about to
leave...we filmed that scene right before sunrise, and just the feeling of the morning about to come
and the whole cast and crew being there together...suddenly I was hit with emotion, just like Susie in
the scene”.
Very much in the spirit of the film, even the cast and crew began to fall in love with the city. “I never
considered Taipei a romantic city until this film”, says Jack Yao, “but now when I walk around Taipei,
I can’t help but feel that there’s a sense of a romance in the air, but sometimes you also have to look
for it”. Kuo shares a similar sensation: “We actually shot a lot of places in Taipei that I hang out at,
but now when I walk by...I can still hear the music of our film in my head, and the I even feel like
there’s a certain rhythm to the city as well”. Chen also feels there was something definitely
infectious about the filming, “We were shooting the dance sequence in the middle of the night in this
huge park, and by the last shot, there was no one around anymore, just the crew. We were minutes
from the sun coming up and we started blasting the music...watching Jack and Amber dance in the
middle of this circle of women. I looked around and everyone was swaying along with the rhythm of
the music, smiling. For lack of a better word...it was magical.”
For the score of the film, Chen wanted to find a style of music that would compliment the film’s
unique, romanticized vision of Taipei. As he explains it, “From the very start I knew that this film
would need more than a traditional score....I had always felt that old jazz had the right feeling....even
though we were making a film about modern Taipei. Jazz can be romantic, sad, but also light and
jaunty, just like our film. I’ve also always felt that it’s very much the music of the city”. Instead of
working with a film composer, Chen decided to ask Wen Hsu, a jazz composer and guitarist who
studied at New England’s Berklee School of Music, to come up with the score for the film. “I was a
little surprised when Arvin asked me to do this, since I’ve never done a film score before. But he
said what he wanted the film to feel like it has songs as opposed to score, and to create the feeling of
a jazz band playing over the film. It sounded intriguing”. Hsu then wrote over fifteen original
compositions, all arranged for a four to five piece jazz ensemble. “The recording was so fun”, says
Chen, “we did it in a real concert hall, all on the spot, to capture the feeling and spontaneity of a live
performance. It was like more aspect of the film suddenly coming to life”.
Reflecting on the film now, Chen can’t help but to be reminded of a quote from Wim Wenders: “It’s
something I read a long time ago, I think from the making of PARIS, TEXAS. I’m paraphrasing...but he
said that every film reflects its production...that the making of the film leave its mark on the film itself.
Well, I think that’s especially true in our case. We set out to make a film about falling in love in with
Taipei, finding the beauty in the city and its people, and that’s exactly what the process of making the
film was like. My hope now is that feeling we had, that everyone on the cast and crew carries with
them, is what we’ll be able to share with the audience through AU REVOIR TAIPEI”.
ABOUT THE CAST
JACK YAO (KAI)
Jack Yao is an up-and-coming actor and recent graduate of the Taipei National University of the Arts,
where he studied performance in the theatre arts programs. In addition to starring in many plays, he
has also acted in several television movies and short films, including Arvin Chen’s award-winning film
Mei. AU REVOIR TAIPEI is his first feature film.
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AMBER KUO (SUSIE)
Amber Kuo is a popular young Taiwanese singer, actress, and model. Her first album, 2007’s
“Invisible Superman” and her 2009 follow-up, “I Amber”, (both released on the Warner Records
label) were best-sellers in Taiwan and other Chinese-speaking territories. She has also starred in
two popular television series, Invincible Shan Bao Mei, and All the Happiness Throughout the Year.
She is also known for her work as a commercial spokesperson. AU REVOIR TAIPEI is Amber’s first
feature film. She is currently filming her second feature film, CLOSE TO YOU.
JOSEPH CHANG (JI-YONG)
Joseph Chang is a Taiwanese actor and model. He is best known for his role in the critically acclaimed drama ETERNAL SUMMER (2006), which earned him two “Golden Horse”-nominations
for Best Supporting Actor and Best New Performer. Critics have hailed Chang's ability to portray
characters that are simple in appearance but intense at heart. He is currently one of Taiwan’s most
sought-after leading men, and most recently starred in Yon Fan’s PRINCE OF TEARS, which was in
competition at the 66th Venice International Film Festival.
LAWRENCE KO (HONG)
Lawrence Ko began his career as a child actor starring in several of Edward Yang films, including A
BRIGHTER SUMMER DAY (1991), and MAHJONG (1996). Since then, he has established himself as
one of Taiwan’s most versatile young actors in both film and television. He was most recently
featured in Ang Lee’s LUST, CAUTION, and is currently starring in the popular television series “All
the Happiness throughout the Year”.
FRANKIE GAO (BROTHER BAO)
Frankie Gao, also known as the “Frog Prince”, is a popular Taiwanese singer whose career in
Chinese-speaking Asia has spanned over three decades. In addition to his career as a singer, Frankie
has also successfully ventured into other areas of the entertainment field, including television and
variety shows. He still performs regularly throughout Asia.
ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS
ARVIN CHEN (WRITER/DIRECTOR)
Arvin Chen is a Chinese-American filmmaker based in Taipei, Taiwan. Arvin grew up in the San
Francisco Bay Area, studying Architectural Design at the University of California, Berkeley. After
graduation, he moved to Taipei to apprentice with Taiwanese filmmaker Edward Yang (YIYI, A
BRIGHTER SUMMER DAY) before completing his masters in film production at the University of
Southern California’s (USC) prestigious School of Cinematic Arts. In 2006, Arvin’s short film MEI
won the Silver Bear at the 57th Berlin International Film Festival, as well as honors from the
Director’s Guild of America and the British Academy of Film and Television Arts.
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Arvin recently completed his first feature film project, AU REVOIR TAIPEI, a romantic comedy set
over the course of one night on the streets of Taipei. The film is executive produced by renowned
German filmmaker Wim Wenders (PARIS – TEXAS, WINGS OF DESIRE), and was selected for both
the 2007 PPP (Pusan Promotion Plan) as well as L’Atelier at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. AU
REVOIR TAIPEI will have its world premiere in the Forum Section of the 2010 Berlin International
Film Festival.
Arvin is currently writing and developing several projects set in Asia but dealing with cross-cultural
themes, including “Nanjing East Road” (a selection of the 2010 HAF: Hong Kong – Asian Film
Financing Forum), which takes places around the economic boom of 1980’s Taiwan, and “Nessun
Dorma”, a East-meets-West musical set in the world of contemporary opera.
WIM WENDERS (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
One of the most influential figures of the New German Cinema in the Seventies, Wim Wenders’
films - among them THE AMERICAN FRIEND (1978), PARIS – TEXAS (1984), WINGS OF DESIRE
(1987) and BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB (1999) - have won numerous prestigious awards and
international critical acclaim.
Wim Wenders was born on August 14th, 1945 in Düsseldorf. After two years of studying medicine
and philosophy and a one-year-long stay in Paris as a painter, he attended the Academy of Film and
Television in Munich from 1967 to 1970. From 1968 to 1972 he worked as a film critic. In 1971 he
was one of the founding members of “Filmverlag der Autoren”, the driving force behind the “New
German Cinema”. In 1975 he started his own production company in Berlin, “Road Movies”. In 1984
he became a member of the Akademie der Künste in Berlin. He received a doctor h.c. of the
Sorbonne University in Paris and of the theological faculty of the University of Fribourg. From 1991
to 1996 he was the appointed Chairman of the European Film Academy, of which he has been the
elected President ever since. He teaches “digital cinema” as a professor at the Hochschule für
Bildende Künste in Hamburg. A major survey of Wenders’ photography, Pictures from the Surface of
the Earth, has toured museums and art institutions worldwide since 2001. Wim Wenders has also
published numerous books of essays and photographs. He lives in Los Angeles and Berlin with his
wife, photographer Donata Wenders. He is member of the order “Pour le Mérite”.
IN-AH LEE (PRODUCER)
In-Ah Lee is a producer based in Los Angeles and Cologne. Prior to establishing LeeLee Films with
writer/director Grace Lee, In-Ah Lee was head of production at the German-based “Reverse Angle
Production” owned by Wim Wenders and his partner Peter Schwartzkopff. There, she was
production executive on Wenders’ SOUL OF A MAN (Cannes 2003), part of an Emmy nominated
seven film series about the Blues, executive produced by Martin Scorcese. She was also the executive
producer at Wim Wenders productions for commercials and music videos for clients such as Audi,
Barilla and Afri-Cola. Her producing credits include DON’T COME KNOCKING, written by and
starring Sam Shepard and directed by Wim Wenders (Cannes 2005, Competition) and LAND OF
PLENTY, also directed by Wenders and co-produced by Indigent and IFC Films (Venice 2004,
Competition), as well as Grace Lee’s BEST OF THE WURST and THE GRACE LEE PROJECT
(SXSW 2005).
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For further information:
Beta Cinema Press, Dorothee Stoewahse, Tel: + 49 89 67 34 69 15, [email protected], www.betacinema.com
Pictures and filmclips available on ftp.betafilm.com, username: ftppress01, password: betapress
In 2006, In-Ah Lee joined with producers Philipp Steffens, Lynn Schmitz and Thomas Brettschneider
to form greenskyfilms, a Cologne and Los Angeles based production house specializing in
international co-productions and German independent cinema. Greenskyfilms is currently in
production with DER LETZTE BULLE, a prime time crime series for German network SAT-1.
She recently produced THE WAY I SPENT THE END OF THE WORLD for Romanian director
Catalin Mitulescu (Cannes 2006, Un Certain Regard, Best Actress Award), a French Romanian coproduction, and Grace Lee’s AMERICAN ZOMBIE (Slamdance 2007) in Los Angeles. Her upcoming
projects include IN THE MISOSOUP and SECOND COMING with Wim Wenders, AU REVOIR
TAIPEI by Arvin Chen, and WHIRRRRRR by award winning cinematographer Phedon Papamichael.
WEI-JAN LIU/ATOM CINEMA (PRODUCER)
Atom Cinema is a Taiwanese distributor of quality independent films, founded in 2005 by Liu Wei-Jan
- former Programming Director of the “Golden Horse”-Film Festival. Atom Cinema has acquired and
distributed a variety of award winning international films such as ONCE, PERSEPOLIS, CONTROL,
BECOMING JANE and MYSTERIOUS SKIN, in addition to being a dedicated supporter and
distributor of recent Taiwanese independent film successes such as SPIDER LILIES, DO OVER and
WINDS OF SEPTEMBER.
Through Atom Cinema’s video distribution labels, Taiwanese audiences have been introduced to
some of the most important classic and contemporary films in the world. These include works from
great masters of cinema such as François Truffaut, Luis Buñuel and Werner Herzog, as well as
contemporary masters such as Krzysztof Kieslowski, David Lynch, Takeshi Kitano and Tsai Ming
Liang. Atom Cinema continues to present highly regarded works of film with selections from newly
released films.
Atom Cinema has now embarked on a new chapter with film production in Taiwan, and has three
new projects in the pipeline - all emphasizing the best of new Taiwanese filmmaking talent. Two of
the projects – AU REVOIR TAIPEI and IN CASE OF LOVE have both been awarded the Taiwan GIO
film production subsidy and are scheduled for production in early 2009.
OI LENG LUI (PRODUCER)
Oi Leng Lui is an independent film producer working with greenskyfilms for AU REVOIR TAIPEI.
Oi Leng was previously Head of Distribution at Cathay-Keris Films, the film distribution arm of
Cathay Organisation - one the top cinema exhibition circuits in Singapore and Malaysia. There, she
was responsible for acquiring and distributing over 40 films a year, ranging from commercial titles to
award winning films such as THE LIVES OF OTHERS. In addition to film distribution, Oi Leng was
also responsible for the re-launch, programming and marketing of The Picturehouse, Singapore’s first
arthouse cinema; and also managed the Cathay Classic Film library - a collection of over 400 titles
with festival screenings and remake potential.
Since leaving Cathay, Oi Leng has been based in London, and is part of the international film sales
team at AV Pictures Limited. She has also consulted in film acquisitions for UK distributor Optimum
Releasing, and Transpacific Media - a Los Angeles company representing 14 international distributors
for film acquisitions.
11
For further information:
Beta Cinema Press, Dorothee Stoewahse, Tel: + 49 89 67 34 69 15, [email protected], www.betacinema.com
Pictures and filmclips available on ftp.betafilm.com, username: ftppress01, password: betapress
Oi Leng graduated from Princeton University with a degree in Anthropology and worked as a
business consultant with McKinsey & Co., before joining the film industry.
MICHAEL FIMOGNARI (DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY)
Michael Fimognari, an ASC honored cinematographer, two-time Emmy Award winner and member
of the International Cinematographers Guild, has traveled the world to light and lens motion
pictures.
His award-winning films have screened theatrically, in home theater and at notable festivals including
Sundance, Cannes, Tribeca and Camerimage. His recent feature releases include DARE (Emmy
Rossum) which premiered in the Dramatic Competition at Sundance ’09; YONKERS JOE (Chazz
Palminteri); and SHUTTLE (Peyton List). Other features include THE NEIGHBOR (Matthew
Modine) and BLACK IRISH (Brendan Gleeson). He recently completed AU REVOIR TAIPEI with
director Arvin Chen and producers Wim Wenders and In-Ah Lee, and he is currently in production
on BEAUTIFUL BOY, starring Michael Sheen and Maria Bello, directed by Shawn Ku.
Fimognari’s commercial and documentary work has taken him around the globe to locations such as
Kosovo and Israel for Marla Altschuler’s White Picket Fences, to Madagascar with Jim Carrey for his
foundation’s humanitarian projects and to Tokyo, Japan for Sony Playstation. Among his awards and
critical praise, Fimognari received the Best Cinematography Award at the Hamptons International
Film Festival for FIGHTING TOMMY RILEY and an Honorable Commendation for the Robert
Surtees Heritage Award from the American Society of Cinematographers for ISSAQUENA.
Fimognari holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Pennsylvania State University and a Masters of
Fine Arts degree from the University of Southern California School of Cinema where he
photographed numerous shorts and directed the Japanese-language film OCHA CUPS FOR
CHRISTMAS which played 36 festivals and won eleven awards.
BETA CINEMA (World Sales)
Beta Cinema is the theatrical division of Beta Film. Launched in 2001, Beta Cinema has established
itself as a "boutique operation" for independent feature films with strong potential for theatrical
distribution. Beta Cinema's philosophy is to limit its selective acquisition policy of 10 to 15 titles per
year in order to fully develop the theatrical potential of each title according to its individual
character. Beta Cinema’s portfolio includes outstanding productions like JOHN RABE, which won
four German Film Awards 2009, Cannes 2008 Jury Prize-winning IL DIVO, Academy Award 2008winning THE COUNTERFEITERS, Academy Award 2008 nominated MONGOL, Academy Award
2007-winning THE LIVES OF OTHERS and the Academy Award 2005-nominated DOWNFALL.
Beta Cinema will continue to pick the most promising German films as well as to offer its service and
expertise to other European producers looking for individual handling of their productions.
Beta Cinema's strength lies in its focus on a carefully selected line-up and development of individual
sales strategies with the perfect mix of marketing and festival platforms. Beta Cinema is the best
address for established and up-and-coming independent producers and directors looking for
individual international handling of their projects.
12
For further information:
Beta Cinema Press, Dorothee Stoewahse, Tel: + 49 89 67 34 69 15, [email protected], www.betacinema.com
Pictures and filmclips available on ftp.betafilm.com, username: ftppress01, password: betapress