Taipei’s Bohemians (台北波希米亞)
Director:
Hung Hung
Genre:
Documentary
Time:
55 min.
Language:
Mandarin, English subtitles
Rating:
2/5
As the title suggests, Taipei’s Bohemians is a look at Taiwan’s community of thespians and part-time thespians of modern theater. The documentary is about the lives of very artsy people. Those who have a hard time appreciating modern art will find the film a little too exotic to be enjoyable. Those who love modern art and are interested in living an “artsy” lifestyle may find the film fascinating.
From the back cover…
Passion. The very word evokes images of dedication, sacrifice, and love. Taipei’s Bohemians tells of people who share a passion for the theater.
The theater is the tie that binds these disparate figures together. When the stage calls, they immediately stop what they are doing and respond. That the pay the theater offers is meager in the extreme does not prevent these unconventional city dwellers from holding themselves to the most exacting artistic standards.
The seven main characters in this film are directors, actor, designers, or administrators, and at times play several of these roles simultaneously. Not the sort of people who normally attract media attention, they are more representative of what the theater stands for than those who do. Enjoy a glimpse into a unique part of Taiwan’s society and culture in Taipei’s Bohemians.
《台北波希米亞》想要紀錄的，是一群生活在台北，長年來熱中劇場創作與演出的年輕人──他們有些已經不再年輕，但心態上仍然持續騷動。
他們或者失業、或者兼差、或者有一份暫時性的職業，但生活的重心永遠是在劇場。只要劇場的機會一召喊，他們就奮不顧身地拋卻一切，奔赴排練場。雖然劇場的待遇微薄又朝不保夕，讓他們的生活條件不可思議地儉樸與拮据，然而卻不礙他們作為高度自我要求的藝術工作者──是的，他們多年半自稱為「劇場工作者」而非「藝術家」。
七位主要的拍攝對象，分別在不同劇團從事導演、表演、設計、行政等工作，時而身兼數職。他們多半不是媒體或關眾的焦點，然而這些取樣，對於整體劇場生態來說，毋寧更具有代表性。
