Taiwan Docs

It all started with an interesting encounter on Taipei Metro in early February last year. I was on the metro in the evening and I suddenly realized that someone was drawing a portrait of me. Holding a portable easel, an old man with white hair was sketching me from a few feet away. Although I was so surprised that I had become a “model”, I did nothing extra but kept sitting upright for him to finish his artwork. After he finished the sketch, I approached him and asked him what it was about. He told me that he is a Professor teaching Industrial Design at the National Taipei University of Technology and has been sketching commuters on Taipei Metro in his leisure time for nearly 10 years. It is truly fascinating to me as I never knew that there is a “Metro painter” here in Taipei. I have come across videos of people being drawn by artists on the New York Subway or London Underground and have been wondering why there is no such thing on Taipei Metro. It is just the fact that I haven’t encountered Professor Chen yet. He told me that the comfortable environment inside the carriage as well as the friendliness and acceptance of Taipei people have made Taipei Metro a perfect "studio" for him to draw portraits of the commuters in order to leave a record of this side of the urban life in Taipei. His words inspired me to find out more about the untold stories on this “Ilha Formosa”, the phrase shouted by Portuguese sailors when they first discovered Taiwan in the 1600s which can be translated as “Beautiful Island” in English. To me, the urban and natural beauties of Taiwan are very unique and underrated internationally – there are not that many countries in the world that have a world-class metropolitan and a breathtaking natural landscape within a half-day driving distance. It would be meaningful to let the international audience know about the coexistence of these elements on this small but beautiful island, especially during this time of a growing trend that Taiwan is getting more attention around the globe, people outside of Taiwan should also be noted of something more about the soft side of the country that is not always related to semiconductors and the Sino-U.S. relation. That’s why I want to make a short documentary to depict the beauty of this Formosa from the perspectives of two painters who respectively draw the landscape of the lushest mountains to the vibrant city life in Taipei.