Every child in Taiwan has to go through 9 years of compulsory education, and many of them have struggled in the system. But can it be done... More

Every child in Taiwan has to go through 9 years of compulsory education, and many of them have struggled in the system. But can it be done differently? RenWen (Humanity) is a Taiwan alternative junior high school where test scores and rankings don’t exist, students are encouraged to explore and learn at their own pace and according to their own interests. However, to further their studies, RenWen students eventually have to take a standardized admission test, the BCT, which will direct them to different schools and life tracks based on their scores. Will the RenWen students be changed by this testing system? To find out the answer, director Adler Yang made the documentary If There Is A Reason To Study to record the struggles and changes of his fellow schoolmates. Yu-Xuan and Pei-Ling are both interested in art but believed getting into top universities is the only way to success. Xing-Hao, who loves music and intended to pursue it, was lost seeing his mentor gave up his dream to become a salary man. Li-Ann, with multiple talents including robotics, 3D animation and music, became complacent with his success in the test and abandoned his interests. When director Adler registered for the test to find out why everyone is so obsessed, he also got trapped in the system… Close