Hosted by the Taiwan Film and Audiovisual
Institute (TFAI), the 15th Taiwan International Documentary Festival (TIDF)
will take place from May 1 to May 10, 2026. Today, the shortlist for the Asian
Vision Competition, International Competition, Taiwan Competition, and the
cross-section TIDF Visionary Award was announced. Taiwanese directors from
across the various competitions gathered on-site, engaging in lively and warm
exchanges after the event.
Arthur CHU, Chairman of the TFAI, stated in
his opening remarks, "Founded in 1998, TIDF has now entered its 15th
edition. After years of dedicated effort, it has become one of the largest and
most significant international documentary festivals in Asia." In his
address, TIDF Curator Wood LIN further norted, "This year, the festival
received a record-breaking 2,617 documentary submissions from 153 different
countries and territories worldwide. This milestone reflects the international
prestige we have built over the years, though it has certainly made the
selection process more challenging than ever."
▲2026 TIDF Taiwan nominated directors
Taiwan
Competition: Testing the Boundaries of Reality
An unprecedented 246 submissions were received
for this year's Taiwan Competition. Preliminary selection juror SO Yo-hen,
director of Taman-taman (Park), stated, "Participating in the
selection process this time was actually quite a daunting task. As a fellow
filmmaker, I fully understand the difficulties involved in making every single
film. During discussions with the other two jurors, we focused on how
filmmakers used imagery in imagining the relationship they share with their
environment."
In particular, the shortlist stands out for
the strong presence of women filmmakers, whose numbers are nearly twice that of
their male counterparts, bringing a distinct range of perspectives and
emotional depth to the program. Colour Ideology Sampling.mov
examines how political identities and ideologies become embedded in our
perception of color, prompting reflection on labels we often take for granted. Man
Mei turns to family photo albums and newly restored images to trace the
resilience of Hakka women across turbulent decades. Both Xi Xi
and Where the Sea Breeze Blows revolve around quests for freedom
and the process of saying goodbye to loved ones; the latter has also been
selected for the Asian Vision Competition.
Many of the selected films draw on personal
and family histories. Shot over ten years, SPI follows an Atayal
family as they navigate contemporary life while striving to reconnect with
their cultural roots. LA PALOMA reconstructs the story of a
family scarred by the White Terror, weaving together interviews and archival
materials to confront long-silenced trauma. Making its world premiere, Scenes
from Departure unfolds through video calls between father and son,
attempting to articulate emotions long left unspoken.
While some works explore the experiences of
“others,” they simultaneously reflect local stories of Taiwan. Mrs.
Islets captures, with a quiet and unadorned gaze, the endurance of
women’s labor on a small island in Penghu. Between the Shores portrays
the bittersweet homecomings of migrant workers and their steadfast devotion to
family. Where Clouds Once Formed probes the environmental costs
and resource pressures underlying Taiwan’s high-tech industries. Finally,
drawing on Taiwan’s coal-mining past, The Tales of the Tale revisits
ghost stories told by retired miners, uncovering the harsh labor conditions and
history of occupational disasters that shaped an era.
Several entries push documentary form in bold
new directions. Shot on 9.5mm film, Amateur in the Moon unfolds
as a poetic love letter to cinema itself. Structured as an exchange of letters,
Jouhatsu Letters traces the inner landscapes and daily craft experiments
of two filmmakers living in different countries during the pandemic. In Bone
Always Outlasts Feather, sound moves from background element to central
subject, resonating with the mythology and natural soundscapes of the
Indigenous Bunun people. Paper Houses and Horses, set within the
routines of a funeral home, blends fiction and nonfiction through a highly
sensory approach, offering a compassionate meditation on the “nameless” and
those who die alone in the context of Taiwan’s contemporary funeral culture.
▲2026 TIDF Taiwan nominated directors and VIPs
International Competition and Asian Vision:
The Power of Truth in the Face of Adversity
Beyond the Taiwan Competition, this
year’s Asian Vision Competition brings together 15 outstanding films from
across Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, India, Thailand, Myanmar,
Cambodia, Iran, Afghanistan, and beyond. The selection reflects the breadth and
complexity of contemporary Asia, foregrounding deeply rooted local perspectives
and lived realities. The International
Competition likewise presents 15 films from Europe, North America, South
America, Africa, and Asia. Addressing urgent themes such as war and
displacement, historical trauma, identity, and marginalized communities, the
lineup captures the tensions and transformations shaping today’s world.
Finally, the TIDF Visionary Award, includes 18 distinguished Chinese-speaking
regions documentaries from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and beyond.
Several films emerge directly from
regions marked by war and political upheaval, where filmmakers continue to bear
witness under extraordinary circumstances. Set against the backdrop of the
Russia–Ukraine war, A Simple Soldier and In Limbo
offer intimate frontline perspectives. Kabul, Between Prayers and
With Hasan in Gaza turn their gaze to Afghanistan and Gaza,
documenting daily life amid instability and loss.
The program also features new works by
filmmakers well known to festival audiences. Director Midi Z returns with Cherry
Ferry, while Thai filmmaker Thunska PANSITTIVORAKUL presents Isan
Odyssey, and Cambodian director LY Polen unveils Until the Orchid.
The collaboration between TRƯƠNG Minh Quý and Nicolas GRAUX, Hair, Paper,
Water…, will be screened in the International Competition.
Other highlights include deeply committed,
long-term observational works such as Flophouse America and The
Prince of Nanawa, which use the passage of time to represent the
authenticity of everyday life. Formal experimentation also distinguishes many
entries: Masayume incorporates elements of physical theater; Afterlives
adopts the desktop documentary format; and Air Base draws on
performance art. From Hong Kong, Compact Disc and Map of
Traces—both also shortlisted for the TIDF Visionary Award—probe
the scars of memory through striking visual language.
This
preliminary selection committee for this year’s TIDF includes prominent
curators, scholars, film critics, filmmakers, and festival representatives.
Three committee members served in selecting films for the Taiwan Competition:
SU Ui-tiok, CHAN Tze-woon, and SO Yo-Hen. Meanwhile, fourteen committee members
served in selecting films across competition categories: HUANG Yi-ying (Annpo),
Ar Nam HO, LIN Chung-Mou, HONG Jien-Luan, HUNG Wei-lin, Timmy Chih-ting CHEN,
CHEN Huei-Yin, CHAO Cheng-Yuan , YEN Wang-Yun, Ruby HSIEH I Hsuan, HSIEH
Chia-chin, SU Ming-Yen, and festival representatives Wood LIN and CHEN
Wan-ling.
The
15th TIDF will be held from May 1st to 10th of this year, with screenings at
TFAI, SPOT - Huashan, Taiwan Contemporary Culture Lab (C-Lab), and other sites,
bringing together 140 outstanding films from at home and abroad. In addition to
screenings and discussions, there will also be lecture-performances, listening
sessions, and similar events, all with the aim of enriching audiences’
conception of documentary through rich and diverse programming. More
information regarding events and programming will be released on a rolling
basis. Stay tuned to the TIDF official website, Facebook page, X, and Instagram for updates.
