Director , Scriptwriter
A native of Yilan, Taiwan, Cheng Wen-tang graduated from Chinese Culture University with a degree in Drama (Cinema and Drama Division). Following a stint at a media company, he joined the "Green Team" in 1984 to direct social movement documentaries. In 1988, he managed union organizing for the DPP New Tide Faction's Labor Support Committee. Alongside promoting labor movements island-wide, he captured numerous labor disputes on camera, leaving behind crucial first-hand records of pre-martial law Taiwanese activism.
Shifting his focus to personal creative endeavors in 1996 after years of activism, Cheng wrote the screenplay The Poet and Ah-De (later adapted into Wan Jen's film Super Citizen) and served as a producer on films like Blue Moon. With funding from PTS, he directed the "River Trilogy": The Boys of Lanyang River, The Pact of Choshui River, and Floating Tamsui. Backed by short film grants, he completed 16mm shorts such as Postcard, Somewhere Over the Dreamland, and The Flavour of Apples. Notably, Somewhere Over the Dreamland garnered the Critics' Week Award for Best Film at the Venice Film Festival and the Outstanding Taiwanese Film of the Year at the Golden Horse Awards.
Awards
2010 Taipei Film Festival – Best Director "Tears"
2004 Golden Bell Awards – Best Television Series "BADU'S HOMEWORK"
2003 The 40th Golden Horse Awards – Best Creative Short Film "BADU'S HOMEWORK"
2003 Taipei Film Festival – Best Narrative Feature "BADU'S HOMEWORK"
2003 The 26th Golden Harvest Awards – Best Narrative Short Film "BADU'S HOMEWORK"
2002 The 39th Golden Horse Awards – Outstanding Taiwanese Film of the Year "SOMEWHERE OVER THE DREAMLAND"
2002 Venice International Film Festival – International Critics’ Week: Best Film "SOMEWHERE OVER THE DREAMLAND"
2000 The 36th Golden Harvest Awards – Best Narrative Short Film "POSTCARD"
1997 Excellent Screenplay Awards – Outstanding Screenplay "The Poet and A-De"
Nominations
2009 The 46th Golden Horse Awards Best Original Screenplay "Tears"
2004 The 41st Golden Horse Awards Best Original Screenplay "The Passage"
2004 The 17th Tokyo International Film Festival – Competition "The Passage"
2002 Golden Bell Awards – Best Director (Single Drama), Best Screenplay "Wadan's Wine Bottle"
2001 Golden Bell Awards – Best Director (Single Drama) "Abas, the Youth"
2000 Golden Bell Awards – Best Television Drama (Single Episode), Best Director "The Pact of Choshui River"
2000 Taipei Film Festival – Independent Filmmaking Competition: Narrative Section "Floating Tamsui"
| Year | Title |
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| 2017 | Tshiong |
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2017 Kaohsiung Film Festival - Closing Film
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| 2015 | Maverick |
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2016 Taipei Film Festival-Best Narrative Feature Nomination, Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actor
2015 Taipei Film Festival-Opening Film |
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| 2011 | Ten Plus Ten |
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2011 Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival Opening Film
2012 Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin Panorama
Platinum Remi Award for Art Direction in the category of Film & Video Production at WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival in 2013 (winner)
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| 2009 | Tears |
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2010 Taipei Film Festival-Best Director
2010 Asian Film Festival Roma-Best Actor |
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| 2007 | Summer's Tail |
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2007 Pusan International Film Festival, A Window on Asian Cinema
2007 Tokyo International Film Festival 2007 Hong Kong Asian Film Festival |
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| 2005 | Blue Cha-Cha |
| 2005 | The Passage |
| 2003 | BADU'S HOMEWORK |
| 2002 | SOMEWHERE OVER THE DREAMLAND |
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2002 Venice Film Festival, Best First Feature Film of the Critics Week
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| 1999 | POSTCARD |
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1999 Golden Horse Awards, Best Short Film Nomination
1999 Taipei Film Festival 1999 Pusan International Film Festival, New Currents Section 2000 Singapore International Film Festival 2000 The 23rd Golden Harvest Award, Best Short Film Award in Drama Catagory 2000 Melbourne Film Festival |
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| 1998 | Connection by Fate |
2002 Somewhere Over The Dreamland
2004 The Passage
2006 Blue Cha-Cha
2007 Summer's Tail
2009 Tears
2015 Maverick
