Will Taiwan’s general populace embrace a gay movie?
Your Name Engraved Herein is on its way to theaters. The movie is the first gay film from Taiwan since marriage equality was legalized in the country. On top of that, the film was inspired by real events. At the center of the plot are two high school students who become close and intimate but don’t know how to navigate their growing relationship. It doesn’t help that they are in the late 1980s. Their personal anguish is heightened by the fact that Taiwan was under martial law at the time. Then as the story progresses, the youths meet two decades later in Canada. But how will their relationship stand the tides of time and war?
According to Variety, the movie was executive produced by Chu Yu-Ning. Chu also wrote the script. This is big news because Chu is one of Taiwan’s most celebrated producers. Chu’s other works (It Started With A Kiss, In Time With You, Back to the Good Times) helped skyrocket the careers of many actors. On top of that, the film was directed by Liu Kuang-Hui and stars notable Taiwanese actors Tseng Ching Hua and Leon Dai.
“The movie not only resonates with the rite of passage of LGBTQ rights in Taiwan, but is also ready to bring many viewers to tears. We are expecting the same level of success across Asian countries as with ‘More Than Blue’,” said Patrick Mao Huang of sales agent Flash Forward Entertainment.
Right now, the movie is making its way around the festival market with a private screening at Berlin’s European Film Market next week and a world premiere at the Osaka Asian Film Festival next month. Then, it will open to Taiwanese theaters on June 26. Hopefully, the movie will make its away to international theaters after that. But, there are currently no details to know for sure.
Sources: Variety
