Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale to show at Filmfest DC

Taiwan's most expensive cinematic production ever, Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale, will show at the 26th annual Filmfest DC, Washington's premier international film festival. This director's abridgment of the original two-part epic film runs 150 minutes and will show twice during the festival. Both showings are co-sponsored by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the U.S.

Show Times: April 14, Saturday; 3:30 pm
April 21, Saturday; 2:00 pm
Venue: Regal Cinemas at Gallery Place
701 Seventh Street NW, Washington, D.C.
Tickets: $11 online or by phone
Advance tickets available from the Filmfest DC.
Website: http://www.filmfestdc.org/filmView.cfm?passID=85.
Phone: 1-888-996-4774

As Taiwan's submission to the 84th Academy Awards, Seediq Bale made the nomination short-list for the Best Foreign Film category. In September last year, it played at the 64th Venice Film Festival and at the 2011 Toronto Film Festival. The film has been well received by critics both in Taiwan and abroad, who praised the film's historical accuracy, its realistic action sequences and its authentic depiction of the horrors of war. With a budget of around US$25 million, almost 10 years in development and a domestic box-office gross of US$30 million, it is the most ambitious Taiwan film so far.

The epic 276-minute original version of Seediq Bale has been abridged to 150 minutes, but the cuts do not diminish the narrative skills of Director Wei Te-Sheng. The story follows the events of the 1930 Wushe Rebellion, in which chieftain Mouna Rudo led the aboriginal Seediq tribe of Taiwan against Japanese colonialists on the island. According to Director Wei, the film portrays “the encounter between a people who believe in rainbows and a nation which believes in the sun,” and addresses “larger questions of human dignity and self-fulfillment.” For more information about the film, please visit its English website at: http://www.warriorsoftherainbow.wellgomovies.com/press.php

For more information about the April 14th or April 21st showings, please contact Thalia Lin by e-mail at thalialin@tecro.us or by phone at (202) 895-1852.