Mei
2006 · 11m · Taiwan
Directed by Arvin Chen
Tones: contemplative, melancholic, tender
A young man working at his family's noodle stall in a Taipei night market harbors quiet, unrequited feelings for his co-worker Mei, who is preparing to leave for New York.
Picked by Zoe
The scouts
The Silver Bear is proof, but what gets me is the restraint — Chen shoots longing like it has weight, and the Taipei night market becomes one of the most emotionally loaded locations in short film.
Arvin Chen's USC thesis, shot in Mandarin without reading Chinese, won a Berlin Silver Bear. That biographical fact alone makes the film worth seeing.
Arvin Chen shooting in Mandarin in Taipei despite not reading Chinese, then winning the Berlin Silver Bear for it — the Yi Yi / In the Mood for Love comparisons are not gentle but the trajectory of Chen's later work suggests the instinct was already there. A serious thesis film.
Festivals
- Berlin International Film Festival 2007, Silver Bear for Best Short Film