• 2024-07-01

For three days from March 6th to 8th, 2024, National Central Library came together with Alliance Française Taiwan, the French Office in Taipei, the Trade Office of Swiss Industries, Canadian Trade Office in Taipei, Luxembourg Trade and Investment Office, Taipei, Belgian Office, Taipei to jointly organize a series of events for the “Mini Festival of Films from French-Speaking Countries” during the March 2024 “Taiwan Francophonie Month,” in the hopes that members of Taiwan’s public can gain a deeper understanding of French-language culture through the film festival.

Every year in March, Taiwan Francophonie Month brings together consular institutions and embassies of French speaking countries based in Taiwan to collaborate in organizing events that showcase the cultures of French speaking countries throughout the world to the Taiwan public. As the whole world celebrates International Francophonie Day, Taiwan Francophonie Month invites French speakers in Taiwan to come together to experience a series of events and enjoy the diversity of the French language. The Mini Festival of Films from French-Speaking Countries is one of the most popular events every year featuring selected films from five countries which guides viewers in experiencing a varied richness of different cultures through the same French language.

The opening ceremony took place at 5:30 on March 6^th in NCL’s Multi-Functional Auditorium. Collaborating partners for the film festival: NCL Director-General Han-ching Wang, Director Matthieu Baudouin A. Branders of the Belgian Office, Taipei, Director Martin Laflamme of the Canadian Trade Office in Taipei, Director Franck Paris of the French Office in Taipei, Director Lex Kaufhold of the Luxembourg Trade and Investment Office, and Director Claudia Fontana Tobiassen of the Trade Office of Swiss Industries as well as Mr. Luc Oreve of French language online magazine Inside Taïwan were in attendance to give speeches as part of the film festival opening ceremony.

During the film festival opening ceremony, NCL Director-General Han-ching Wang expressed that language is the best medium through which to preserve both tangible and intangible heritage of culture and human development. Over the past several years, NCL has organized a variety of language promotion event series including English, French, German, and Arabic. Among these events, the Taiwan Francophonie Month is organized annually in collaboration with national consulates and embassies of French-speaking countries based in Taiwan. It offers events that showcase French-language culture throughout the world to the people of Taiwan and has become an important annual event as part of NCL’s efforts to promote reading. NCL hopes that through the screening of these unique films, featured countries can increase a mutual understanding with the people of Taiwan, facilitating cultural exchange as well as fostering mutual respect and development based on inclusive language diversity, thereby elevating people’s understanding and appreciation for world languages and cultural traditions.

The three-day French-language film festival took place from March 6^th through 8^th, including five films specially selected by the participating countries: “Sawah” (Luxembourg), “Yuku and the Flower of the Himalayas” (Yuku et la fleur de l’Himalaya, Belgium; Taiwan International Children’s Film Festival international competition selection film), "My Very Own Circus” (Mon cirque à moi , Canada), “Home” (Switzerland), “ADN” (France). NCL invited people to learn about the diverse cultures of different French-speaking countries through these films, thereby expanding their international cultural perspectives and experiencing the rich and diverse cultural interpretations of French across different nations.