Being a Malaysian filmmaker working in Taiwan, Tsai Ming-liang would naturally have a unique perspective on the filmmaking scene here in Malaysia. Having been based in Taipei for more than 20 years, Tsai has been through everything from the end of martial law to the democratisation of Taiwan that led to a flood of new opportunities for filmmakers there. 

In the initial stages of what is now known as the Taiwanese New Cinema movement, the filmmakers were constantly searching for an identity. Renowned auteur Hou Hsiao-hsien, through his films such as The Puppetmaster, questions what it really means to be Taiwanese. Tsai’s own films explore the cold, alienating nature of modern life in Taipei. But above all, it is the universal themes surrounding humanity that are really the more essential elements of their films.