Li Wu-hsiung is a poor single father working high-risk jobs aboard boats in the harbor zone, where he lives in an illegal shack with his young daughter. The two live happily together until she reaches school age, at which time he tries to enroll her in a public school only to have her removed from his care by the government. His desperation to reclaim her leads to a showdown that evolves into a worldwide media event. Based on a true story, Leon Dai’s sharp, emotional second feature—a multiple prizewinner at international festivals, including top honors at the 2009 Taipei Film Festival—comes in strikingly composed black-and-white while simultaneously exploring the grayer shades of its rich story of contemporary Taiwanese society.


Written by Leon Dai, Chen Wen-pin. Photographed by Chang Hsiang-yu. With Chen Wen-pin, Chao Yo-hsuan, Lin Chih-ju. (92 min, in Mandarin and Taiwanese with English subtitles, Luminoso Film)