The Government Information Office asks film festival to fix ‘China’

Executive Yuan Secretary-General Chen Chin-jun told reporters he has asked the GIO to file a complaint with the Venice Biennale, organizer of the high-profile event, to correct the “misnomer” with local films featured in the festival including Taiwanese director Ang Lee’s “Se, Jie (Lust, Caution).”

Other local entries at the festival include Lee Kang-sheng’s “Bangbang wo aishen (Help Me Eros),” and Alexi Tan’s “Tiantang Kou (Blood Brothers).”

The films were previously listed as “Taiwan” productions in the festival’s Web site yesterday, but later changed arguably under pressure from Chinese authorities, according to the United Evening News.

The local newspaper reported that Lee’s film was originally described as a production from “USA and China” for having been filmed in those two countries. Under request from the film’s production company, it was later changed to “Taiwan,” which in turn raised complaints from the Chinese side. The current listing stands under “USA/China/Taiwan, China.”

Other films such as “Bangbang wo aishen” which were filmed in its entirety in Taiwan were also changed to the listing “Taiwan, China,” and movies from Hong Kong, originally listed only with “Hong Kong,” were also changed to say “Hong Kong, China,” continued the report.

Chen compared the issue with such “erroneous” naming by Chinese Web sites that say New York Yankees’ Taiwanese pitcher Wang Chien-ming is China’s baseball phenomenon. “Everybody knows Wang Chien-ming is ‘Taiwan’s Pride’ and China should make the distinction clear,” he said.

In response to the sudden change in names, a spokesperson of Lee, who currently resides in New York, told the newspaper that he was “very surprised” and would look into the situation further.

The festival, now in its 64th edition, is part of the Venice Biennale which features some of the world’s most avant-garde works of art, architecture, cinema, dance, and theater, and will be held in the Italian city starting Aug. 29 until Sept. 8.

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