Hsu Li-wen

What haunts us is not only death, but aging. Pei-Hua is drawn like a blurred sketch—gray, undefined, embodying the quiet experience of a woman growing older.Mothers often remain fixed in place, becoming a point of reference for their daughters’ journeys. Each of us carries a “carry-on”—unfinished burdens or lessons meant to be faced in this life. When we finally leave, do these carry-ons remain? In the film, a fire becomes a ritual of release, a way of saying goodbye. Life is rarely pure joy or sorrow, and The Carry-On is no exception.

Three poetic tales of seeking the true identity. In the first story, Jing, a blind singer, falls in love with her band's tomboy accordionist Diego. In another time and place, Lily, an elderly lesbian and Yen, her gay friend, create an unexpected bond and support each other in a time of crisis. Finally, we see Diego before she joined the band, when as a teenager she came to grips with her gender identity.

Born never to cry, Fish seeks his missing mother through the underworld. He believes her ghost is imprisoned within a deity puppet — yet, it conceals neither his mother nor an informant, but a survivor. Through the puppet’s mouth, the seaside street’s buried past unfolds.

On Green Island in the 1950s, the female thought prisoners chose to fight for freedom, but were more forcefully suppressed by the authority. They held on to their beliefs and hoping for true freedom to come.

Yu-lan came to Taipei from southern Taiwan. She has got a successful career as a dancer. When her foster mother gets dementia, she has no choice but to retire and go back home. However, the trial and tribulation of her new life have reminded her of her childhood memories. During an argument with her mother’s foreign caretaker, the cause of her foster brother’s death and the secrets about her biological mother are gradually being revealed... As a woman of the advanced maternal age, Yu-lan has found herself unexpectedly pregnant with a baby. Following her heart, she has entered the circle of destiny. Departure means coming back, and her starting point is also her finish line. Is birth adjacent to or far away from death? Maybe at last, you’ll see that the shadow you met will be also the light to guide your life.

A high school student who has lost his father is bullied at school while also being misunderstood by his mother. He decides to return to his father’s hometown to find the tobacco field that was painted in the torn painting he takes along on the journey.

The Hotel Blackcat's owner, Mang, never leaves the counter. Guests include the immigrant worker, whore, losing-job Japanese, sex-abused man, little Lolita.... The police forces the Hotel to shut down and all guests must leave. What should they do? It's not necessary to lock each room anymore. Keep the door open, you'll find out traces imprinted with figures as well as times.

The little girl facing her first menstruation met a pretty girl just become a woman. At the junction of women and girl, they are both deeply moved by love. What should they choose? Stay or leave?