Experiencing Interruptions?

The Foreigner

For those who call themselves Taiwanese, “WE” is not a given—it drifts like a ghost, hard to hold...

In southern Taiwan, a night-shift factory lies quiet like a ruin. Machines stilled, lights flickering, time caught in a moment—unmoving, unresolved.

A-Bang, a weathered middle-aged Taiwanese man, patrols, takes photos, signs in—holding on to a semblance of order, especially when migrant women, slipping through stillness, bring their small requests to him, the LOCAL.

  • Wen-Shuo HSUEH
    Director
  • Wen-Shuo HSUEH
    Writer
  • Yunting CHU
    Producer
  • Jen-Chien KO
    Key Cast
    "A-Bang"
  • Wai-Kin SOU
    Cinematography
  • Ken WU
    Sound
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    浮游物
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Runtime:
    16 minutes
  • Completion Date:
    October 13, 2024
  • Country of Origin:
    Taiwan
  • Country of Filming:
    Taiwan
  • Language:
    Mandarin Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1.85:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Vancouver International Film Festival
    Vancouver, British Columbia
    Canada
    International Premiere
    Official Selection：Short Forum
  • INTERFILM - International Short Film Festival Berlin
    Berlin
    Germany
    Official Selection：International Competition
  • Kaohsiung Film Festival
    Kaohsiung
    Taiwan
    Official Selection：International Short Film Competition
Director Biography - Wen-Shuo HSUEH

Hsueh Wen-Shuo, a Taiwanese filmmaker born in 1994.

His short film, Lovely Sundays, won the Grand Prize and Best Director Award at the 2019 Golden Harvest Awards, as well as the Taiwan Student Award at the 2018 KFF International Short Film Competition.

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Director Statement

A Foreigner Among Foreigners

In 2018, when I began working on my first short film—a story about Filipino migrant workers in Taiwan—I stumbled upon a fascinating scene: a group of middle-aged Taiwanese men who frequented dance halls exclusively for Filipinos. They partied alongside the migrant workers, using broken English and clumsy dance moves in an attempt to catch the attention of Filipino women.

“Because Taiwanese women won’t date us,” they told me.

These men, who were from a more disadvantaged socioeconomic background, saw themselves as losers in Taiwan’s dating scene. They felt overlooked or unwanted by Taiwanese women, so they turned their attention to female migrant workers. In their eyes, blue-collar migrant workers are considered a lower social class.So in front of these women, these men felt more confident—more like “real men.”

I found this phenomenon incredibly intriguing. It sparked new ideas about “belonging” and “identity,” which led me to create this film.