Now, following its San Sebastián premiere and two Golden Horse nominations, Lu is bringing the film to the Busan International Film Festival – where it is playing in the A Window on Asian Cinema strand – with renewed confidence in its ability to connect with international audiences.
Finding the right young actors was another crucial part of that process. Lu began searching about a year before filming, eventually discovering Wang, a boy of Taiwanese and Italian heritage, through a social media account run by his mother. He contacted her directly.
For Lu, directing the young cast meant working with their personalities while helping them understand how their characters differed from themselves.
According to Lu, all four San Sebastián screenings sold out on the first day of ticket sales, and the film remained among the top three during voting for the festival’s youth award. Its general-audience classification in Taiwan, where it is scheduled to open theatrically on Dec. 4, has given him further encouragement.
“At Busan, I hope to exchange ideas with audiences from different cultural backgrounds,” Lu said. “I hope everyone can understand the feelings between these two boys, or be reminded of an experience of their own. If that happens, then the cross-cultural connection I hoped the film could make will have been achieved.”
Lu was also flattered by a festival website’s introduction linking the film to Taiwan’s New Wave. Hou Hsiao-hsien’s “The Boys From Fengkuei” and François Truffaut’s “The 400 Blows” left a particularly strong impression on Lu during his film-school years.
On his fourth visit to Busan, Lu is approaching the festival as both director and executive producer. He has yet to settle on an idea for his next film, but is eager to hear audience responses and meet potential industry partners.
“As a filmmaker, I want to hear Asian audiences’ immediate reactions,” he said. “As an executive producer, I hope more people in the industry will see the film, take an interest in it and believe in its market potential.”
The experience has also brought the difficulty of securing distribution into sharper focus. Producer Yu-Hao Su will be working to sell the film at Busan’s market, Lu said.
“Having been through this process, I’ve realized how difficult it is for a film to find distribution,” Lu said. “For directors and actors who aren’t yet well known, it takes more effort to get people to notice the work. But seeing the film reach more people is also one of the most rewarding things about making movies.”
Moveria is handling sales on the title.
