Taiwanese short documentary about Kinmen receives Oscar nomination

Taipei, Jan. 24 (CNA) A film by Taiwanese-American director S. Leo Chiang (江松長) about Taiwan's offshore Kinmen County has been nominated for the Academy Awards Best Documentary Short Film category.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences unveiled the nominees in all categories for the Academy Awards, also known as the Oscars, on Tuesday.

Among the five films that received the nod was Chiang's "Island in Between" (金門), a short documentary that looks at the relationship between Taiwan, China, and the United States from a Taiwanese-American perspective.

The film weaves sights and scenes from Kinmen with interviews with locals, the frontline county's history and tensions between Taiwan and China.

According to rules set out by the Academy, for the documentary short film category, all members of the Academy's Documentary Branch will be asked to watch and participate in a first round of voting by secret ballot to pick 15 shortlisted films and then in a second round of balloting to determine the five finalists.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Cultural Minister Shih Che (史哲) congratulated the crew of "Island in Between" and noted that the nomination followed Taiwanese director Chung Mong-hong's (鍾孟宏) "A Sun" (陽光普照) making the shortlist of the Academy for international feature film in 2021.

These achievements highlight the boundless creativity of Taiwanese filmmakers, whose work has garnered wider international recognition in recent years, Shih said.

The Ministry of Culture said it will continue supporting local film productions under its "T-content" subsidy program.

Through the program, the Cabinet has earmarked NT$10 billion in funding until 2027 to subsidize locally produced art, publications, films, TV series, music, and the development of technology to aid the dissemination of cultural content.