Lou Yi-an (Chinese: 樓一安) is a Taiwanese writer and director devoted to both the cinema and television industry. He is known for his dark humor, character-driven intricate story lines. He often portrays the working class and the migrants in a context of social and racial discrimination.

Lou Yi-an
樓一安
Born
Taipei
NationalityTaiwanese
Occupation(s)Film director, Script-writer

He got noticed in 2006 when he won the Best Director in a Miniseries award from the 41st Golden Bell Awards in 2006. Later in 2007 he won, together with Singing Chen the Best Original Screenplay award at the 44th Golden Horse Awards.[1] Several of Lou's films also include Chen's work, such as the short Waterfront Villa Bonita (2007), Bundled (2000), God Man Dog (2007) and Lou's first long-feature as a director A Place of One's Own (2009)[2][3] that focused on poor people living in New Taipei City.[2]

In 2010, he wrote A gloomy Salad Day, a TV series that talk about teenage-hood.

In 2013, Lou was commissioned by the Hakka Television Service to make The Losers. Lou drew inspiration for the project from the Hakka band Labor Exchange, specifically the album Night March of the Chrysanthemums.[3] the film touched on Taiwanese culture, social and racial issues caused by class and age gaps. It portrayed rural life in Meinong, Kaohsiung.[4][5] Due to The Losers heavy subject matter, Lou was advised not to theatrically release it.[3] As a result, the film was shown for one week only at the Spot Huashan Cinema in Taipei.[3] In April 2016, Lou traveled to London to attend a screening of The Losers at SOAS, University of London.[6]

In 2015, he directed and co-wrote White Lies, Black Lies, different from the previous works, it focus on the psychological aftermath of murders committed in 1960s Wanhua District of Taipei. It is Lou Yi-an's first successfully commercial big screen movie.

In 2018, he then returned to television with the TV series Roseki which is also well appraised by the public and confirmed his renown in Taiwan. Roseki is a 14 episodes long drama that relates the life of the famous Taipei writer and singer Lu Ho-juo during the Japanese colonization, alternating between the singer's stage life and personal life. The show was premiered on Hakka TV.[7]

In 2021 he worked as a director and screenwriter on the TV series Heaven on the 4th Floor as well as Goddamned Asura for which he earned a Best Screenplay award at the Taipei Film Festival as a Best original screenplay nomination at the Taiwanese Golden Horse Film Festival.

Filmography

edit

Film

edit
Year Title Director Writer
2000 Bundled (我叫阿銘啦) (Assistant-director) No
2007 God Man Dog (流浪神狗人) No Yes (Co-writer)
2009 A Place of One's Own(一席之地) Yes Yes
2013 The Losers (廢物) Yes Yes
2016 White Lies, Black Lies (失控謊言) Yes Yes (Co-writer)
2022 Goddamned Asura Yes Yes (Co-writer)

Television

edit
Year Title Director Writer
2005 快樂的出航 (no English title) Yes Yes
2010 A gloomy Salad Day (死神少女) No Yes
2013 月光森林 (no English title) Yes (Co-writer)
2018 Roseki (臺北歌手) Yes (Co-writer)
2021 Heaven on the 4th Floor (四樓的天堂) No Yes

Short Film

edit
Year Title Director Writer
2002 花願 (no English title) Yes No
2007 Waterfront Villa Bonita (水岸麗景) Yes Yes
2012 When Yesterday Comes(昨日的記憶), segment "The Clock" (阿霞的掛鐘) No (Co-writer)

Awards and nominations

edit
Year Festival Award Status For
2022 Taipei Film Festival Best Screenplay Won Goddamned Asura
2022 Taipei Film Festival Best Editing Nominated Goddamned Asura|Goddamned Asura
2021 Golden Horse Best Original Screenplay Nominated Goddamned Asura
2018 Golden Bell Best Writing for a Television Series Won Roseki
2018 Golden Bell Creative Program Award Won Roseki
2018 Golden Bell Best Directing for a Television Series Nominated Roseki
2018 Asian Academy Creative Awards Best Original Screenplay Nominated Roseki
2018 Asian Academy Creative Awards Best Direction (Fiction) Nominated Roseki
2016 Chinese Young Generation Film Forum Jury Award Won [1]White Lies, Black Lies
2014 Fukuoka Asian Film Festival Grand Prix Won The Losers
2016 Taipei Film Festival Best Screenplay Nominated [2]White Lies, Black Lies
2009 Taipei Film Festival Audience Award Won A Place of One's Own
2009 Taipei Film Festival Grand Prix Nominated A Place of One's Own
2009 Bratislava International Film Festival Grand Prix Nominated A Place of One's Own
2008 Durban International Film Festival Best Screenplay Won God Man Dog
2007 Golden Horse Best Original Screenplay Nominated God Man Dog
2006 Golden Bell Miniseries Writer Award Won 快樂的出航 (no English title)

References

edit
  1. ^ "The 44th Golden Horse Awards nominations and winners". Taipei Times. 9 December 2007. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
  2. ^ a b "Location, location, location" (PDF). Taipei Times. 9 October 2009. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d Ho Yi (14 May 2014). "The land of stories". Taipei Times. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  4. ^ Ho Yi (31 December 2014). "YEAR IN REVIEW: Taiwanese Cinema". Taipei Times. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  5. ^ Ho Yi (9 May 2014). "Movie review: The Losers". Taipei Times. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  6. ^ Phillips, Tony (19 April 2016). "Taiwan in the spotlight". Taipei Times. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  7. ^ "Mo Zi-yi on playing novelist Lu He-ruo in new TV drama". Taipei Times. 9 January 2018. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
edit