This was the first Oscar nomination for a documentary from Taiwan. “Island in Between”《金門》was a nominee for Best Documentary Short at the 2024 Academy Awards.

In this 19-minute documentary, we see Kinmen (Quemoy) through the lens of filmmaker S. Leo Chiang (江松長) and the diverse cast of characters he meets there. Kinmen - made of a set of islands - is governed by Taiwan but sits just 2 miles across from China. Here Chiang portrays an “uneasy peace on the frontline between Taiwan and China.”

We talk about Kinmen, the making of the film, the path to the Oscars, and Chiang’s personal journey from being a parachute kid to the U.S., and his evolving identity as a Chinese, Taiwanese, American, and everything in between.

Chiang is co-founder of the Asian American Documentary Network (A-Doc). In 2009, Chiang was nominated for an Emmy for the documentary “A Village Called Versailles.”

“Island in Between” is produced by CNEX, and distributed by the New York Times Op-Docs. Producer, Jean Tsien. Watch: https://www.nytimes.com/video/opinion/100000009146242/island-in-between.html

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Alex Khomenko is the organizer of Taiwan Stands with Ukraine 台灣烏克蘭陣線. We talk about conducting citizen diplomacy at a time of war, Taiwan’s humanitarian aid to Ukraine and public donations that amounted to the sending of power generators and ambulances, Taiwan and Ukraine relations, and the internal politics the Ukrainian government may be facing at home.

Ukraine has no representatives based in Taiwan. When the war broke out on February 24, 2022, there were around 250 Ukrainians living in Taiwan. Many have had to do the difficult job of citizen diplomacy at a time of war.

They have formed groups to rally support from the Taiwanese public, the Taiwanese government, and foreign offices based in Taiwan. They have held fundraiser events, cultural days, demonstrations near the Moscow office, exhibitions at the National Human Rights Museum, and the two-year anniversary march.

They are the best example of citizen diplomacy, but at the worst of times.

Ukrainian Food day in Taipei (More info)
1-7pm on Sunday, March 10
Location: Bar FEST 台北市汀州路三段149號 - (Google Map)

For our previous interviews on Ukraine -
Olek Shyn on Game Changers with Emily Y. Wu - Watch Video
Dmytro Burtsev on Five Star Nation (Mandarin) - Listen

Follow and tag us on social media:
Ghost Island Media | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter
Emily Y. Wu | Twitter @emilyywu

Support us by donating on Patreon http://patreon.com/taiwan

A Ghost Island Media production: www.ghostisland.media

Support the show: https://patreon.com/Taiwan

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Reinhard Bütikofer is a familiar name in Europe and Taiwan relations. He has been an MEP since 2009, where he is a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, chairperson of the Delegation for Relations with China, and an alternate member of the Committee on International Trade. Reinhard also co-chairs IPAC, the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China. 

(This conversation was recorded prior to the 2024 January 13 election in Taiwan.)

We discuss the history of Europe-Taiwan relations, how 2016 and 2019 paved the way for an increased level of engagement with Taiwan, and how Bütikofer stays hopeful (“pessimism of the intellect, and optimism of the will.”)

Plus, a quote of hope from Hong Kong pro-democracy politician, Martin Lee.

Bütikofer is the organizer of the annual Berlin Taiwan Conference. See archive video here: 

2022 - “Opportunities and Challenges in Times of Geopolitical Change” (Dec 5, 6)
Day 1 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OeDzUT7EpB0
Day 2 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aTrFoRWu8ow

2023 - “Taiwan before the Presidential Elections” (Nov 13,14)
Day 1 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fG4s_6Q_zoc
Day 2 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTKynM7SURs

Support us by donating on Patreon http://patreon.com/taiwan 

Tag and follow us on social media:
Ghost Island Media | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

EPISODE CREDIT
Host / Emily Y. Wu @emilyywu
Editing / Gerald Williams
Researcher / Min Chao @wordsfromtaiwan
A Ghost Island Media production / @ghostislandme

www.ghostisland.media

Support the show: https://patreon.com/Taiwan

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.