Tag Archives: Taipei

Cinema taught me how to become the person I wanted to be…

Mickey Chen, center, poses with the two leading actors from the director’s 2007 short film Fragile in Love.

Author, gay activist and documentary filmmaker Mickey Chen is a friend of a friend of this site. Thanks to Guo-Juin Hong of Duke University for this one! Chen’s best-selling book Taipei Father New York Mother is coming out as a film. Both are semi-autobiographical and based on Chen’s difficult family background. Chen recently talked to the Taipei Times. He has described cinema as his “mother” and explains: “Children from dysfunctional families have different ways of licking their wounds. My brother is addicted to gambling, my older sister died of an overdose, and my younger sister spends her life in the frantic pursuit of love. I choose to hide in the abstract world of literature and the arts. I became parentless at the age of 10. Cinema taught me how to become the person I wanted to be.” Good stuff. For the rest of the interview, click here.

“Out and Vote!” Taiwan Gay Pride Parties for Policy Change

Revelers at Taiwan Pride - Photo Reuters

In Taiwan, the Chinese speaking world’s largest Pride Celebration is underway. Like Pride celebrations everywhere, glitter and muscle abound. And like many, this party comes with a deeper message about human rights and dignity. Numbers speak…and with numbers can come political power. This year’s theme is “Out and Vote!” The Taipei Times reports.