Verena Kyselka

Title: The Formosa Experiment
Directed by Verena Kyselka
Duration: 28:00
Format: 16:9
Concept, lyrics, realisation: Verena Kyselka
Collages, drawings: Ling-Yu He, YaMu Wang, YuYen Lin, Yin-ru Chien, Suse Schweizer, Verena Kyselka
Animation: I Chen Peko Lin, Jorge Isaac Alzamora, Sheng Hung Fan
Performers: Delphine Hsini Mei, An-Yi Cheng, Jia-Zhen Tsai, Charlene Shih, Yu Jun Ye, Yu-Hang Huang, Verena Kyselka
Performance of the three islands: Delphine Hsini Mei
Voice over: Janin Stenzel
Breaking news voices: YaMu Wang
Soundscape: Jorn Ebner
Soundmix, voice processing: Manfred Miersch
Camera: Verena Kyselka, Yi-Jon Chuang
Editor: Anett Vietzke
Language: English, German
Subtitles: English, German
Producer: Orientalfilms
Production date: 2014
Production country: Germany, Taiwan
http://www.verena-kyselka.de http://www.orientfilms.de

The Formosa Experiment

The situation on the small island in the South Pacific Ocean is getting worse. Memories of dictatorship and tyranny prevail. Protest is spreading. The entire world is in turmoil. A secret experiment to relocate the island is carried out. Suddenly, the island disappears altogether with its people. The world powers of China, Russia, USA and Japan blame each other. Three new populated islands re-emerge scattered around the globe. What are the consequences? An island myth is created. Women from different cultural backgrounds take a ritual bath together and associate the memories. Embedded in the framework of a fictitious story about an experiment to relocate the island and the disappearance and appearance of islands, this film is based on two autobiographical stories and on interviews conducted in Taiwan about peoples identity across different age groups. Today’s global political and economic conflicts, the environmental issues and those of contemporary history are reflected in the narrative style of this experimental documentary.

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