TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Three films with Taiwanese connections are competing at the 74th Berlinale, with “Black Tea” and “Shambhala” vying for the Golden Bear.

Meanwhile, “Sleep With Your Eyes Open” will compete in the Encounters section of the film festival, which opened Thursday (Feb. 15) in Berlin. Additionally, festival veteran Tsai Ming-liang (蔡明亮) has two entries, with his latest documentary “Abiding Nowhere” (無所住) in the Berlinale Special and “The Wayward Cloud” (天邊一朵雲) in the Berlinale Classics Special.

The Berlinale is an 11-day extravaganza that is rated among the world’s top five film festivals. This year, director Martin Scorsese is set to receive an Honorary Golden Bear, while actress Lupita Nyong’o will be jury president.

“Black Tea” is a cross-cultural romantic drama directed by Abderrahmane Sissako and stars Nina Melo, along with Taiwanese actors Chang Han (張翰) and Wu Ke-xi (吳可熙). It features Taiwan locations and is about a young Ivorian woman who emigrates to China and falls in love with an older man.

The movie makes its world premiere at the competition on Wednesday (Feb. 21). It was backed by the Taiwan International Co-Funding Program (TICP) from the Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA) and the Kaohsiung Film Fund.

A scene from “Shambhala.” (TAICCA photo)

Another film part-backed by TAICCA is "Shambhala" by the writer and director Min Bahadur Bham. It looks at life in a polyandrous village in Nepal and behind the scenes features two executive producers from Taiwan, Roger Huang (黃江豐) and Liao Ching-sung (廖慶松).

According to a TAICCA press release, “Sleep With Your Eyes Open” is a comedy set in Brazil with Taiwanese director Midi Z’s (趙德胤) regular collaborator Wang Shin-hong (王興洪) in the cast. Much of the post-production work was also done in Taiwan.

“Sleep With Your Eyes Open.” (TAICCA photo)

Meanwhile, Tsai Ming-liang returns with “Abiding Nowhere,” which is the 10th installment of the auteur’s “Walkers” series, commissioned by Washington’s Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Asian Art, and co-produced with Taiwan Public Television Service, with support from Taiwan’s Ministry of Culture.

There was also a screening of Tsai’s 2005 movie “The Wayward Cloud,” accompanied by a masterclass from the director on Friday (Feb. 16). Tsai is from Malaysia but has based himself in Taiwan and the United States.

TAICCA Chair Homme Tsai (蔡嘉駿) commented that the three films supported by TICP were "testimony to the capability of Taiwan’s talent." He added, "The new TICP 2.0 will respond to industry needs and attract more interest from the international film industry, bringing more visibility to the pool of Taiwan talent on the international stage."

Tsai said TAICCA had representation at the Berlinale Co-Production Market to share financing and co-production resources from Taiwan, in addition to attracting quality projects with Taiwan talent.