TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A Thai organizer of the Taiwan Documentary and Film Festival in Bangkok rejected demands from Chinese embassy officials to remove the Ministry of Culture logo from promotional materials.
Thida Philtpolkarnpim, director of the Documentary Club, said a Chinese embassy official contacted the festival's partner cinemas on Monday and requested the logo's removal after saying it made them "uncomfortable," per Khaosod English. She said the caller spoke Thai with a Mandarin accent and became threatening after organizers refused.
Thida said another Chinese embassy official visited one of the cinemas on Tuesday and repeated the request in person. Organizers responded that they could not remove the logo and told the embassy to use official channels if it had concerns.
The festival's eighth edition is being held from Wednesday to Sunday, with more than 12 Taiwanese films and documentaries scheduled to screen in Bangkok and Khon Kaen, per Tai-Thai Times. The event is organized by the Ministry of Culture, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Thailand, Taiwan Film and Audiovisual Institute, Taiwan Docs, and New Taipei City Government, in cooperation with Thailand's Documentary Club and Movies Matter.
The organizer said the festival had been held for seven years without similar incidents until this year's edition. The opening event proceeded as scheduled on Wednesday without disruption.
The opening film was "Eat Drink Man Woman," directed by Ang Lee (李安), per CNA. The festival will mark the first time Ang Lee's "Father Knows Best" trilogy of "Pushing Hands", "The Wedding Banquet" and "Eat Drink Man Woman" will be screened in Thailand in their entirety.
