Taiwan‘s Golden Horse Film Project Promotion has unveiled its most international lineup to date, revealing film and series projects that underscore the growing appetite for cross-border collaborations in Asian cinema.
The 2025 selection comprises 50 film projects — 38 new developments (FPP) and 12 works-in-progress (WIP) — plus 14 series projects announced earlier. Among the projects: 22 international co-productions that span territories from Japan and South Korea to Malaysia, France and the U.K., setting a new record for the event.
The slate reflects contemporary trends while showcasing returning Golden Horse Award winners alongside emerging voices exploring themes from LGBTQ+ identity to Indigenous culture, AI technology and cross-generational family dynamics.
Several Golden Horse veterans return with new projects. Wei Te-sheng, director of “Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale,” presents “Mount Sancha,” described as a rescue mission examining history and ethnic conflicts.
Geng Jun, helmer of “Bel Ami,” teams with Golden Horse Best Actor winner Zhang Zhiyong for dark comedy “Born After,” exploring cross-border family crises. Meanwhile, “Get the Hell Out” filmmaker Wang I-fang returns with “Prometheus,” following a tech genius building a pirating empire.
Popular writer-director Giddens Ko adapts another writer’s work for the first time with “Holy’s Home,” exploring human-god relations through temple rituals.
Taiwan-Japan collaborations feature prominently, with “You Shine in the Moonlight” — an adaptation of a bestselling novel to be directed by Lee Po-en (“The King of Night Market”) with “More Than Blue” director Gavin Lin as executive producer.
“Granny’s Secret Journey” sees director Nagata Koto, protégé of Iwai Shunji, revisiting the history of the Wansei (Japanese born in Taiwan during the colonial era).
Cross-continental projects include U.K.-based Taiwanese director Aephie Chen’s “Luma,” exploring Indigenous identity rediscovery, and “The Rhythm Man,” a Taiwan-Korea romance co-directed by Baeksang Arts Award winner Jo Hyun-chul.
Hong Kong filmmakers are represented with “Blue Island” director Chan Tze-woon adapting the novel “Nothing Happened” about a Hong Kong fixer. “High Noon” filmmaker Heiward Mak’s “Nice to Meet You!” portrays three generations of women, while “The Way We Dance” screenwriter Saville Chan makes his directorial debut with youth romance “Under the Peach Blossoms.”
Cat Kwan, Hong Kong Film Award winner for Best Screenplay, returns with “Lost Roots,” tracing overseas Chinese experiences.
The selection showcases genre diversity. AI content creator Danny Tseng presents supernatural thriller “Soul Lantern,” while “Harry Potter” actor Katie Leung executive produces “Blood Rush,” blending Taoist rituals with vampire mythology.
Golden Horse Best Animated Short Film winner Ellis Chan Ka-yin contributes “Wilderness of the Greenriver,” a sibling love story set in a memory-sealed future.
Documentary selections include Jin Jiang’s follow-up to “Republic” with “To Cross a River,” examining a high-achieving student’s journey to monastic life.
Several projects explore gender and sexuality themes. The “Little Big Women” team adapts Terao Tetsuya’s bestselling novel “Spent Bullets,” revealing Silicon Valley engineers’ lives. “A Journey in Spring” co-directors Wang Ping-wen and Peng Tzu-hui reunite for “An Unfinished Me,” exploring body and desire.
Executive producer Mark Lee Ping-bing presents “Ever Falling,” a lesbian love story set against mountain and sea landscapes, while “Abang Adik” filmmaker Jin Ong portrays forbidden romance between undocumented workers in “Crying Dog.”
The WIP section continues its track record with 2025 releases including “Where the River Flows,” “Blind Love,” “Before the Bright Day,” “Kong Tao,” “No Time For Goodbye” and “The Rover.”
This year’s 12 WIP selections span documentaries, animation and narrative features. Documentary projects include Lu Yuan-chi’s “In the Spotlight,” exploring legendary singer Yatauyungana Kikuko’s life during Taiwan’s White Terror era, executive produced by Shen Ko-shang. Chian Yin-yun and Chen Hsiang-hao contribute “Sunset Forest,” documenting leopard cat and clouded leopard conservation, while director Tay Bee-pin follows a controversial Singaporean political figure in “Ji Pa Ban.” Ariel Tu’s “Vanishing Freedom” investigates forced disappearances in Taiwan, and “The Cherry Orchard,” executive produced by renowned dancer Jin Xing, presents a life requiem.
Animation projects include “Grandma and Her Ghosts 2: Baby Power,” sequel to Taiwan’s animated feature, and four-territory international co-production “The Violinist,” a musical epic that participated in Annecy’s Mifa market.
Narrative WIP selections feature “We Are Champions” director Chang Jung-chi’s “Dangling,” about a high-rise window cleaner trapped in a life-or-death struggle on a skyscraper. Golden Horse Film Academy alumnus Lu Po-shun adapts his award-winning short for “Will You Still Be My Friend,” while “The Outlaw Doctor” director Chan Chun-hao presents “Dead End,” following a down-and-out baseball player risking everything to save his father.
From Hong Kong, “Far Far Away” director Amos Why blends cuisine and dating apps in “Dating Omakase,” serving up romance through four meals, while Michelle Zhou explores intimate family deceptions in lesbian drama “Big Little Things.”
The Golden Horse Film Project Promotion serves as Taiwan’s premier industry platform, connecting regional projects with international investors and collaborators. This year’s international participation signals the continued globalization of Asian cinema and growing cross-border collaboration opportunities.
The Golden Horse Film Project Promotion runs concurrent with the Golden Horse Awards, Taiwan’s premier film honors.