Brian Hioe

“A Light Never Goes Out” Celebrates Hong Kong’s Iconic Neon Signs

by

"A Light Never Goes Out" is a spirited look into the craftsmen who build and maintain Hong Kong’s iconic neon signs. Though the film’s plot is somewhat boilerplate, it has beautiful cinematography, and demonstrates a genuine love for its subject

From No Man Is an Island
On December 3, 2022
Categories

What’s in a Sheet of Paper?

by

On China's 'white paper revolution'

From No Man Is an Island
On November 29, 2022
Categories

Aesthetics and Politics in 2022 Campaigning

by

This year's election continued much of the same aesthetic tropes as previous elections. As with past years, it was the DPP that focused on aesthetics that could outreach to young people, and maintained the modernist aesthetic that has characterized pan-Green campaign advertising since the Tsai administration took power. While the KMT has significantly modernized its aesthetic in recent years, it is still the DPP that proved the more experimental in election advertising

From No Man Is an Island
On November 25, 2022
Categories

Murder, Corruption, and Plagiarism: An Election Cycle Characterized by Scandal

by

Many races have boiled down to the personalities running for office, rather than their policies.

From No Man Is an Island
On November 23, 2022
Categories

Who Are This Year’s Fringe Candidates in the Taipei Mayoral Race?

by

The Taipei mayoral race saw twelve candidates this year. The three serious candidates are, of course, Chen Shih-chung of the DPP, Chiang Wan-an of the KMT, and Vivian Huang of the TPP. It remains unclear as to which of them may win, with a tight three-way race anticipated. At the same time, as the nation’s capital, Taipei often attracts a number of fringe mayoral candidates. This was no different this year, with the views of these candidates on display at the four-hour policy platform held by the Central Election Commission, in which all of the candidates were given thirty minutes to express their views

From No Man Is an Island
On November 18, 2022
Categories

“Therapy Dogs” Offers a Cleverly Stylized Depiction of High School

by

Therapy Dogs is a creatively stylized take on high school, following two friends in their senior year. Though the film is unlikely to appeal to all viewers, given its deliberately disjointed narrative, it manages to capture something of the nihilism–and violence–of wayward teenagers

From No Man Is an Island
On November 16, 2022
Categories

Twitter Is a Transnational Company

by

Musk has tried to ingratiate himself with authoritarians the world over.

From Popula
On November 10, 2022
Categories

“Mountain Woman” Depicts Human Cruelty and Desperation in a Japanese Village

by

With its story about an outcast family, “Mountain Woman” explores humanity’s darkness against a beautiful backdrop of Japan’s countryside

From No Man Is an Island
On November 4, 2022
Categories

The Cross-Straits Politics of Global Panda Health

by

Tuan Tuan, one of four giant pandas displayed in the Taipei Zoo, has become ill with brain lesions.

From No Man Is an Island
On October 7, 2022
Categories

Fake It Real Examines the Relation Between Truth and Fiction in the Age of Disinformation

by

The exhibition concerns itself with the spread of fake news and disinformation globally, featuring works reflecting both Taiwanese and international artists.

From No Man Is an Island
On October 5, 2022
Categories

Of Couches and Class Rage

by

no such thing as a free couch

From Popula
On September 14, 2022
Categories

Rainie Yang Controversy Prompts Netizens to React by Posting Photos of Seafood on Social Media

by

A recent scandal involved singer Rainie Yang (楊丞琳) claiming not to be Taiwanese, but a “Guangdong person that grew up in Taiwan” on a Chinese program. Yang claimed this despite being born in Taipei in 1984 because her father is of Cantonese descent.

From No Man Is an Island
On September 6, 2022
Categories

“Demigod: The Legend Begins” Breathes New Life Into Taiwanese Puppetry

by

Pili Puppetry is a well-known Taiwanese glove puppet series, which transposes wuxia tales of martial arts chivalry to a fantasy setting.

From No Man Is an Island
On August 22, 2022
Categories