BEFORE THE BRIGHT DAY

FILM INFO

Title in Mandarin

南方時光

Film Type

NARRATIVE FEATURE

Year

2024

Film Status

Completed

Duration

114 min

THEME / GENRE

FAMILY

Director

TSAO Shih-han

Producer

LIN Shih-ken

Cast

CHAN Hsuan-li

Production Company

LIFE SCENERY FILMS

Festivals & Awards

2025 2025 San Sebastián Film Festival New Directors Competition
2024 Taipei Golden Horse WIP

2023 Excellent Screenplay Award
2021 HAF Film LAB – Script Service Award

2021 ROC Ministry of Culture Found

Participation Goal

PreSales、Sales、InternationalDistribution、FestivalScreening

From the perspective of a teenager, this story explores the profound impact of the 1996 missile crisis and Taiwan’s first direct presidential election on both society and individual lives.

Chou is placed in the “losers” B-class by his teacher, while the girl he likes, Min, is in the prestigious A-class. Tired of his pale and uneventful youth, Chou sees Button, a small gang leader, as the man he aspires to become.

In 1996, during the Taiwan Strait Crisis, his father’s investments took a hit, and his mother’s stock trading incurred losses. The gloomy atmosphere at home made his younger brother Bin’s piano practice sound especially dispirited.

Falling in with Button’s gang, Chou experiences a series of setbacks: Button leaves for military service, gets framed by his peers, Min emigrates out of fear of war, and their teacher forces Chou to drop out after catching him smoking. What kind of future awaits him?



SALES CONTACT

Company

LIFE SCENERY FILMS CO., LTD.

JOB TITLE

Co-Producer

Contact

Luna PAN

Email

lifesceneryfilm@gmail.com