Taichung Mayor

About this time last year, the first Taichung International Animation Festival was commissioned with the intention of building Taichung into a "Creative Lifestyle Capital". We invited our residents to enjoy outstanding works of animation from all around the world, and proudly presented several domestic works that were later nominated in this year’s Festival International du Film d'Animation d'Annecy. It is our hope that through the expanded scope of this Second Taichung International Animation Festival, we can attract and concentrate resources for animation production in Taiwan, instill a pluralistic sense of taste in our local audiences, while fostering a cooperative platform that bridges gaps between industry, academia and the market.

The Taichung Film Development Foundation was officially incorporated on 19th July, 2016, and has been actively involved with all matters concerning visual media; they have future plans to hold thematic film festivals, establish Arthouse Theaters, and subsidize accommodation for production crews through cooperative schemes between the Filmmaking Assistance and Development Center and local hotels such as the "League of Film Production" project. The city also endeavors to establish a Central Taiwan Cinema Center, in the hope of acquiring support and integration with projects on the national level, striving to preserve existing talent while cultivating the new.

It is my hope that through the continuation of the Taichung International Animation Festival, greater potential can be gathered, and a new milestone could be reached by establishing this major platform. In the future, the platform could further act as a medium for cooperation between Taiwanese animation studios and their partners around the world, allowing the elites of the domestic animation industry a chance to shine on their own. Let this film festival be more than just a film festival; may it be a shining beacon for the cultural development of the city.

I hereby wish the 2016 Taichung International Animation Festival a resounding success and international acclaim. I welcome all our distinguished guests from all over the world, and also extend this warm welcome to all our friends and families, here's to a joyful Film Fest!