Founder, Film director, Ars Film Productions
Te Sheng Wei began his filmmaking career in a small production house, starting as a grip assistant and becoming an assistant director in just one year. He became an assistant in Edward Yang’s film studio in 1995 and filmed the movie Mahjong a year later. He filmed various short films until 1997, with each winning the Golden Harvest Award for Film and Digital Video. His 1999 16-millimetre film About July won great reviews from film critics in Taiwan and was given a Special Mention from the Alcan Dragons and Tigers Award for Young Cinema at the Vancouver International Film Festival.
In 2008, his movie Cape No. 7 nabbed the top spot at the box office in Taiwan. It is the highest-grossing film ever produced in Taiwan and is in the Top 20 highest-grossing films in Taiwanese box office history. Wei is known for showing Taiwan’s history through his films. In his movie Taiwan Trilogy, he hopes to show the moment when Taiwan opened its doors to the world 400 years ago and faced the intrusion of different civilizations.
Awards
2011
Golden Horse Award - Best Film for Seediq Bale
2008
Golden Horse Award- Outstanding Taiwanese Filmmaker of the Year
2008
Outstanding Taiwanese Film of the Year for Cape No. 7
2007
Golden Horse Awards - Outstanding Taiwanese Filmmaker of the Year
1997
Golden Harvest Award for Film and Digital Video
Did You Know?
Te Sheng Wei watched his first Hollywood film, Sergio Leone’s Once Upon a Time in America, while doing his military service.