Capturing the beauty of Taiwan's sacred trees: Director Li Hsiang-hsiu doesn't regret knee inflammation from climbing

Central News Agency

(Central News Agency reporter Hung Su-tsin, Taipei, May 6th) Independent filmmaker Li Hsiang-hsiu directed the ecological documentary "Island of Sacred Trees," hoping to raise public awareness and concern for the mountains and forests. For the filming, Li Hsiang-hsiu followed professional tree-finders up the mountains, enduring knee inflammation to understand Taiwan's beautiful mountains and forests.

Director Li Hsiang-hsiu spares no effort in promoting Taiwan's ecological culture. She began focusing on Taiwan's local history and culture in 1993. She spent nearly a decade documenting the disappearing history and culture of Taiwanese traditional opera, as well as the fishing culture and marine ecology of fishing villages in eastern Taiwan, all in documentary form. Her recent documentary "Black Bear Forest" also garnered significant attention.

She stated in an interview with the Central News Agency today that she decided to film "Island of Sacred Trees," a documentary about Taiwan's tallest trees, after discovering a high interest in forest ecology following the filming of "Black Bear Forest." She said, "I found that I didn't want to leave Taiwan's forests; I was looking for a reason to stay."

Li Hsiang-hsiu held a preview screening of "Island of Sacred Trees" today and is very much looking forward to viewers' feedback. She shared that she has always come to know Taiwan through filmmaking. "I'm not young anymore, but I haven't finished exploring all of Taiwan's various ecologies or cultures, so I thought I would continue filming."

Li Hsiang-hsiu has been a teacher for over 23 years. To delve deeper into filming Taiwan's ecology, she resolutely took early retirement, even investing all of her pension into the filming. She laughed and said, "It's hard for me to imagine I could live until now; I still have a mortgage to pay, but whenever I encounter difficulties, noble people appear. I am very grateful."

She admitted that she had no prior experience with mountaineering or trees but developed an interest through filming. To make the documentary "Island of Sacred Trees," she followed the "Tree Finders" team to search for Taiwan's tallest giant trees. Despite having no mountaineering experience, she followed the team deep into the mountains, climbing steep slopes. She laughed, "I guess I'm just silly."

The documentary took five years to complete, and every scene showcases the grandeur of Taiwan's forests and humanity's reverence for nature. When discussing illegal logging, Li Hsiang-hsiu choked up, admitting that Taiwan truly is a treasure island. "There are many ecologies that we need to protect and explore."

The documentary "Island of Sacred Trees" will officially be released on May 15th. Li Hsiang-hsiu hopes to raise public awareness and concern for the mountains and forests. (Editor: Huang Ming-hsi) 1150506

Stand with the facts, every sponsorship you make is a force to protect press freedom.

Download the Central News Agency 'First-Hand News' APP to stay updated instantly.

The text, images, and videos on this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast, publicly transmitted, or utilized without authorization.