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M+, Hong Kong, © Midi Z
On View
Mediatheque
Midi Z 趙德胤
The Palace on the Sea 海上皇宮
2013
The Palace on the Sea comments on themes of migration and loss. It follows the journey of a migrant in Taiwan who is desperate to return to her home country of Myanmar. Dressed in traditional Burmese attire, she emerges from a car-repair shop and arrives at a vessel that resembles a floating Buddhist temple on the sea. There, in what seems to be the woman’s dream, she dances with her husband in an empty dining room. In the following scenes, the man appears as a monk chanting Buddhist scripture to guide lost, suffering souls.
Midi Z’s film was inspired by the migrant workforce in Taiwan—which is largely drawn from Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam—and an abandoned Taiwanese seafood restaurant docked at a harbour in Kaohsiung. The camera movement, music, pacing, and fragmented narrative structure evoke the common immigrant experiences of remembrance, longing, and disorientation, while also lending the character a timeless, enigmatic presence.
Midi Z’s film was inspired by the migrant workforce in Taiwan—which is largely drawn from Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam—and an abandoned Taiwanese seafood restaurant docked at a harbour in Kaohsiung. The camera movement, music, pacing, and fragmented narrative structure evoke the common immigrant experiences of remembrance, longing, and disorientation, while also lending the character a timeless, enigmatic presence.
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