Our Screening on Saturday 15 November will be followed by a Zoom Q&A with director Shih-Ching Tsou, and co-writer and editor Sean Baker, moderated by Millie Zhou.
A single mother and her two daughters return to Taipei after several years of living in the countryside to open a stand at a buzzing night market. Each in their way will have to adapt to this new environment to make ends meet and maintain the family unity. But when their traditional grandfather forbids his youngest left-handed granddaughter from using her 'devil hand', generations of family secrets begin to unravel.
The Garden Cinema View:
Tsou Shih-Ching’s solo directorial debut, Left-Handed Girl, is co-written, produced and edited by her long-time collaborator Sean Baker. The film idea was formed even before the duo’s first project, co-directing Take Out in 2004, and has finally blossomed after two decades in the making.
Told through the innocent eyes of a young girl, it is a deeply personal story which is inspired by Tsou’s own childhood. Stylistically, it is a continuation of the social realism of Take Out, and films she has produced for Baker, such as Tangerine and The Florida Project. As with those films, Left-Handed Girl bears the influence of Mike Leigh, Ken Loach, and the Dogme 95 movement. Shot on an iPhone with a small crew, it vividly captures the naturally cinematic night market scenes and the authenticity of daily lives in Taipei City.
While touching on relatively heavy themes, the film maintains a light-hearted tone, generating laughter throughout. Its celebration of female resilience and individuality, combined with reflections on patriarchy, imbues it with universal appeal that travels far beyond its Taiwanese origin.
