Movie goers and documentary aficionados, the CNEX Taipei Documentary Film Festival is coming soon! This year’s theme is titled “Dissolution & Restoration of Love” and many of the films featured show touching stories about hardship and love.

Some of the films featured this year are:
Alive Inside: A Story of Music & Memory – A look at the impact of music on Alzheimer’s and dementia patients, and how they can revitalize lost memories and emotions.

A World Not Ours – Mahdi Fleifel’s dazzling first-person documentary about life inside the Palestinian refugee camp of Ain el-Helweh

My Love Awaits Me By The Sea – A first-person essay chronicling filmmaker Mais Darwazah’s first-ever visit to her homeland, charting an exquisite journey to the seafront of Jaffa.

Alfred and Jakobine – Two adventurous lovers travel the world in an old taxi cab.

Matt Shepard Is a Friend of Mine Poster

One of the films showcased this year is Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine. I had the privilege to view this documentary thanks to the director Michele Josue, a close friend of Matt Shepard–a young gay man who was brutally beaten to death in one of the most horrific hate crimes in U.S. history. The film is a heartfelt look at Matt and how he impacted the lives of his friends and family in his short life. In the end, despite how horribly tragic his death was, there is a positive outcome–the joining of so many in what is arguably our generation’s civil rights movement: the fight for equal rights for all and marriage equality.

To catch this and other great films, be sure to check out the CNEX Taipei Documentary Film Festival, running from September 26 to October 5.

Related Articles and Websites:
Taipei film fest reflects on youth issues Taiwan Today, September 18, 2012
CNEX Official Site
Taiwan International Documentary Festival Official Site
Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine Official Site

Photo courtesy of Michele Josue