Zero Chou, director of the movies "Spider Lilies" (2007) and "Drifting Flowers" (2008), traveled to Japan this past July to attend the Tokyo International Lesbian and Gay Film Festival. "Spider Lilies", her second film, rapidly gained international exposure last year and ultimately won the Berlin International Film Festival's Teddy Award for Best Gay/Lesbian Film. Quite notably, the film was funded by the Taiwanese government and features Taiwanese super idol Rainie Yang in its lead role.

Chou is the only out lesbian director in Taiwan today. Her debut film, "Splendid Float" (2004), took up the story of the lives of drag queens, while her second and third films were lesbian through and through. She points out that she is eager to also incorporate straight-themes in future projects, on top of her work on sexual minorities.

Following the screening of "Spider Lilies" at the TIL&GFF last year, word of her work has spread like wildfire through the queer girl grapevine and, before her arrival in Tokyo this year, Chou was already quite popular among Japanese lesbians. She has them right by the heart strings. Audiences who had come to the film festival to see Chou's latest film, "Drifting Flowers", were excited to find that actresses from the film, as well as Chou and her partner of over eight years, cinematographer Hoho Liu, were present to take part in a special talk session.

During the talk session, Chou spoke of "Spider Lilies" and "Drifting Flowers": “[Spider Lilies] was filmed in an urban setting and made to look like a fictitious and illusional world; however, my new film is set in the country. I wanted a more realistic depiction - indigenous to Taiwan - of the circumstances by which Taiwanese sexual minorities live their lives.” Chou's conscious choice to cast several real-life boyish lesbians as actresses for the film came from this same desire for natural authenticity. In fact, a deep sense of the reality is amplified in the film by many vehicles, including the casting of an out gay male actor in the role of Yi-hang, an HIV-positive patient.

When staff from the film festival asked how she met her partner, Hoho Liu, Chou's cheeks turned visibly red. “How embarrassing!", she replied charmingly, "I've never talked about Hoho in public before..” TW spoke with this fun-loving director for an interview on "Spider Lilies", "Drifting Flowers", Taiwanese lesbian bars and more. Following our interview we will post a video message from actresses Chao Yi Lan and Serena Fang , as well as from Chou and her partner Hoho Liu! Be sure not to miss any of it!

Translated by Kaori Takyu