"The Free Man" directed by Sam Quah Boon-Lip, a graduate student at TNUA's Department of Filmmaking, has become the first-ever entry from Taiwan to be shortlisted as one of 10 contenders for nominations for best live action short film for this year's Oscar Awards. 

The shortlist was narrowed from a total of 114 films competing for the nominations in the category.

Although the 30-minute long film has not made it to the final nominations by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, TNUA feels proud of the achievement.

The Malaysia-born student director said he has always loved watching movies since childhood, and he also actively took part in theatre-related activities during his high school years.

He went to college in Taiwan, pursuing an undergraduate degree in mass communication studies. He also started writing scripts, and gained much work experience from directing TV commercials and acting. He eventually determined to pursue a graduate degree in directing at TNUA.

"The Free Man" was a work completed in 2014 under a Public Television Service student program. It is a film inspired by the story of an aboriginal teenager, exploring issues concerning the death penalty that have always interested the director.

Before deciding on the subject for the film, he had had a lot of discussion with Prof. Daw-Ming Lee, chair of the Department of Filmmaking.

He then invited his classmate Chen Yu-Li to write the script and Mr. Hsin-Hua Feng to be his cinematographer. Quah worked as both director and editor.  

"The Free Man" has won many domestic and international honors, including four Golden Bell awards and a Silver Dragon for Best Director at the Krakow Film Festival.