Edward Yang

Edward Yang (楊德昌, Yáng Déchāng, 1947‑11‑06 – 2007‑06‑29) was a Taiwanese‑American filmmaker who became a central figure of the New Taiwanese Cinema movement in the 1980s. Born in Shanghai and raised in Taipei, he earned a BSEE from National Chiao Tung University before obtaining a master’s degree in electrical engineering at the University of Florida and briefly working in micro‑computer and defense software in Seattle. A chance viewing of Werner Herzog’s Aguirre, the Wrath of God revived his childhood passion for cinema and led him to abandon a high‑tech career for film, although he briefly attended USC’s film school and was admitted to Harvard’s Graduate School of Design. Returning to Taiwan in 1980, Yang wrote and assisted on The Winter of 1905 and quickly moved to directing, producing his first feature That Day, on the Beach (1983), noted for its fragmented narrative and the early cinematography of Christopher Doyle. He followed with critically acclaimed works such as Taipei Story (1985), Terrorizers (1986), and the monumental A Brighter Summer Day (1991), a sprawling three‑hour meditation on youth, gang culture and post‑war Taiwanese identity that earned multiple Golden Horse Awards and international accolades. Yang’s fifth film, A Confucian Confusion (1994), was nominated for the Palme d’Or, and his later Mahjong (1996) received an Honourable Mention at Berlin. His masterpiece Yi Yi (2000) won the Cannes Best Director prize and cemented his reputation for subtle, long‑take compositions that capture the quiet drama of urban middle‑class life. Throughout his career Yang also taught at the Taipei National University of the Arts, founded Atom Films and Theater, and explored multimedia projects, demonstrating a relentless curiosity about the intersection of technology, art, and society. He died in 2007 in Beverly Hills after a long battle with colon cancer, leaving behind his wife pianist Kaili Peng and their son Sean, and a legacy that continues to influence filmmakers worldwide.