Tai A Chau is home for both farmers and fishermen who use the island as a permanent harbor for their small floating homes. The daily routines of Mr. Wong, a fisherman, and Mr. Ng, a farmer, are representative of their respective problems of survival, mutual dependence, and hopes for the future.
Island in the China Sea is the introductory film in the China Coast series of Faces of Change. It provides a broad overview of the rural societies of both the island farmer and the boat people who harbor here. It traces the lifestyle of agricultural and fishing families, juxtaposing their daily activities and their tacit interaction. The symbiosis is in delicate balance, however, since ideas of class and caste set the two groups apart. Island farmers have traditionally regarded boat people as inferior.
Films in the China Coast series
China Coast Fishing
Hoy Fok and the Island School
The Island Fishpond
Island in the China Sea
Three Island Women
About the Faces of Change Collection
Faces of Change is comprised of 25 films that examine five cultures selected for their distinct geographic locations: starting with the China Coast at sea level and moving up to Taiwan, then to Afghanistan, Kenya and finally to the mountains of Bolivia. Each location is examined through five themes: Rural Society, Education, Rural Economy, Women, and Beliefs.
This innovative collection of 16mm films and videos was funded by the National Science Foundation, produced by Norman Miller and directed by some of the finest ethnographic filmmakers of its time.
