Hit 2017 Taiwanese movie 'The Great Buddha+' had its UK premiere on Friday 22 June at the 2018 Edinburgh International Film Festival, where it was enthusiastically and warmly received by a sold out audience.

The film's director Huang Hsin-yao attended, where he also took part in a Q&A session following the movie screening. When asked what he wanted to present through this film, Huang said that what he wanted to express was that in life, we encounter many difficult times, and that we had to learn how to deal with them, as life must go on.

Many people were curious as to why the film was shot entirely in black and white, to which Huang responded that it was because at first, it hid the imperfections of the locations they were shooting, and it was only when he had finally obtained funding that he felt it added a unique spirit. When asked why he decided to rely predominantly on the Taiwanese language in the movie, he said that due to him growing up in a Taiwanese language environment, it was just the natural decision for him.

This is the 72nd year that the Edinburgh International Film Festival has been held, and this year the festival will show 121 films from 48 countries.

The Great Buddha+ was a critical and commercial success upon release in Taiwan. It was nominated for ten Golden Horse Awards and won five, including Best New Director and Best Adapted Screenplay. It also won Best Film at the 19th Taipei Film Awards