Marching Boys 進行曲
Drama/COMEDY┃103 mins┃Ray JIANG┃2025
September 21th 7:00pm with filmmakers Q&A
The Brattle Theatre
About the Movie
Chiang-hao is a young boy who has loved the trumpet and dreamed of music since childhood. Under the pressure of academic excellence, he was not allowed to pursue extracurricular interests. Chiang studies in elite high school and is expected to enter Top 1 medical college. In order to pursue his music dream, Chiang joins a marching band in school without informing his father. However, the marching band mainly serves for outdate martial music has been disputed to close. Following senior student Tai-cheng, Chiang and his teammates gradually learned to understand each another through many conflicts. They sought to unite, reform the marching band, and encourage each other to strive forward to win the competition.
About the Director
Ray Jiang
Director Ray Jiang graduated from the Department of TV & Film at the National Taiwan University of Arts. He specializes in directing, screenwriting, editing, and acting coaching, with a talent for subverting accessible and relatable themes. He is famous of directing the blockbuster movie series ”GA-TAO” which describes gangster life and local stories in Taiwan.
About the Producer
Kelly CHEN
B.A. in National Taiwan University.
M.A in University of Chicago.
A Chinese TV drama and film screenwriter in Taipei and Beijing. I ever worked as a journalist for Business Weekly and a travel reporter in MOOK Publication.
Director Statement
The greatest challenge in filming “Marching boys” is the portrayal of action movie with lots of musical elements. Having no musical background or training, I tried to figure out how to integrate the rhythm and melody of various instruments with the visuals of the marching band, while also considering how these sequences would flow and resonate after editing and post-production—a true test of grasp of cinematic structure and coherence. During the shooting period, I worked closely with the marching band members, most of whom had no acting experience, to guide them in how to perform naturally on camera. Striking the right balance between authenticity and dramatic credibility proved extremely challenging. The film’s main goal is to tell a charming story, yet it also seeks to convey the sincerity and emotional truth, bringing the marching band into the heart of the drama.
