Top Talents showcases nine Taiwanese actors to watch in 2025

Nine Taiwanese actors will be under a global spotlight in the third edition of TAICCA’s Top Talents showcase, boosting the profile of rising and outstanding talent

Taiwan’s Top Talents showcase returns to raise the profile of nine outstanding screen actors, presented by Taipei Film Festival in collaboration with Taiwan Creative Content Agency (TAICCA).

Now in its third year, having launched in 2023, the showcase is being unveiled at international film festivals, including Busan, with the help of TAICCA’s international exhibition resources. It introduces the talents to filmmakers and audiences around the world, helping to move their careers to the next level.

The campaign materials for the latest cohort of Taiwanese talents include their promotional videos, shot in English or French languages, which are available on TaiwanPlus Arts and Culture, the new YouTube channel run by English-language public broadcaster TaiwanPlus.

The actors’ professional portraits and profiles are available on the Top Talents website (www.top-talents.tw/talents), which also acts as a database, providing access to industry executives worldwide in their search for Taiwanese talents.

Actors selected for Top Talents are either previous nominees or winners of the Golden Horse Awards, Golden Bell Awards or Taipei Film Awards.

Contact: global.event@taicca.tw

Chung Hsin-ling

Chung first enjoyed profile as host of a travel show before moving into acting. She soon found acclaim in 2014 series Sun After The Rain, receiving her first Golden Bell award for best actress before winning a further two for Children — Child Of The Cat (in 2019) and U Mother­baker (in 2021).

Chung has appeared in blockbuster romantic films such as Our Times, Man In Love and Miss Shampoo, and her latest drama series The Resurrected will premiere on the big screen in Busan before hitting streaming giant Netflix.

Commenting on her character as the evil mother of a criminal mastermind, she notes: “As I delved into her world, I unearthed layers of darkness — secrets hidden from others and even from myself. It is moments like these that make acting such an intoxicating adventure.”

Lee Kang-sheng

Lee is the face of almost every film by auteur Tsai Ming-liang, from his acting debut in 1992’s Rebels Of The Neon God to Venice Golden Lion winner Vive L’Amour in 1994, Stray Dogs (for which he received the Golden Horse best actor award in 2013) and the celebrated Walker series.

The 10th instalment of Walker, shot in Washington DC, captures Lee as he moves extremely slowly while dressed in a red Buddhist robe. “It’s a form of performing art,” he says. “I will continue to make this until I can’t walk anymore.”

Lee has showcased his acting range in films such as horror hit The Rope Curse 2, Japanese period drama Black Ox and Singapore surveillance drama Stranger Eyes. His credits as director include 2003’s The Missing, which won prizes in Busan and Rotterdam, and 2021 short film Windy Days, Cloudy Life.

Tseng Jing-hua

Tseng got his big break in 2019 film debut Detention, chosen from an audition of 10,000 high-school students. The local box-office hit earned him best new performer and best actor nominations at the Golden Horse Awards and Taipei Film Awards respectively.

Subsequent roles include Your Name Engraved Herein, Eye Of The Storm and 2023 drama series Oh No: Here Comes Trouble, which landed Tseng best actor nominations at the Asian Television Awards and Golden Bell Awards.

Audiences will soon see his diverse performances in A Foggy Tale, That Burning House and Netflix series Had I Not Seen The Sun. “These characters are all different — bright and witty, dark and mysterious, as well as a tragic figure in a historical setting,” he says of the range presented in his recent credits.

Regina Lei

Last year proved a breakout for emerging talent Lei. She garnered a best actress nomination at Taiwan’s Golden Bell Awards for her performance as a migrant worker in series Port Of Lies and received the Asia new actor award at the Seoul Global Movie Awards.

She joined Korean fantasy series Twelve, which premiered on KBS TV2 in Korea and on Disney+ in late August, playing one of 12 angels with a cast led by Ma Dong-seok (aka Don Lee). “The character’s transformation, the heroic narrative and the thrilling action sequences left a deep impression on me,” she says.

Following her film debut in 2021’s The Sadness, Lei has landed diverse roles ranging from horror film Antikalpa to drama series I Can See You Shine, India-Taiwan co-production Demon Hunters and upcoming chiller Eerie Hometown.

Audrey Lin

Lin demonstrated her acting prowess at a young age. Her second film Trouble Girl saw the 12-year-old win the Golden Horse best actress award in 2023, making history as the youngest ever winner in the category. The performance won her a further best actress prize at the Taipei Film Awards.

Australia-born, Taiwan-raised Lin is fluent in both Chinese and English. She developed a passion for acting at a very young age, and honed her skills in the theatre before making her feature film debut with American Girl in 2021.

Lin’s latest credit is Shu Qi’s Girl, which premiered in Competition at Venice. “I take on a supporting role as a young girl who stays true to herself and lives fearlessly, even while facing life’s challenges,” she says.

Eugenie Liu

Initially passionate about sports and journalism, Liu unexpectedly turned to acting when she was discovered by acclaimed producer Angie Chai in 2015. She spent her early career in idol dramas, before landing a film role as a monster in Mon Mon Mon Monsters (2017).

Liu was trained by her taekwondo coach father from a young age, and has embraced physical roles such as the lead in Netflix original series Triad Princess. Her notable roles in Old Fox and Daughter’s Daughter earned her best supporting actress nominations at the Golden Horse Awards in 2023 and 2024 respectively.

Liu is filming psychological thriller The Evil Inside, playing a daughter who must navigate grief and inner turmoil. “Through my journey as an actor, I aspire to infuse warmth and humanity into every performance,” she says.

Sandrine Pinna

Pinna got her start modelling for fashion magazines aged five. She is now considered one of the most prominent actresses of her generation. Her accolades include winning the best actress award for 2009’s Yang Yang at the Asia Pacific Film Festival, and for 2012’s Touch Of The Light at the Taipei Film Awards.

She has also earned four best actress nominations at the Golden Horse Awards, including for last year’s Dead Talents Society. Earlier this year, she co-starred with French acting royalty Isabelle Huppert in Flora Lau’s Luz, which premiered at Sundance Film Festival.

In the upcoming TV series Something Before And After, Pinna plays a plastic surgeon who enjoys piano, badminton and judo. “Bringing each character to life is what inspired me to become an actor in the first place,” she notes.

Kent Tsai

Tsai is an emerging actor known for his down‑to-earth image. He made an auspicious start in 2017 with HBO Asia drama series The Teenage Psychic, followed by the release of romantic film All About Love. These roles landed him a new performer nomination at the Golden Bell Awards and the Golden Horse Awards respectively.

He continued to excel in various productions, including Disney+ thriller anthology Taiwan Crime Stories and coming-of-age feature Bad Education, in which he plays a model student-turned-bloodthirsty madman.

His latest projects include 96 Minutes, which opened Taipei Film Festival in June and was released in local cinemas on September 5. “It’s my first action role since my debut, and also my first villain role in nine years,” Tsai says of his character in the feature.

Mo Tzu-yi

Mo’s acting chops were on full display in 2020’s Dear Tenant, for which he scooped the best actor prize at the Golden Horse Awards, Taipei Film Awards and Taiwan Film Critics Society, playing a gay man who looks after his deceased partner’s family. He was also recognised with nominations for supporting roles in Goddamned Asura (2021) and The Embers (2024). His latest projects include VR film The Clouds Are Two Thousand Meters U, which played in competition at this year’s Venice Immersive.

The Taipei National University of the Arts theatre graduate spends half his time working on stage productions. His theatrical performances include musicals Insomniac and Dennis In Wonderland. “If poetry is lightning, fiction is rain, dance is wind, music is sunshine, and performance would be children chasing each other on the grass,” says Mo.