Photo Credit ＆Article Source ：PTS
Translated by Lawrence Kou (郭令鈞)
PTS unveils its latest period drama, Listen the Sea Whisper (original title:Ting Hái-éng聽海湧 ), marking the first World War II series shot from a Taiwanese perspective. Delving into the untold story of Taiwanese guards for prisoners of war and their heart-wrenching struggle for survival, the production commenced filming on February 14th in Kaohsiung, serving as the primary backdrop.
After an intensive two-month shoot, the series successfully wrapped up in mid-April, leaving director Jie-Heng SUN (孫介珩) to reflect, "This two-month time travel tested the resilience of the entire cast and crew, but we persevered. It was exhausting, yet immensely rewarding." Listen the Sea Whisper tackles the arduous task of portraying WWII onscreen, with numerous scenes pushing the boundaries of the actors' mental and physical endurance. The three male leads—Han Wu (吳翰林), Guan-zhi Huang (黃冠智), and Edward You-Cheng Chu (朱宥丞)—all expressed unanimous sentiments of the series' formidable challenges, declaring, "It was truly demanding!" In addition to the principal cast, Listen the Sea Whisper proudly showcases an international ensemble of accomplished actors. Andrew Chau, acclaimed for his role in Seqalu: Formosa 1867, takes on the role of William, an Australian military prosecutor. Renowned Japanese theater actor Daisuke Tsukahara (塚原大助) and rising star Koya Matsudai (松大航) came to Taiwan for an extended stay, delivering compelling performances as a stern Japanese commander and an impassioned Japanese lawyer, respectively. With a diverse cast hailing from the United Kingdom, Japan, the United States, Australia, and Malaysia, the production set became a vibrant hub of multilingualism like a mini United Nations assembly.
Listen the Sea Whisper portrays the events in 1942, during the 17th year of the Showa era, when Japan extensively recruited young Taiwanese individuals from its colonial territory to Borneo as guards for captured Allied prisoners of war. Plunged into a chilling massacre, these Taiwanese POW supervisors found themselves accused by Allied prosecutors of committing prisoner abuse crimes. For some, this marked the end of any opportunity to return to Taiwan, while others who did return remained silent about the harrowing events that unfolded on the island. Spanning five episodes, the series is slated for release in 2024. Listen the Sea Whisper is presented by PTS in association with Kaohsiung Film Fund (高雄人人, and produced by Unseen Film Studio(看不見電影工作室) and Sweet Tongue Production (回甘映像).