“There were no miracles—only 50 years of hard-earned progress,” said Ben Tsiang, producer of A Chip Odyssey, at a Los Angeles screening. Taiwan’s semiconductor rise was built by generations who made bold choices, endured setbacks and kept going.
Hosted by the Soochow University Alumni Association Southern California (SCUAA), the July 18 event at the Culture Center of Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles featured the documentary on five screens, followed by a discussion with Tsiang on its five-year journey from concept to release.
SCUAA’s president Ning Ning Koo said the film revealed the hardships behind Taiwan’s success.
Today’s achievements, she noted, were built step by step by pioneers who gave their youth, expertise and faith to an uncertain future.
Remembrance Inspires, Images Endure
Tsiang said A Chip Odyssey began after director Chu Chen Hsiao attended a 2019 memorial at National Tsing Hua University for tech pioneer Hu Ding-hua. Hearing first-generation industry leaders recount Taiwan’s semiconductor rise inspired her to make the film.
Realizing the story lacked a complete visual record—and that many pioneers were aging—she began filming to preserve their memories for future generations.
Racing Time, Saving History
Filming began in 2019, with more than 80 industry leaders and witnesses interviewed to trace Taiwan’s rise from a resource-poor island to a global chip powerhouse.
Many first-generation engineers were already in their 80s and 90s. Some died during the five-year production, before the film’s release. For the team, the project became a race against time to preserve a generation’s memories.
Past Captured, Present Unfolds
Tsiang said the film began as a look back at Taiwan’s tech origins, but the pandemic, chip shortage, U.S.-China rivalry and AI boom turned it into a story unfolding in real time.
As events kept changing, the team repeatedly updated the film. A three-year project stretched to five, forcing them to choose where to pause a story still being written.
Trials Endured, Heights Reached
Tsiang stressed that the film captures not only triumph, but also failure, doubt and sacrifice—even among pioneers like Morris Chang.
“Taiwan’s chip industry was no miracle,” he said. “It was built through decades of trial, error and persistence.”
Applause Resounds, Taiwan Soars
The film closed to sustained applause. Peter Chang, director of the Culture Center of TECO in Los Angeles, thanked SCUAA and praised A Chip Odyssey as a powerful portrait of Taiwan’s people, land and industry—one the world should see.
One guest praised the film for helping younger generations see how earlier pioneers studied abroad, brought their knowledge home and helped build Taiwan.
Others thanked the filmmakers for preserving an era when officials, scholars and industry leaders worked together for the country.
One audience member also asked Tsiang why he left the fast-moving worlds of technology and the internet to make documentaries.
Legacy Shared, Generations Rise
Tsiang said he co-founded CNEX in 2006, setting a goal of 100 documentaries in 10 years. More than 150 have since been completed.
He called documentaries a guide for younger generations. Taiwan’s first 50 years of growth are over; the next chapter is beginning. Knowing the past, he said, helps young people shape the future.
Documentaries rarely make money, he added, but their value lies in preserving memories, carrying stories forward and creating lasting impact.
Taiwan’s story continues. One generation built the mountain; the next must climb on. There are no miracles—only generations of effort. Everyone who takes one more step for Taiwan is a mountain builder.
