Courtesy Cinema Pacific film festival “Takao Dancer,” a film co-directed by Taiwanese dancer, musician and filmmaker Wen-shing Ho, screens April 26 at the Bijou Art Cinema in Eugene. The event is part of the Cinema Pacific film festival that runs April 23-27 in Eugene and Portland.

Taiwan and Chile may be very different culturally, but they have at least two things in common: They both border the Pacific Ocean and both are the main focus of the fifth annual Cinema Pacific film festival.

Presented by the University of Oregon, the festival runs April 23-27 at various locations in Eugene and Portland. Along with film screenings, the event features media installations and live performances.

According to its website, Cinema Pacific is “devoted to discovering and fostering the creativity of international films and new media from Pacific-bordering countries, including the United States.” This year’s special guests include Taiwanese dancer, musician and filmmaker Wen-shing Ho and Chilean playwright and screenwriter Guillermo Calderón.

Ho will present her film “Takao Dancer” April 26 at Bijou Art Cinema and a lecture on “Musical Composition and Experimental Digital Cinema” at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art.

Calderón is considered to be Chile’s preeminent contemporary playwright, according to the festival’s program guide. The screenplay he co-wrote, “Violeta Went to Heaven” will screen April 24. Three actors will also perform a live reading of his play “Villa.” Both events will happen at Bijou Art Cinema.

On the local front, Cinema Pacific will present the Adrenaline Film Project, where filmmakers write, shoot and edit their films in just 72 hours, and the Fringe Festival, where local media artists present video remixes of the Taiwanese classic film “Brother Wang and Brother Liu Tour Taiwan.”

All of the Portland events are in collaboration with the “What is Documentary?” conference also organized by the University of Oregon. The film screenings will run at the Northwest Film Center. For a full schedule of events and ticket information, visit www.nwfilm.org.

Tickets for the Eugene events are $8 for general admission and $6 for matinees (before 6 p.m.), students and seniors. For tickets and more information, visit cinemapacific.uoregon.edu.

— Reporter: 541-383-0350, jwasson@bendbulletin.com