To Set a Spirit Free

Directed by Fang You-chi

With Lu Wen-hsueh, Cherry Hsieh, Jacqueline Zhu, Cheng Chih-wei and Hsieh Chi-wen

Inspired by a true incident rooted in Taiwanese folk beliefs, To Set a Spirit Free begins with a religious fish-release ritual that takes an unexpected turn—someone brings a fish home instead of setting it free. Days later, an elderly man named Sheng-Bo mysteriously disappears. A local temple deity declares that he may have blocked a wandering soul’s path to reincarnation—and has been taken by a ghost. What begins as an act of kindness spirals into fear, accusation, and superstition. As rumors multiply and blame shifts from one person to another, the community slowly confronts an unsettling truth: sometimes, there is no one to blame. When facts fail us, what do we choose to believe—and why? With dark humor and quiet spiritual tension, the film explores faith, folklore, and the stories people create to make sense of the unknown.