The Financial Ombudsman Institution (FOI), established under the Financial Consumer Protection Act (FCPA), has been devoted to promoting financial education. In 2016, it initiated an innovative, public-friendly campaign to raise the awareness of its role among the young generation: the "Share a Story, Foresee the Future" micro movie series contest. The campaign, offering total prize money of NT$1 million, began in July last year and the submission and selection process took six months. It attracted the enthusiastic participation of about 200 creative teams and new-generation creators from around Taiwan. Ten stories and five micro movies were finally selected. This campaign took the audience on an audiovisual journey into the realm of financial knowledge, and broke new ground for the FOI's policy that "an ounce of prevention" is worth "a pound of resolution."

The first prize of NT$300,000 was awarded to "Mr. Sachiku Outside the Iron Gate," with the second and third to "My Turn" and the "Paper Airplane" respectively. The excellence awards were won by the "FCPA Dharma Master, Our Financial Safeguard" and the "Financial Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Cast Your Cares to the Sea." FSC Vice Chairman Cheng-Mount Cheng honored the FOI's invitation and attended the "Financial Micro Movie Oscars" award ceremony in person, evidencing the high support and recognition which this campaign received from the competent authority.

According to the FOI's "2016 Financial Consumer Habits Survey," more than 80 percent of Taiwan's population has purchased financial products, among which insurance, savings, and other conservative financial products are the most popular. Similarly, in this micro movie contest, about 80 percent of the contestants dealt with the theme of insurance disputes, underscoring the public's familiarity with the purchase of this type of financial products. When asked about their style of financial consumption, most consumers perceive themselves as "self-directed" (more than 60 percent of the respondents indicated that they "Collect Information" and "Believe in One's Self"). However, only 30 percent of the respondents indicated that they would take action or raise a complaint in the event of an unhappy experience involving financial products, and only 35 percent of the respondents were aware of the FCPA. This means that the FOI still needs to further strengthen its outreach programs to raise consumer awareness through various channels.

"Financial disputes are an issue that everyone is likely to encounter at some point," said FOI Chairman Jan-Juy Lin. "Due to unfamiliarity, financial consumers are unable to foresee the occasions where a dispute might occur, so when it does occur it always catches them off guard. The FOI aspires to use open-ended, creative media to bring new perspectives on, and new forums for discussion of, often-neglected issues of legal requirements and financial consumer rights. The stories and images of the micro movies carry true-to-life enriching messages that, when they resonate with a young audience, can set changes in motion. Hence, the FOI wishes to take a light-hearted and lively approach to attract public attention toward a better understanding of the Financial Consumer Protection Act and to awaken their awareness of their own interests as financial consumers. In keeping with its initial conception in organizing this contest, that is, 'Listen to Hear, Look to See,' the FOI has sought for contestants, through their creative ideas about the themes of financial consumer protection and the ombudsman scheme, to come up with stories and micro movies that would appeal to and resonate with the public."

In its operations from 2012 to the end of the third quarter in 2016, the FOI has accepted 19,279 complaints. According to the survey, however, only about 10 percent of the public know about the FOI. For its services to reach a wider audience, and as part of this campaign, the FOI invited a professional director to shoot an official micro movie featuring a popular board game. In the movie, the tension and conflict among the brothers in the game, set in an atmosphere of suspense, is used as a metaphor for the unpredictability of the financial market. The mother, playing an impartial role similar to that of the FOI, reminds the brothers to respect the fairness of the game and to understand the risks they face.

The stories presented in the micro movies of the "Share a Story, Foresee the Future" series bring to light a range of misconceptions commonly held by financial consumers toward making judgments and decisions related to financial disputes, corresponding to the FOI's survey findings, and revealing how people are often unaware of the many public resources they can make use of. The contestants in the micro movie production contest were encouraged to refer to ombudsman cases from the Ombudsman Decision Statement Query System to render their texts and images closer to real life and deliver them to the public in vivid interpretations. The use of images to convey concepts increases the accessibility of the financial messages to the younger generation, so that correct financial concepts can take root in their minds.

Since its establishment five years ago, the FOI has conducted a total of over 400 awareness seminars and events, attracting the enthusiastic participation of about 50 thousand people and enterprises. As of the end of September last year, the FOI has witnessed an increase (to 59%) of the complaint and ombudsman case resolution rate, a shorter ombudsman case closure period (approximately 51 days), and higher efficiency and effectiveness in dispute resolution. In the future, the FOI will keep channeling resources into innovative financial education and awareness initiatives to spread understanding and know-how among the public regarding financial consumer disputes, so that consumers will no longer feel isolated, helpless, and alone in wrestling with these disputes.

1. Mr. Sachiku Outside the Iron Gate
2. My Turn
3. Paper Airplane
4. FCPA Dharma Master, Our Financial Safeguard
5. Financial Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Cast Your Cares to the Sea

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