fbpx

CineSpace Toronto launches Cinecares BIPOC Crew Training initiative

CineSpace Toronto has launched its new Cinecares Workforce Training Program, in partnership with BIPOC TV & Film, the Indigenous Screen Office, and POV Film. Aimed specifically at BIPOC individuals seeking film- and television-related apprenticeships and on-set placements, the Cinecares program will offer trainees hands-on training on signatory productions for Set Decorators, Props, Grip, Lighting, and General Labour for up to twelve (12) weeks and will, upon starting their paid placements, gain permit status with IATSE Local 873. This is an incredible opportunity to further the development of BIPOC creatives behind the camera, on set, and in the production ecosystem!

Header photo from POV Film

PRESENTED BY

COMMUNITY PARTNERS

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television announced their nominees for the 2023 edition of the Canadian Screen Awards on February 22 and there are Reel Asian connections throughout the nominations. Click below to explore the many ways that Reel Asian continues to foster the growth of the Asian Canadian creative communities.

Film | Riceboy Sleeps

The début feature from Vancouver-based filmmaker Anthony Shim was selected to open our 2023 festival and it was wildly popular with the capacity crowd. It would go on to win the Best Canadian Feature Film or Video award and lead actor Ethan Hwang would garner an Armstrong Studios Acting Award at our festival. We are proud to see Shim and his cast & crew getting their flowers with multiple CSA nominations. Watch the episode of our Backstory Podcast featuring Shim and lead actress Seung-yoon Choi here!

Nominations

This film by South Asian Canadian director Nisha Pahuja was recently selected as one of TIFF’s Top Ten. Pahuja was a panelist at our Canadian Films Shot in Asia Industry Series session (the precursor to our Reel Ideas stream of programming) in 2015.

Ann Shin‘s powerful and unnerving documentary opened the 2021 Hot Docs Festival and the work is up for two awards. Shin has been a friend and advisor to the festival many times over the years.

TV | Run The Burbs

RUN THE BURBS was a marquee live event for Reel Ideas at RA2022. A popular and well-attended event saw the cast and showrunners addressing the importance of bringing a cultural consultant on board to ensure the specificity and authenticity of the work. The show is up for numerous awards involving Reel Asian alumni.

  • Best Direction, ComedyAleysa Young, for the episode “Blockbuster”
    → Young cohosted an IS panel called Renaissance Filmmakers back in 2012. She has supported the festival over the years, most recently attending the 2022 Fire Horse Awards Luncheon.
  • Best Lead Performer, ComedyRakhee Morzaria
    → Morzaria was a panelist at the Reel Ideas marquee live event Cultural Specificity in CBC’s Run The Burbs in 2022
  • Best Lead Performer, ComedyAndrew Phung
    → Phung moderated the TallBoyz artist talk in 2019 and MC’d the Lunar New Year Fundraiser in 2020. He appeared in the anti-piracy messages for RA2021 and was a panelist at the Reel Ideas marquee live event Cultural Specificity in CBC’s Run The Burbs in 2022

This dramedy airing on CBC Gem stars South Asian performer Bilal Baig as Sabi Mehboob, a non-binary millennial trying to balance their roles as a child of Pakistani immigrant parents, a bartender at an LGBTQ bookstore and café, and a caregiver to the young children of a professional couple. Among its nominations, the series has a pair involving Reel Asian alumni.

  • Best Comedy SeriesJennifer Kawaja, Bruno Dubé, Bilal Baig, Fab Filippo
  • Best Direction, ComedyJoyce Wong, for the episode “Sort Of I Love You”
    → Wong’s films have played Reel Asian numerous times and she worked for the festival in the mid-to-late 2010s
  • Best Writing, ComedyJP Larocque, for the episode “Sort Of Broke”
    → Larocque was a panelist at our Reel Ideas sessions Sustainable Storytelling Careers (RA2021) and Web Series Development and Distribution (RA2017)

The TallBoyz troupe appeared in the anti-piracy messages of the 2021 festival and were featured in an artist talk in the 2019 Reel Ideas stream of programming. Troupe member Franco Nguyen is also a filmmaker whose works have been screened at the festival.

Montréaler Michael Fukushima was the former executive producer of the National Film Board‘s English Animation Studio before retiring recently. He was our Canadian Spotlight Artist in 2012 and after serving as a Pitch Juror for us for many years, he currently sits on Reel Asian’s Board of Directors, where he helps spearhead our Reel Asian Alumni Network activities. In what he describes as probably his last nomination for a Canadian Screen Award, he is being recognized for his work as an executive producer for THE ORCHID AND THE BEE.

Vancouver-based creative Paisley Smith was part of RA2018 with her VR project HOMESTAY the focus of that year’s RA:X stream of programming. She is nominated for her work on the immersive piece UNCEDED TERRITORIES.

TOKENS, now in season 2, is the creation of Winnifred Jong, whose microshort MILK played the Food For Thought: Short Eats programme at our 2017 festival. The web series is a tongue-in-cheek comedy about the actors who find themselves randomly sent to productions desperate to hit their diversity quotas and features tons of BIPOC creatives & talent both in front of and behind the camera.

Digital Media | Topline

TOPLINE is the brainchild of prolific FilCan creative Romeo Candido, who has screened extensively at Reel Asian and was featured as our Canadian Spotlight Artist at the 2022 festival. The series stars Cyrena Fiel as Tala, a 16-year-old girl who dreams of being a singer with an alter ego called ‘Illisha’. When one of her songs as Illisha goes viral her life begins to change and Tala must learn to find her own voice. Reel Asian showcased an electrifying screening of the entire series with live musical performances by the cast as the Festival Closing Gala event of our 26th edition.

TV | Romeo Candido

Prolific FilCan filmmaker Romeo Candido has screened extensively at Reel Asian, most recently being featured as our Canadian Spotlight Artist at our 2022 festival. He is nominated for his work on the young adult series THE NEXT STEP.

Toronto-based producer Teresa M. Ho is being nominated in for her role as showrunner on THE DEPARTURE. Ho served on Reel Asian’s finance committee in 2009-2010 and both she and her independent production company 100 Dragons have been strong supporters and friends of the festival ever since.

  • Best Drama SeriesChristina Jennings, Scott Garvie, Malcolm MacRury, Jackie May, T.J. Scott, Paul Donovan, Chris Philip, Karine Martin, Vincent Shiao, Nikolijne Troubetzkoy, Marsha Greene, Chris Moreton, Patrick Cassavetti, Teresa M. Ho, Julie Lacey

Veteran filmmaker Gloria Ui-Young Kim‘s first film at Reel Asian was the short A SOLITARY SILENCE back in 2000. Her most recent Reel Asian screening was her feature QUEEN OF THE MORNING CALM in 2020, and she has screened numerous works in between. She is nominated for her work on the dramatic series HEARTLAND.

Actor Paul Sun-Hyung Lee is best known for his role as Appa on CBC’s much beloved (and sadly departed) series KIM’S CONVENIENCE. He participated in two marqeee Reel Ideas live events along with other KIM’S cast members in 2016 and 2017 and can always be counted on to keep coming out to support the festival. He is being nominated for his hosting work at the 2021 SCOTIABANK GILLER PRIZE.

TV | Simu Liu

Marvel Universe superhero Simu Liu was part of the second cohort of our Unsung Voices programme all the way back in 2013. He credits Reel Asian in his recent book We Were Dreamers: “..the experience of learning how to put a film together from the ground up has continued to pay dividends for me, allowing me to produce my own work when others were not giving me the opportunities I needed.” Liu is being nominated for his work on THE 2022 JUNOS.

Nominations

Ng is a long-time friend and supporter of the festival. An accomplished cinematographer, she was among our very first mentors in the inaugural cycle of our Unsung Voices program all the way back in 2012. She also served on the Features Jury for us that year. She is nominated for her work in the quirky comedy STRAYS.

Pornel co-hosted our digital Awards Show in 2021 with Angela Sun and will join the cast of RUN THE BURBS for season 2. She has come out to numerous festival events and screenings and she is nominated for the hosting gig that made her a household name, THE GREAT CANADIAN BAKING SHOW.

Acclaimed director Warren P. Sonoda has been an awards presenter at Reel Asian on behalf of the Director’s Guild of Canada and Reel Asian was actively involved in promoting an online screening of his work THE THINGS I DO FOR MONEY, the first successful wide-release genre film to feature Japanese Canadian leads. He is nominated for his work on the kids series ODD SQUAD MOBILE UNIT.

Wei hosted the artist talk with Midi Onodera as part of the Reel Ideas Conference in 2019 and has more recently DJ’d the 2022 Festival Launch Party. They are co-nominated (along with Ann Tipper) for their work on SEX WITH SUE.

TV | Kevin C.W. Wong

Born in Hong Kong but now based in Toronto, cinematographer Kevin C.W. Wong was a panelist on our Industry Series session The Reality of DV Filmmaking all the way back in 2005. The Industry Series was the precursor to our Reel Ideas stream of programming. He is nominated for his work on the reality series MARY MAKES IT EASY.

Nominations

Ye is a prolific and highly-renown director and cinematographer. She generously agreed to participate as a mentor in the 11th cycle of our Unsung Voices program in 2022. She is nominated for her work in the comedy series DETENTION ADVENTURE.

Young has appeared as an actor in several films that have screened at Reel Asian and he was a Pitch juror for us in 2021. He is nominated for his work on the children’s series DINO RANCH.

Introducing the Kalabaw Bursary

2 Dec, 2022

A $5000.00 grant for an emerging Filipinx Canadian creator to go towards the post production of a film already in motion.

At the end of the #ReelAsian26 closing night event for Topline, Romeo Candido unveiled the brand new Kalabaw Bursary to the audience. This bursary was teased throughout the festival but its official announcement took place on November 21st at the Isabel Bader Theatre.

In the spirit of Romeo Candido’s feature film debut Lolo’s Child, celebrating its 20 year anniversary at Reel Asian, and the ground-breaking nature of the water buffalo (kalabaw) of the Philippines, the Kalabaw Bursary is a grant to help a story teller who is almost at the finish line.  The grant will be awarded through Reel Asian  to a Filipinx media artist with a strong voice, clear vision, artistic approach and a story to tell.  An inaugural jury comprised of Romeo Candido, Shasha Nakhai and Martin Edralin will determine the recipient of the first-ever Kalabaw Bursary. Call for submissions to be announced spring of 2023.

A Look At Our Reel Asian TIFF Reception

20 Sep, 2022

Our Reel Asian TIFF reception brought all kinds of people from the film community together to mingle and snack on the 401 Richmond rooftop patio. Honourable guests such as directors Hirokazu Kore-eda (Broker, TIFF 2022) and Deepa Mehta, TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey, Consul General Mr. Orontes V. Castro of the Philippine Consulate General in Toronto, and Consul General Mr. Takashi Miyata of The Japanese Consulate were present to celebrate our love of film with us.

We kicked off our reception with a few words from Deanna Wong (our executive director), Anita Lee (TIFF’s chief programmer officer and the founder of Reel Asian) and Arshad Khan (MISAFF’s festival director) who spoke of how the power of community can support Asian creatives on their journey.

RA board member Michael Fukushima (and retired executive producer of NBF’s Animation Studio) together with creative director and RA alum Jason Lee announced a new initiative, what will be known as the Reel Asian Alumni Network (RAAN).

In Fukushima’s words, “it’s going to be our way to make you, our alumni filmmakers, integral parts of the festival family — even when you don’t have a film in the festival.”

Find out more at Reel Asian this November!

A Rooftop Patio Filled With Special Guests

There were many faces of emerging and established filmmakers, creatives, producers, and film lovers. If you were present, you may have been caught in a photograph by our photographer Mike Tjioe! Sift through our photos on Flickr from the reception to relive or simply experience the fun vibes.

Our #ReelAsian26 Merch Is Now Here

We’re big fans of Lainey Lui (eTalk Host, founder of LaineyGossip) here at Reel Asian and to say we were excited to have her rocking our new canvas tote bag and crewneck sweater is a total understatement.

Our merch was revealed for the first time to hundreds of people at our reception, but Lainey had come early before covering the Emmys to show her support. Lainey was the first to see, try on, and take our #ReelAsian26 merch home.

With beautiful artwork by Brian Jiang printed on the back and “Reel Asian” embroidered in red yarn on the front, this year’s sweater embraces a minimal yet vibrant aesthetic that will pair nicely with the green tote that it’s bundled with (while supplies last).

Even the legendary Hirokazu Kor-eda took our #ReelAsian26 canvas tote home at our reception! In the image above he’s posed amongst Reel Asian staff who were excited to meet him.

Shop for our #ReelAsian26 merch before our festival on November 9 — 20 so that you can be a part of the #ReelAsian26 crew. Don’t forget to take a picture with your new merch and tag us on socials at @reelasian!

Big Thank You

We couldn’t have done this reception without the support and love we received. Reel Asian is able to consistently provide a space for Asian filmmakers, creatives, and film lovers because of the sponsors and event partners who support and believe in us.

We want to thank the Canada Council for the Arts, Ontario Arts Council, Toronto Arts Council, Telefilm, and Ontario Creates.

Thank you as well to our Festival Partner, Mosaic International South Asian Film Festival (MISAFF), and our Hospitality Partners, Steam Whistle, Ren Premium Vodka, and Karahi Boys, as well as our DJ Chiss Miss Cherry (@chissmisscherry on IG).

None of this could be possible without our community who always shows up, so thank you to all our guests who attended our reception as well.

A Starting Point: Unsung Voices at Minikino Film Week

24 Aug, 2022

Minikino Film Week 8 presents A Starting Point by Reel Asian. A Starting Point is a collaboration between Reel Asian and Minikino to showcase short film festivals from around the work. As part of Minikino’s special programme, seven shorts from Reel Asian’s Unsung Voices will be screened to present a mini history behind our production workshop.

“Where does a filmmaker’s journey begin? And, can we revisit this moment? A Starting Point recognizes the value of beginnings and wonders how we might return to “first films” as a place for regrowth. This programme places short films from the four cohort members of Unsung Voices 10 (2021), Reel Asian’s free summer production workshop for first-time or emerging filmmakers, in conversation with retrospective “first films” by Unsung Voice’s founder, Aram Collier, and program coordinators, Haaris Qadri and Jennifer Su.”

– Kelly Lui, Reel Asian’s Shorts Programmer

September 5 at 5:45PM (WITA)

SKA (Rumah Film Sang Karsa)

 

September 6 at 8:15PM (WITA)

UMA SEMINYAK

A Starting Point: Shorts

THE ORCHID AND THE TREE // Ganesh Thava / Canada / 2021

The echoes of grief linger decades after in a South Asian family that did not, could not, get around to talking about it.

WAVE HANDS LIKE CLOUDS // Jennifer Su / Canada / 2018

Tai Chi practitioners explore their connection to the martial art in this hybrid documentary music video set in Toronto’s Grange Park and Scarborough.

CHAKAR (ਚੱਕਰ) // Harman Kang / Canada / 2021

A young woman is stopped by a middle-aged Punjabi woman. Things take a turn for the uncanny, as the young woman is presented with a choice that will change the course of her life.

GOREE // Haaris Qadri / Canada / 2016

A 9-year-old Pakistani-Canadian girl struggles to understand her mother’s cultural expectations of beauty.

watering // James Legaspi / Canada / 2021

Watering is a semi-autobiographical short film through which the filmmaker reflects on the passing of their childhood dog, and how it continues to inform their navigation of daily life.

EXPRESS LANE // Aram Siu Wai Collier, Rudy Chong / Canada / 1997

Express Lane is an adrenaline-laced, technically virtuosic thrilling chase throughout urban San Francisco, somewhere between a pedestrian Bullitt and an under-21 Pulp Fiction.

AHU’S JOURNAL // Weeda Azim / Canada / 2021

Eager for an escape from her family, Safiya moves out to a sublet of an acquaintance, Ahu. She soon comes across a journal with entries that take her on a reflective journey—Ahu’s journal.

Unsung Voices 10 presenting at The Cheongju International Short Film Festival

18 Aug, 2022

Toronto Reel Asian International Festival is excited to announce our Unsung Voices 10’s shorts will be presented at the 19th Cheongju International Short Film Festival! Taking place August 18 – 22, four incredible short films by Ganesh Thava, Harman Kang, James Legaspi, and Weeda Azim will be screened as part of Cheongju International Short Film Festival’ special programme on August 20th. Reel Asian’s very own shorts programmer Kelly Liu served on the jury for this year.

The Unsung Voices Summer Youth Video Production Workshop provides young Asian Canadians who have a keen interest in film and media art the chance to express themselves as artist, learn from professionals in the field, and to produce a distinctly Asian Canadian story on screen. In the 10th edition of Unsung Voices, our four filmmakers embarked on a summer-long filmmaking journey online. For more information on our Unsung Voices 10, click here.

Interested in being part of Unsung Voices in the future? Applications open up every Spring; click here for more information.

August 20 at 1:00PM KT

CGY Yullyang Theater No.4

Meet the Directors

Ganesh Thava

Ganesh Thava is a Tamil Canadian writer, director, and actor working in film, TV, and theatre. He takes mundane everyday stories like family feuds or love affairs and shows them through a BIPOC and LGBTQ+ lens.

Harman Kang

Harman Kang‘s passion for writing was spurred by a desire to entertain herself and her friends, and a lifelong attitude of “I can do that.” Currently based in Edmonton and working in the non-profit sector, Chakar is Kang’s debut short film.

James Legaspi

James Legaspi is an emerging Filipino Canadian multimedia artist living and working in Brampton, Ont.

Weeda Azim

Weeda Azim is an Afghan Canadian writer and filmmaker based in Toronto. Her ultimate goal is to embrace chaos and failure in her work, to create in order to understand herself, and to meet like-minded individuals along the way.

2022 Festival Artwork Reveal

27 Jul, 2022

As the 26th edition of the Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival nears on November 9 — 20, we’re ecstatic to share #ReelAsian26’s official Festival Creative Artist, Brian Jiang!

By commissioning a local Asian Canadian artist to illustrate the identity of our 26th year, we strive to uplift and showcase Asian Canadian voices, stories, creativity, and art by providing support and a consistent platform. Read more about Brian and their work, as well as the animation they’ve conceptualized for this year’s festival.

Who is Brian Jiang?

Brian Jiang (they/them) is a queer interdisciplinary artist of Chinese descent based in Tkaronto aka Toronto. Their multidisciplinary arts practice comprises of painting, illustration, animation and design. Brian’s work explores topics such as speculative worlds, the natural world, identity and community-building. They hold a Bachelors of Design (Major in Illustration) from OCAD University. Brian has created work for clients such as LinkedIn, the City of Toronto, Toronto Fringe Festival, UofT Med Magazine, Xpace Cultural Centre, Pride Toronto, and more. Brian and their work can be found on Instagram @ _brianjiang.

Official #ReelAsian26 Festival Animation

Brian’s animation titled Consonance is entirely their own conceptualized storyline. The lush, vibrant colours of forest green and orange-red Brian has chosen for the carps and the dragon – the characters of Consonance that depict the storyline of individual versus community – extend our identity beyond our year-round red, charcoal and beige to pave way for our 26th year as a film festival.

Artist Statement

Consonance is an animation inspired by the collective power of community organizing and activism. This animation reinterprets the Chinese mythological tale that states, if a carp swam upstream and made the final leap over the waterfall to reach Dragon’s gate, it would be rewarded by being transformed into a dragon. In this reconstructed narrative, a single carp struggles to swim upstream a waterfall and falls to the bottom. However, through the support of it’s fellow carp friends, they’re able to swim and push together to reach the top of the falls where they merge to become a single powerful dragon. This reinterpretation of the ancient tale encapsulates how the whole (community) is greater than the sum of its parts (individuals).

Process Work

The 2021 So You Think You Can Pitch Finalists Share Their Insight

20 Jul, 2022

Nedda Sarshar
So You Think You Can Pitch Winner

IG: nedsjan

“I did not know what to expect going into the finalist process of Reel Asian’s “So You Think You Can Pitch?” process. But even if I had known to anticipate the incredible mentorship, support, guidance and community that came with it — I would have still never guessed the extent that Reel Asian is prepared to foster emerging talent and Asian stories.

Although this is a pitch competition, the coordinators were quick to help us all connect with each other — a cohort member and I regularly met up beforehand and practiced with each other in preparation for the pitch, another person even gave me their coffee at one point! The conversation amongst the cohort was stellar — we discussed how representation is sometimes not enough, there also needs to be a commitment to telling authentic storytelling. And our pitch mentors helped us find our voice, and also figure out how to tell our story to a predominantly non-white audience.

The application and pitch itself allowed me to think about my film in a producer’s light — take into account filming days, budget, etc — and this helped me enormously in securing Canada Arts Council funding as well.

When the pitch competition itself was over the first thought I had was that I would do whatever I could to help make sure that the other stories in my cohort were made and told. It has been an honour being part of this process, and I am beyond grateful for every step of it.”

Anubhav Singh
Finalist

IG: anubhav.mov

“Ask any film industry veteran and they will tell you one of the key skills required to bring your ideas to fruition is the ability to pitch them effectively. Reel Asian’s Pitch competition has been a quintessential learning experience for an emerging filmmaker like myself to get familiarized with this important process.

From the very beginning to the end of the competition I felt so much supported by the Reel Asian Team since I was offered a safe space to practice my pitch, given wonderful notes by experienced mentors, learned tremendously from the fellow pitch finalists and experienced all of this while having fun at the same time!”

Alice Wang
Finalist

IG: isitalicewang

“I had a wonderful time being part of So You Think You Can Pitch last year! Pitching is always a stressful experience for me but something I knew I needed to practice and get better at. The pitch competition was a great opportunity for me to do so. We were given a safe space to practice, share ideas, and connect with each other. The pitch event itself also had such a supportive environment, which really helped mitigate my anxieties around public speaking and pitching.

Having access to the festival was also a great experience, and I learned a lot from the Bootcamps and clinics. Especially during covid, I really appreciated the community aspect of Reel Asian, and being able to meet and chat with my cohort members. I’m very grateful to have been part of the pitch and to have learned from our mentors and my cohort!”

Helmann Wilhelm
Finalist

IG: cantedpictures

“The Reel Asian Pitch Competition helped give me the necessary tools to prepare my pitch and connect with industry professionals. It also provided me the opportunity to meet other creatives, share experiences, and learn from others on what it takes to give a successful pitch that is authentic to your voice. From what I’ve come to learn, you will always be pitching something, whether it’s your next project or an idea in the writers’ room, and I cannot think of a better place to start your career than at the Reel Asian Film Festival.”

Announcing the 2022 Unsung Voices Participants

28 Jun, 2022

The Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival is excited to announce this year’s Unsung Voices participants! The Unsung Voices Summer Youth Video Production Workshop will provide young Asian Canadians who have a keen interest in film and media art the chance to express themselves as artists, learn from professionals in the field, and to produce a distinctly Asian Canadian story on screen. The films made will receive a world premiere at the 26th Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival in November 2022.

We asked this year’s cohort to answer the following questions: What about Unsung Voices are you most excited for? Why do you want to get into filmmaking? Read their responses below!

Meet the 2022 Cohort

Roda Medhat

Roda Medhat is a Kurdish-Canadian multi-disciplinary artist based out of Toronto, Ontario. Roda is a graduate of OCAD University’s Integrated Media program and a student of FAMU Film and Television School of Prague.

IG: reallyroda

What about Unsung Voices are you most excited for? Why do you want to get into filmmaking?

“Unsung Voices gives me the opportunity to share my voice and create work from the perspective of a Kurdish artist, a voice we don’t often see in the media. Unsung Voices allows me to create work from a west asian perspective that doesn’t focus solely on war and conflict and highlights actual experiences and the culture of western Asia.”

Hannah Polinski

Hannah Polinski is a writer, photographer, and filmmaker from Southern Ontario. With an interest in the passage of time, her work explores familial memory, shifting landscapes, and the surreal.

IG: wallcreeping

What about Unsung Voices are you most excited for? Why do you want to get into filmmaking?

“I started writing my film two years ago. I didn’t think I’d ever feel ready to make it, so finally being in the process of bringing it to life feels surreal. I’m excited that I get to work with one of my close friends on the project, as we’ve collaborated together in the past and always inspire each other in unexpected ways.”

Samyuktha Movva

Samyuktha Movva is an emerging Indo-Canadian writer-director based in Toronto, working on turning her childhood dreams into reality. She seeks to explore our complex experience of time, memory, beauty, love, and loss through intimate character studies that traverse language and culture.

IG: @samyukthamovva

What about Unsung Voices are you most excited for? Why do you want to get into filmmaking?

“I am especially looking forward to challenging and exploring my identity as a filmmaker in the structured space that Unsung Voices provides, with the support of a talented community of peers from across the country and the invaluable guidance of industry mentors. I’m drawn to filmmaking because for me, it represents the perfect medium that can best allow me to amalgamate the myriad of interests and curiosities that keep me up at night. Filmmaking is the collaborative, tangible application of storytelling that I crave after spending so much time in my mind during the writing process, which can often feel quite lonely. Film never ceases to feel like a form of magic to me – and I really want to be able to create that magic myself!”

Vivian (Xiao Wen) Li

Vivian Li is a writer, editor, and musician who enjoys exploring various artistic disciplines. Her works are published in The Fiddlehead, CV2, and Vallum, among others. A MFA candidate at UBC, she is currently an editor for PRISM international, and can be reached on Twitter @eliktherain.

IG: elik_rain
Twitter: eliktherain

What about Unsung Voices are you most excited for? Why do you want to get into filmmaking?

“I’m excited to spend a summer exploring and expanding on an idea I’m passionate about, as well as engaging with musical elements in a short film! I’m interested in filmmaking as I would love to translate my inner cinematic vision to a tangible experience for others to share. As well, the collaborative aspect of film feels precious to me.”

Dédé Chen

Born in Nanchang, China in 1995, Dédé Chen/陈新华 is a Sino-Canadian adoptee living in Tiohtià:ke/Montreal. As an anthropologist, she is interested in autoethnography as a source of creative writing. Her Master’s thesis at Peking University focuses on the return of adoptees to their birth country. Her texts have been published by Moebius, Le Crachoir de Flaubert, Le Devoir, the Huffington PostNüVoices, and Inkstone. Dédé lectures on anti-Asian racism and the rights of international adoptees. She is involved with L’Hybridé (an organization for adoptees in Quebec province), the Asian Coalition for a Relève Émancipatrice (CARÉ), and the Directory of Asian artists in Quebec at the invitation of the artist and curator Claudia Chan Tak. She recently co-founded Soft Gong, the first francophone organization by and for Chinese adoptees.

IG: dedechen_
Twitter: dedepicote
Website: https://linktr.ee/dedechen_

What about Unsung Voices are you most excited for? Why do you want to get into filmmaking?

“Unsung Voices is a platform to express hidden narratives, those of international adoptees, who are also part of the Asian diaspora. Filmmaking has always been part of my practice in anthropology and literature, but I was scared to fully dive in. It is a way to access unconscious memory, trust the image, let it evoke, without words, and create a new language. Thanks to Reel Asian, I am excited to explore new forms of documentaries by mixing performance and archiveology.”

Yi Shi

Born and raised in Hangzhou, China, Yi is a 27 year old queer multidisciplinary artist, tattooer, photographer, craft lover, dedicated lifelong learner, currently based in Tkaronto, aka Toronto, Canada.

IG: postyism

What about Unsung Voices are you most excited for? Why do you want to get into filmmaking?

“Through the Unsung Voices program, I am ready to learn more about filmmaking professionally. The resources and mentorship we are given access to are unparalleled. Too used to being a one-person crew, this will be my first time writing and directing a film on a bigger scale. I’m also excited to jump out of my comfort zone and bring my vision to life along with this year’s cohort – healing broken hearts, one story at a time. There will never be too many queer diaspora stories.”

2022 Fire Horse Awards Reception and Ceremony

On May 31st, Reel Asian wrapped up Asian Heritage Month with its first Fire Horse Award reception and ceremony to celebrate inaugural recipient, Keith Lock.

A trailblazing yet humble influencer of the Asian-Canadian filmmaking scene, Lock has been making films for decades and is widely regarded as one of the first Chinese-Canadian filmmakers. During his inspiring speech, Lock reminisced of the days before there was ever a tight knit Asian-Canadian filmmaking community. His memories consisted of encounters of racism and bullying on film sets from producers and crew members alike that shaped the pioneering filmmaker he eventually became.

“I was so stressed. But these [encounters] proved to be a turning point, because it made me realize I had to address such experiences in my work and films.”

Lock proved to become an exceptional filmmaker just as he promised himself to be. He has been making experimental, documentary, and dramatic films since 1969 and remains an active member of the Canadian filmmaking community to this day. His experimental feature Everything Everywhere Again Alive (1975) was selected in 2020 by AGO Film Curator Jim Shedden as one of the “100 Best Canadian Films of All Time”, and his film Two Sides to Every Story (1974) was selected as one of TIFF’s “150 Essential Works of Canadian Cinema”. Most notably, Lock was the Founding Chair of Canada’s first film co-op, the Toronto Filmmaker’s Co-op, which now operates as LIFT (Liaison of Independent Filmmakers of Toronto). LIFT continues to operate as the largest artist-run media arts co-op in the country and just last year celebrated its 40th anniversary. Lock also founded “New Films”, the first regular screenings of independent and experimental films in Toronto, which led to the establishment of storied underground film film production and exhibition centre The Funnel in 1977.

It is no wonder that Lock’s impact goes beyond his films. He has consistently uplifted the Asian community in immeasurable ways as a foundational contributor to the film and media community. Just like a true trailblazer, Lock pledged to carry forward the intentions in which the Fire Horse Award was conceived.

Keith Lock is the first winner of the Fire Horse Award that was created on the occasion of Reel Asian’s 25th Anniversary in 2021 to honour Reel Asian founder Anita Lee whose groundbreaking work and determination has made Reel Asian a staple in Canada’s festival landscape. 

Watch Keith Lock’s tribute video below.

Watch Keith Lock’s Acceptance speech below.

Open Tickets Cart