Accessibility
This presentation has no captions.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Malaysia202184 minMalay, English, Chinese with English subtitlesNorth American PremiereDrama
Aman, a young aspiring writer, moved to Kuala Lumpur to follow his dreams, but all he has is his late father’s old car and nowhere to live. To make ends meet, he uses his room on wheels to illegally earn money through a driving-service app. This is how he meets Bella, a student from Penang. When Bella asks Aman to become her private driver for her night job in return for a place to stay, Aman agrees.
The two lost souls form an unlikely solidarity in front of the beautiful yet stark black and white backdrop of Kuala Lumpur. Its unique imagery could be a reflection of how Aman sees the world as a colourblind person, but also a metaphor for his bleak and bittersweet reality as he struggles to find a place he can call home. Will things turn out for the better?
- June Kim
Amerul Affendi
Mei Fen Lim
OFFICIAL SELECTION
Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival, 2020
Udine Far East Film Festival, 2021
Muzzamer Rahman
Muzzamer Rahman is a rising filmmaker and a name to watch. When Hail, Driver! was put on hold due to financial restraints, he filmed Takut Ke Tak (2020), which was completed and released just before it.
10 Nov, 2021
to 19 Nov, 2021
This presentation has no captions.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Monica (Sujata Day), a former spelling-bee champion, lives at home with her ailing mother and tutors young spelling-bee hopefuls whose parents hover around, in hopes that their children will follow in her footsteps. When she is offered a dream job in another city, she considers accepting it, until her estranged brother Sonny (Ritish Rajan) shows up unexpectedly, opening up old wounds and familial tensions.
Absence|Presence is a series of panel conversations, screenings, and workshops reintroducing Desh Pardesh to Reel Asian’s audiences and community. Desh Pardesh was a multidisciplinary arts and culture festival that engaged with the political issues of South Asia and its diasporas through a multi-day festival and conference.
The shorts in this program include works screened two decades ago at Desh Pardesh, as well as films made last year by a cohort of South Asian and Indo Caribbean emerging filmmakers who participated in Inside Out Festival’s Short Film Lab.
Founded in Toronto in 1997, Reel Asian is Canada’s largest pan-Asian film festival and a year-round cultural organization dedicated to championing Asian and Asian diasporic artists and storytellers. What began as a grassroots film festival has grown into a national platform supporting filmmakers and audiences through screenings, education, industry initiatives, artist development, and community programming presented across Toronto, the GTA, and online across Canada.
401 Richmond Street West, The Commons (Suite 448)
Toronto, Ontario, M5V 3A8 Canada
(416) 703 – 9333
info@reelasian.com
Charitable number: 870021383RR0001
