Canada, China, South Korea, USA202055 minutesEnglish and various languages with English SubtitlesAction, Animation, Comedy, Dance, Documentary, Drama, Experimental, Family, Fantasy, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Non-binary Filmmakers, Reel Asian Award Winner, Sci-fi, Women Filmmakers
Abundant with hope, desire, and resiliency, all six of these films make a statement to queer histories, presents, and futures—in front of and behind the screen.
Canada2019 6 minEnglishAnimation, Experimental, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Women Filmmakers
Rated PG
With pulsating neon-light animation, Reviving the Roost is about community complexity and longing—an elegy to a lost space as much as it is director Vivek Shraya’s ode to a closed popular Edmonton gay bar.
Vivek Shraya
Vivek Shraya is an artist whose body of work crosses the boundaries of music, literature, visual art, theatre, and film. She is also the founder of the publishing imprint VS. Books.
USA2019 3 minEnglish and Mandarin with English subtitlesInternational Premiere Drama, Family, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Non-binary Filmmakers
Rated PG
Though brief and contained, Bind provides an extensive glimpse into the trans Asian diaspora when Jules is confronted by a surprise visit from their mother with their chest binder.
Hua Chai
Kate Chang
OFFICIAL SELECTIONS
Frameline, 2020
NewFilmmakers LA, 2020
Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, 2020
Emory Chao Johnson
Emory Chao Johnson is a MFA film student at the University of California. They were a Trans Filmmaking Fellow on director Sam Feder’s Disclosure: Trans Lives on Screen in 2018 and an intern on director Lisa Leeman’s Trans*Formed in 2019.
Canada20203 minEnglishDocumentary, Experimental, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Women Filmmakers
Rated PG-13
An unapologetic statement about queer joy, resistance, and resilience in the face of abuse, trauma, and transphobia.
OFFICIAL SELECTIONS
Fairy Tales Queer Film Festival, 2020
Social Justice Film Festival, 2020
Asian American International Film Festival, 2020
Jordana Valerie Allen-Shim
“Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again is my favorite movie. Fight me.” Jordana Valerie Allen-Shim is a Toronto-born, U.S.-raised filmmaker, dog mom, and aspiring graphic novelist passionate about empowering marginalized communities through art.
Canada20187 minEnglishAction, Comedy, Women Filmmakers
Rated PG-13
This action-comedy short features Sedina Fiati as Super Zee, a kickbutt queer Black superhero who swoops in to save her crush from the microaggressions at the office.
Sedina Fiati
Christina Song
Kevan Kase
OFFICIAL SELECTIONS
Outfest Fusion, 2020
Caribbean Tales International Film Festival, 2020
Women’s International Film & Arts Festival, 2019
Nathalie Younglai
TV writer and director, Trini Chinese provocateur, and founder of BIPOC TV & Film, Nathalie Younglai hauled her parents to the Daytime Emmys after being nominated for her writing on “Dino Dana.” She supports Black Lives Matter.
USA20199 minEnglish and Mandarin with English subtitlesDrama, Experimental, Family, Fantasy, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Non-binary Filmmakers, Reel Asian Award Winner, Sci-fi
Rated 14A
Filled with evocative imagery, this queer futuristic short follows Jia, who develops the ability to teleport when she dissociates and must learn how to control her powers.
Poppy Liu
Lea Cai
Vera Lam
OFFICIAL SELECTIONS
Blackstar Film Festival, 2020
Outfest Fusion, 2020
CAAMfest, 2020
LA Asian Pacific Film Festival, 2020
AWARD
National Film Board of Canada Best Canadian Short Film Award, Reel Asian 2020
Jess X. Snow
Jess X. Snow is a director, artist, poet and community arts educator creating queer Asian immigrant stories that transcend borders, binaries, and time. They are currently a guest on the unceded traditional land of the Lenape people (Lenapehoking/Brooklyn, NY).
South Korea202025 minKorean with English subtitlesNorth American PremiereDance, Drama, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Open Captions, Reel Asian Award Winner
Rated 14A
CW: Transphobic comments
Shin-mi, a dancer, bravely faces forward with grace and style as she takes the physical examination at the Military Manpower Administration.
Choi Haejun
Kim Wookyum
Lim Hojun
OFFICIAL SELECTION
Mise-en-scène Short Film Festival, 2020
AWARDS
Change Connect Award, Reel Asian 2020
Sungbin Byun 변성빈
Born in 1991, Sungbin Byun studied film, TV & multimedia and eastern philosophy at Sungkyunkwan University. His films Horn (2014), The Chicken of Wuzuh (2015), and Hands and Wings (2018) have screened at festivals internationally.
12 Nov, 2020 10:00 am
to 19 Nov, 2020 11:59 pm
Join us in conversation with directors and special guests in attendance! ASL interpretation will be made available thanks to Toronto Sign Language Interpreter Services. Ticket holders can watch on the CineSend Reel Asian portal.
November 13, 2020 at 8PM
Join the CBC as they discuss new opportunities and methods for pitching digital content. This event is part of the Reel Ideas Symposium.
Catch Howie Tsui's GIF Roulette this year at the festival, featuring a grid of GIFs in a digital installation, and an artist talk.
A retired hitman, telephone counselor, Ronggeng dancer, and pug take the lead in these four cult-worthy shorts that are bound to make you question everything you thought you knew. Includes winners of Air Canada Short Film or Video Award, Reel Asian 2020 RECEIVER and RONG.
Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival is a unique showcase of contemporary Asian cinema and work from Asia and the Asian diaspora. Works include films and videos by artists in Canada, the U.S., Asia and all over the world. As Canada’s largest pan-Asian film festival, Reel Asian provides a public forum for Asian media artists and their work, and fuels the growing appreciation for Asian cinema in Canada.
401 Richmond Street West, The Commons (Suite 448)
Toronto, Ontario, M5V 3A8 Canada
(416) 703 – 9333
info@reelasian.com
Charitable number: 870021383RR0001
