Canada, France, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, USA2024–202589 minVarious languages with English subtitlesAvailable Online
Enter worlds that feel both impossibly extreme and unsettlingly real. Thrust against the grain, these protagonists take back control of their narrative, despite forces that seek to define them otherwise.
For: escapist daydreamers, truth-seekers, ordinary adventurers, diligent caretakers
*Directors in attendance starred.
Canada, Japan202515 minEnglish, Japanese with English subtitlesAvailable Online, Directed By Women, Drama
With only one night in Tokyo, Tammy, a grieving Japanese Canadian woman, is haunted by her doppelganger.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This short film features English subtitles for all non-English dialogue. In addition, subtitles for English dialogue and sound cues are available in Closed Captions
*Natalie Murao
Natalie Murao is a yonsei (fourth-generation) Japanese Canadian writer, director, and creative storyteller. She expands Asian diasporic cinema by creating an in-betweenness of styles that embody the diaspora itself.
South Korea202420 minKorean with English subtitlesAvailable Online, Drama, Horror
Haunted by nightmares while caring for his sick mother, Yoon Seok meets Soo In as she's dragging a huge rock across the beach. Intrigued, he learns how she escaped her worst imaginations.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
Jae-Woo Jang
Jae-Woo Jang majored in film studies at the Seoul Institute of the Arts. His horror films are highly acclaimed for their grotesque depiction of the fear of death and suffering.
Japan20248 minNo DialogueAnimation, Available Online, Experimental
A woman waits for a man by the seaside.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all sound cues indicated).
RuiHan Yang
Born in 1999 in China’s Sichuan province, RuiHan Yang holds a bachelor’s degree in Animation from Beijing Film Academy and a master’s in graphic design from Tama Art University.
USA202515 minVietnamese with English subtitlesAvailable Online, Documentary, History
Hoa Thi Le and Hue Nguyen Che flee the Vietnam War by boat and become background extras in 1979's Apocalypse Now. Written by their daughter, Cathy Linh Che, this story explores the interplay between fact and fiction.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Christopher Radcliff
Christopher Radcliff is an award-winning filmmaker whose work has screened worldwide and online via Criterion, Short of the Week, and Lé Cinema Club.
France, Japan202510 minNo dialogueAvailable Online
Ordinary life repeats itself every day, but the sequence of events is never the same. Only the feeling of touching something can be recognized as “now."
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Yoriko Mizushiri
Born in Aomori, Japan, Yoriko Mizushiri’s animations bring body parts and everyday objects to life. In addition to short films, she also makes music videos, commercials, and films for art installations.
Taiwan202421 minMandarin with English subtitles2slgbtq+, Available Online, Drama, Experimental, Horror, Lesbian, Non-binary, Queer, Transgender
Sixteen-year-old Lolo becomes entangled in a Freudian loop centered on a strawberry shortcake and her mother, Norma. As Lolo sinks into the loop, the boundary between reality and the dreamscape becomes increasingly blurred.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
Deborah “Devyn” Chuang
Deborah “Devyn” Chuang is a Taiwanese American filmmaker whose award-winning shorts have screened at prestigious international festivals, including the world’s three largest genre festivals: Sitges, Fantasia, and Fantastic Fest.
8 Nov, 2025 6:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4AA
This programme is presented with a mix of open captions, and English subtitles.
ASL interpretation will be available for the intro and Q&A portions of this screening. Interpreters will not be on screen, but there will be seats near the stage for access to ASL interpreters.
Wheelchair spaces and step-free seating is available for this screening – click below to book accessible seats.
All short films are available digitally through our Digital Shorts Pass
CONTENT ADVISORY
Depictions of nudity, trauma, death, dying, and horror
Join us for a Q&A with Natalie Murao from this shorts programme, moderated by Khanh Tudo, our Programme Associate.
November 8, 2025 at 8PM
This panel will explore how racialized and independent creators bring their films to communities and audiences.
Reuniting with the cast of her highly acclaimed 2017 festival hit, Village Rockstars, Rima Das returns with a standalone sequel centering Dhunu, now a teenager, who lives in a small village in Assam, India, and dreams of becoming a musician. While Dhunu and her friends navigate the vulnerable transition between childhood and adulthood, weighing new responsibilities and priorities, the elders around them face harsher circumstances brought on by predatory land developers and climate change, affecting their livelihoods and sense of community.
These films explore desire, both interpersonally and intrapersonally. Between quietly blossoming desires and glowing inner temptations, this collection strides toward you with a sly wink, a shy smile, and a glimmer in its eye.
Canada, Germany, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Sweden, Taiwan, U.K., USA2018–202560 minVarious languages with English SubtitlesAvailable Online
Through animation’s unique ability to push boundaries and reimagine narratives, this programme reflects the formative dreams that continue to shape Inside Out and Reel Asian. Step into this chaotic but tender journey with us.
For: time travellers; plane counters; animation lovers; dancers; weirdo blobs; fans of Lu and Kelly
*Directors in attendance starred.
Lu Linares
Co-Curator
Lu Linares is a Peruvian Canadian festival programmer and arts administrator whose work is shaped by their experiences as a queer immigrant. They are currently the programming and industry manager at the Inside Out 2SLGBTQ+ Film Festival.
Germany202413 minEnglishAnimation, Available Online, Non-binary, Queer, Transgender
Sam, a deviant artist and proud flower person, is spending one last day in a flower spa with his mother before his final performance act.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Ariel Victor Arthanto
Ariel Victor Arthanto is an Indonesian-born animation filmmaker and illustrator based in Berlin, crafting vibrant 2D worlds that mix playful compositions, bold figures, and character-driven storytelling across film and illustration.
South Korea20203 minKorean with English subtitlesAnimation, Available Online, Music, Queer
One night, while Seolgi is lying on a grass field with friends, a shooting star falls and dark intrusive thoughts hit her, bursting with movement and blooming bright colours.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
Sasha Lee
Sasha Lee is an animator who likes plants and animals.
Taiwan, U.K.20246 minMandarin with English subtitles2slgbtq+, Animation, Available Online, Gay
I’ve practised these words for 20 years now, but maybe being candid isn’t the best idea. I’m starting my countdown again — another 20 years. Maybe it will be the right time by then.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
WeiFan Wang
WeiFan Wang is an animation director based in Taipei and London. His practice consists of self-reflective animations that explore intimate and unspoken emotions.
Singapore, USA20238 minNo dialogue2slgbtq+, Animation, Available Online, Experimental, Non-binary, Queer
One night, a person brushes a dog's teeth and turns into a bus.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film has no dialogue (no audio + visual descriptions).
Exyl
Exyl is a filmmaker working under the umbrella of experimental animation. They love work that is cheap. They care about being honest. They hate thinking about being marketable.
Taiwan, UK2018 6:00No dialogue2slgbtq+, Animation, Available Online, Experimental, Gay, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Non-binary, Queer, Transgender
Comprising over 2,000 hand-painted frames, Adorable presents a journey of a queer person, illustrating modern queer society, where discrimination, freedom, and love coexist.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Cheng-Hsu Chung
Cheng-Hsu Chung is a Taiwanese animation artist and director based in Berlin. Chung’s artistic practice focuses on surreal images and character performances in animation to articulate the changing nature of emotion, modern love, and the experiences queer bodies encounter.
Canada20196 minEnglishAvailable Online
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 now-closed iconic Edmonton gay bar.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Vivek Shraya
A three-time Canadian Screen Award winner, Vivek Shraya is an artist whose body of work crosses the boundaries of music, literature, visual art, theatre, TV, film, and fashion.
Malaysia, Sweden20229 minNo dialogue2slgbtq+, Animation, Available Online, Environment, Family-friendly, Queer, Romance
Newly orphaned and freshly wounded from a loss, a boy lends his companion a prosthetic arm for the day. This is a slow and meditative film about everyday gestures of love, communicated through our universal understanding of body language.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film has no dialogue (no audio + visual descriptions).
Gabriel Gabriel Garble
Gabriel Gabriel Garble works across animation, film, and geology, exploring how imagery and material ecologies intertwine.
South Korea20259 minKorean with English subtitlesAnimation, Available Online, Directed By Women, Drama
A girl unexpectedly bumps into her childhood best friend and finds herself torn between rekindling their lost connection or letting the moment slip away forever.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Hanna Kang
Hanna Kang is a graduate of the Korea National University of Arts.
6 Nov, 2025 8:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
This programme is presented with a mix of open captions, English subtitles, and no captions.
Wheelchair spaces and step-free seating is available for this screening – click below to book accessible seats.
All short films are available digitally through our Digital Shorts Pass
CONTENT ADVISORY
Flashing strobe lights; depictions of violence
How far would you go to uncover a family history that has been purposefully buried? What are the consequences of resurfacing these stories to fulfil your own? In an extremely candid documentary, filmmaker Tony Nguyen embarks on a scrappy investigation to reconnect to his father, who was estranged from his family due to the Vietnam War.
Ever since astronaut-in-training Celeste was a child, Robot has served as a surrogate parent while her mother explored the galaxy. When Celeste starts a months-long mission after graduation, the pair must explore the unknowns of life without each other.
This panel will explore how racialized and independent creators bring their films to communities and audiences.
South Korea202420 minKorean with English subtitlesAvailable Online, Drama, Horror
Haunted by nightmares while caring for his sick mother, Yoon Seok meets Soo In as she's dragging a huge rock across the beach. Intrigued, he learns how she escaped her worst imaginations.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
Jae-Woo Jang
Jae-Woo Jang majored in film studies at the Seoul Institute of the Arts. His horror films are highly acclaimed for their grotesque depiction of the fear of death and suffering.
8 Nov, 2025 6:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
CONTENT ADVISORY
Depictions of death and dying
South Korea2025122 minKorean with English subtitlesCanadian Premiere2slgbtq+, Available Online
Pride celebrations are coming up, and Manok, the feisty owner of a venerable lesbian bar in Seoul, is preparing for the annual party. Except the younger organizers want a new vibe, leaving Manok’s bar on the fringes. Irritated at her obsolescence, Manok closes the bar out of spite and moves back to her rural hometown with a fresh start on her mind. But is that possible in a town run by her ex-husband? If anybody can do it, Manok can.
Featuring an endearing ensemble of country characters led by Mal-bok Yang as Manok, Manok is a chaotic fish-out-of-water comedy with musical numbers, political campaigns, and a little romance. As zany as it sounds, it never strays from its heartfelt journey of redefining oneself through life’s challenges, and of finding (and keeping) friends and lovers along the way.
– Aram Siu Wai Collier
Mal-bok Yang, Jae-yun Sung, Wan-kyu Park
OFFICIAL SELECTION
BFI Flare: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival, 2025
Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, 2025
AWARDS
Korean Fantastic Audience Award, Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, 2025
Yu-jin Lee
Born in 1991, Yu-jin Lee studied film at the Korea National University of Arts. Lee has won awards for her various short films at the Asiana International Short Film Festival and Jeju Women’s Film Festival. She has consistently explored comedy and drama genres, with Manok marking her feature debut.
8 Nov, 2025 3:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
CONTENT ADVISORY
sexist language/situations
IN PERSON & ONLINE ACCESSIBILITY
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
Wheelchair spaces and step-free seating is available for this screening – click below to book accessible seats.
Join us for a Q&A immediately after the screening with director Yu-jin Lee.
Nehma belongs to the Oraon tribe and lives with her children on the outskirts of Jharkhand, India. Embroiled in a custody battle and a messy divorce, she secures a job at an AI data-labelling centre under the supervision of a stern manager. As we watch her navigate the steep learning curve of her new job and quickly confront the stark realities of biased data, the distortions in the very systems designed to help us become impossible to ignore.
Join us for a special presentation of 18 to 35, a bold new workplace comedy created by Rahul Chaturvedi and executive produced by Andrew Phung.
Explore the XR worldbuilding practices of media artists working at the confluence of body, space, and technology.
South Korea20203 minKorean with English subtitlesAnimation, Available Online, Music, Queer
One night, while Seolgi is lying on a grass field with friends, a shooting star falls and dark intrusive thoughts hit her, bursting with movement and blooming bright colours.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is being presented with English subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated).
Sasha Lee
Sasha Lee is an animator who likes plants and animals.
6 Nov, 2025 8:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
South Korea20259 minKorean with English subtitlesAnimation, Available Online, Directed By Women, Drama
A girl unexpectedly bumps into her childhood best friend and finds herself torn between rekindling their lost connection or letting the moment slip away forever.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
ONLINE: This film is fully captioned in closed captions (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated).
Hanna Kang
Hanna Kang is a graduate of the Korea National University of Arts.
6 Nov, 2025 8:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4GA
South Korea202320 MinKorean2slgbtq+, Action, Available Online, Comedy, Romance, Science Fiction
With Seoul under a UFO attack, will Soojin be able to find the green-glowing girl she slept with the night before? (Re)Discover the power of love in this alien invasion, student-drama, action-romance blockbuster short.
IN PERSON: this film is scheduled to be presented with subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated)
ONLINE: this film is scheduled to be presented with subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated)
Jung Inhyuk
Jung Inhyuk has earned a passionate fanbase by mixing stories of non-mainstream characters with B-grade humor and various filmmaking techniques to create a genre that defies definition.
This film is part of the Shorts Presentation: LOVE ISLAND shorts programme.
15 Nov, 2024 8:00 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
South Korea20234 MinNo DialogueAnimation, Available Online, Directed By Women, Family-friendly
A young girl's birthday overlaps a memorial service, and she struggles to blow out her candles while avoiding adults who prioritize rituals over birthday celebrations.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: No dialogue (no audio + visual descriptions)
Kim Jungsoo
Kim Jungsoo is an animator based in Seoul. Her filmography includes Insomnia (2017) and Dear. J (2021).
This film is part of the WEE ASIAN shorts programme.
23 Nov, 2024 10:00 am
Innis Town HallPG
Canada, South Korea202432 MinEnglish, Korean, FrenchAvailable Online, Directed By Women, Documentary, Experimental, History
A prismatic exploration recounting the 1950s visit of Parisian elites led by Chris Marker and Claude Lanzmann in the newly formed Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the communist state that claims the allegiance of the filmmaker’s grandmother during the Korean War.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
*Helen Lee
Helen Lee is a Seoul-born, Toronto-based filmmaker whose works explore intersectionalities of place, identity, and sexuality. She works in fiction and essay films, featuring diasporic gendered subjects from feminist and transnational perspectives.
This film is part of the Shorts Presentation: UNDERCURRENTS shorts programme.
17 Nov, 2024 4:00 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4CONTENT ADVISORY
Depictions of war, conflict, trauma, and slight nudity; mentions of suicide
Canada, Hong Kong, India, Myanmar, South Korea2023-2024TRT: 89 minVarious languages
Seemingly stagnant on the surface, in motion underneath. These five short films trace and retrace what movements and stories might exist within us and beyond, pulling us in unexpected directions.
For: those asking questions; seeking mood-setting films and non-linear narratives
Canada202418 minEnglish, Indonesian2slgbtq+, Available Online, Directed By Women, Drama, Experimental
In 1998 Indonesia, two girls promise to stay friends forever. Twenty-five years later, after experiencing a traumatic event, Emily dreams about Rosa, her childhood friend.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
*Amanda Ann-Min Wong
Amanda Ann-Min Wong (they/she) is a Toronto-based filmmaker. Originally from Southeast Asia, their work often explores memory, nostalgia, and community from a tenderly crafted diasporic perspective.
India202415 minKonkaniAvailable Online, Drama
Two young women from a small village discuss the recent mysterious vanishing of Leela. Is there any truth in the rumours about her disappearance?
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented with subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated)
ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented with subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated)
Tanmay Chowdhary
Tanmay Chowdhary is a filmmaker who works across a breadth of mediums including music videos, narratives, documentaries, and commercials. He founded a boutique production house called Peru Films in 2020 to champion underrepresented voices.
Hong Kong202314 minCantoneseAnimation, Available Online
A goldfish's dream of returning into her wild form uproars her long-forgotten memories, while a self-conscious monsoon is about to be uninhibited.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: this film is scheduled to be presented with subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated)
Jay Hiukit Wong & Ellis Kayin Chan
Jay Hiukit Wong is a Hong Kong animation director, animator, illustrator, and comic artist.
Ellis Kayin Chan is a Barcelona-based Hong Kong animation director, animator, and visual artist.
Myanmar202310 minBurmeseAnimation, Available Online, Directed By Women, Experimental
Photographic sequences painted with golds and greys animate the guilt from a childhood incident of killing an ant while washing hands in the sink, reflecting the realms of cosmos, power, guilt, prayers, and existence.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented with subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated)
Moe Myat May Zarchi
Moe Myat May Zarchi is a filmmaker, cultural practitioner, and audiovisual artist from Myanmar whose practice spans 10 years.
Canada, South Korea202432 MinEnglish, Korean, FrenchAvailable Online, Directed By Women, Documentary, Experimental, History
A prismatic exploration recounting the 1950s visit of Parisian elites led by Chris Marker and Claude Lanzmann in the newly formed Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the communist state that claims the allegiance of the filmmaker’s grandmother during the Korean War.
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
*Helen Lee
Helen Lee is a Seoul-born, Toronto-based filmmaker whose works explore intersectionalities of place, identity, and sexuality. She works in fiction and essay films, featuring diasporic gendered subjects from feminist and transnational perspectives.
17 Nov, 2024 4:00 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4PG
Tickets for the in-cinema presentation have gone into advance rush. No more public advance tickets are available. Please join the rush line on the day of the screening when we will release unclaimed holds and reserves.
We can usually get everyone in the rush line in but rush tickets are strictly subject to availability and not guaranteed. Rush lines start an hour before the first screening of the day so the earlier you join the rush line the better your chances.
DIGITAL SHORTS
All shorts are available online via a Shorts VOD Pass. Valid from 10AM on Monday, Nov 18 thru 11:59PM on Sunday, Nov 24, 2024.
–
This programme is presented with a mix of open captions, English subtitles, and no captions. Wheelchair spaces and step-free seating is available for this screening – click below to book accessible seats.
Six emerging filmmakers embarked on a summer-long filmmaking journey. We’re proud to present their world premiere here, in the 13th edition of Reel Asian’s filmmaking program.
We’re excited to be presenting “Bestiary” at this year’s festival, featuring a troupe of fantastical creatures in mid-flight, dreamed up by artist Wenting Li. Come experience them in transit, full of whimsy and uncanny energy at The Commons, at 401 Richmond during festival hours.
While picking juicy lychees on an endless summer day, Ting is uneasy. She’s on the verge of marriage in her hometown in mainland China. Before she ties the knot, Ting ventures to Hong Kong to find the father she’s never known. While on her journey, she finds she has other loose ends to tie up, too.
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
