Canada, Vietnam202180 minEnglish and various languages with English SubtitlesAnimation, Documentary, Drama, Experimental, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Sci-fi, Women Filmmakers
Carefully set and intentionally crafted, the site-specificity of these short films recognize the role of place as a character integral to offering layered understandings of self, community, and purpose.
Canada202113 minTamil with English subtitlesToronto PremiereDrama, Experimental, Women Filmmakers
Trina encounters another version of herself as a paramilitary fighter for the Tamil Tigers and begins to question the ways in which we rebel.
This presentation has English subtitles.
An Active Listener will be available to offer one-on-one peer support for viewers who may find the content of this presentation triggering. More info on how to access here.
This film contains the potentially triggering topics of war and intergenerational trauma.
Maya Bastian
Maya Bastian is an award-winning filmmaker and writer with roots in conflict journalism. She specializes in exploring untold stories, integrating the voices of each unique community through active engagement, research, and open dialogue.
Canada20214 minEnglishCanadian PremiereDocumentary, Women Filmmakers
Two Filipino Canadians candidly reflect on how separating from their mothers during immigration has affected their mental health and family cohesion.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Thea Loo
Thea Loo is a producer and director from Vancouver. She is currently producing To Make Ends Meat 結束肉, a documentary project premiering this fall at the Vancouver Asian Film Festival.
Canada202110 minEnglish, Mandarin, Japanese with English subtitlesLGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Sci-fi, Women Filmmakers
In the year 2090, Sam tries to bring her lover back to life.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Lovina Yavari, Lance Fernandes
Lovina Yavari is a Canadian actor, director, artist, fashion designer, and internationally published model in Toronto. She can be seen in DC’s Shazam, Polar, and The Boys.
Lance Fernandes, a graduate of the Toronto Film School, is a commercial director and visual-effects artist.
Canada202011 minNo dialogueAnimation, Family, Reel Asian Award Winner, Women Filmmakers
Oscillating between the past and the present, a woman sits in a hospital room, alone with her dying father.
Jordan Canning, Howie Shia
Jordan Canning, a graduate of the Directors’ Lab at the Canadian Film Centre, has made more than a dozen short films.
Howie Shia is an illustrator, animator, writer, and director whose work combines a love for ancient mythologies with a fascination for modern urban environments.
Canada202110 minNo dialogueToronto PremiereAnimation, Women Filmmakers
A disquieting fable with dark humour, a child tries to gain her father's affection, but the family dog proves to be a fierce rival.
This presentation has no captions and no dialogue.
Alisi Telengut
Alisi Telengut is a Canadian artist of Mongolian descent. She creates animation frame by frame under the camera, with painting as the medium, to generate movement and explore handmade and painterly visuals for her films.
Canada20215 minEnglish, Cantonese with English subtitlesCanadian PremiereDocumentary, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Non-binary Filmmakers, Reel Asian Award Winner, Women Filmmakers
Highlighting the rich tenacity of Toronto’s East Chinatown community, this film explores the area’s people, sidewalks, and businesses, giving voice to their experiences of community, identity, anxieties, and hopes for the future.
This presentation has English subtitles.
This presentation has open captions.
Amanda Ann-Min Wong
Amanda Ann-Min Wong (she/they) is a Toronto-based film director, writer, sound artist, and musician exploring themes of loss, nostalgia, and memory, as well as finding purpose and community through the arts.
Canada20205 minEnglish, Cantonese with English subtitlesDocumentary, Women Filmmakers
Filmmaker Christine Wu wayfinds her shifting relationship to Hong Kong, as someone who is now observing the region from afar.
This presentation has closed captions.
Christine Wu
Christine Wu is a Hong Kong-born filmmaker and cultural worker living on the territories of the Williams Treaties First Nations (Whitchurch-Stouffville, Ont.). She creates from a place of self-compassion, reflecting an ongoing process of self-education about systemic injustice and healing.
Vietnam202022 minVietnamese with English subtitlesCanadian PremiereDrama, Sci-fi
On a quest to rebuild home, an alien encounters a reverent worshipper, a cynical construction worker, and a mysterious medium, observing their varying ideas of home.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Ostin Fam
Born and raised in Hanoi, Ostin Fam is a member of Brooklyn Filmmakers Collective, the first and largest collective of independent filmmakers in New York, and a 2017 recipient of Sony Pictures’ IFP Marcie Bloom Fellowship in Film.
10 Nov, 2021
to 19 Nov, 2021
PG
Through the medium of animation, this panel explores the creative process and tools for geo-specific settings that serve as character in story—from something large and abstract like a “nation” to something detailed like a neighbourhood or building structure.
Kea can’t make ends meet, even while working as a luau dancer, karaoke-bar hostess, and elementary school Hawaiian-language teacher. After a violent altercation with her boyfriend, Kea accidentally hits a homeless man with her car. Not wanting to involve the authorities, she decides to take care of the mysterious man herself.
Our Opening Night presentation is the in-person screening of ISLANDS on November 10 at 7:30pm at the Hot Docs Ted Rogers Cinema. Guests in attendance include director Martin Edralin, and cast members Sheila Lotuaco and Esteban Comilang.
Canada, Malaysia, USA202182 minEnglish and various languages with English subtitlesComedy, Dance, Documentary, Drama, Family, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Sci-fi, Women Filmmakers
Amid the abundance of narratives revolving around kin, this presentation of shorts brings refreshing and surprising takes into the un/intentional family-centric storytelling landscape, offering room for possibilities and reimaginings.
Malaysia202110 minTeochew, Mandarin with English subtitlesNorth American PremiereDrama, Family, Women Filmmakers
While offering a proper funeral to a severed bird’s head, Ah Ger is unexpectedly visited by the ghost of her grandmother, who urges her to help find and care for her egg.
This presentation has English subtitles.
An Active Listener will be available to offer one-on-one peer support for viewers who may find the content of this presentation triggering. More info on how to access here.
This film contains the potentially triggering topic of domestic aggression.
Audrie Yeo
Audrie Yeo is a Malaysian Chinese filmmaker of Teochew descent who graduated from the National Academy of Arts Culture and Heritage with a major in film and video directing.
USA202111 minEnglish, Tagalog with English subtitlesCanadian PremiereDocumentary, Family, Women Filmmakers
76-year-old Arturo Madrid reminisces on the hardships, wonders, and realities of migrating from the Philippines to the United States in this tender and poetic documentary.
This presentation has closed captions.
Keone Madrid, Mari Madrid
Keone and Mari Madrid take an approach to utilizing human movement in visual and emotional ways through their inventive dance vocabulary.
Canada202113 minEnglish, Chinese with English subtitles World PremiereDrama, Family, Reel Asian Award Winner, Women Filmmakers
Struggling with finding her artistic voice, Jessie is an aspiring photographer and art student trying to balance her role as a daughter in her larger family.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Alice Charlie Liu
Alice Charlie Liu is a photographer, designer, and director based in Toronto and New York City. She is an alumni of TIFF Next Wave, Telluride Film Festival’s Student Symposium, and a Tribeca Film Institute Film Fellow.
Canada20203 minEnglishFamily
An endearing portrait of director Ian Bawa’s father as he attempts to give life and marital advice to his bodybuilding and image-obsessed son in this hybrid semi-autobiographical short.
This presentation has no captions.
Ian Bawa
Ian Bawa is a filmmaker from Winnipeg. Bawa is currently adapting Strong Son into a feature film, set to shoot in 2022.
Canada202114 minEnglish, Punjabi with English subtitlesFamily, Sci-fi, Women Filmmakers
When a highly respectable family moves into the neighborhood, Kira grows suspicious of her new neighbors' seemingly flawless daughter.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Jasleen Kaur
Jasleen Kaur is an award-winning filmmaker based in Vancouver, best known for directing Maple and producing the Blumhouse film, Pharma Bro, chronicling the rise and fall of the infamous pharmaceutical CEO Martin Shkreli.
Canada20216 minEnglish, Tagalog with English subtitlesCanada PremiereComedy, Family
Independence Day takes a shallow-end dive in presenting what a picnic might look like within the Filipinx diasporic experience in North America.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Tier Zero is a set of individuals who collectively agree on finding synergies between clients, ourselves, and talent. Expect fun, loose banter, and intention.
USA202114 minEnglish, Mandarin with English subtitlesCanadian PremiereDrama, Women Filmmakers
When Frances and her children come upon a seemingly abandoned little girl, their attempts to help have unforeseen consequences.
This presentation has closed captions.
Courtney Loo, David Karp
Courtney Loo and David Karp are a directing duo based in New York. They co-founded Thrice Cooked Media, a music-management and film-production company, representing Pink Sweat$ and KIRBY.
Canada, USA202111 minEnglishComedy, Family, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Non-binary Filmmakers, Women Filmmakers
All cards are on the table when Noor brings Luz home for the first time on the family's annual game night.
This presentation has closed captions.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Fawzia Mirza
Fawzia Mirza is a queer, South Asian, Muslim (she/they) writer and director. Her feature Me, My Mom & Sharmila, inspired by her one-woman play, has been supported by Telefilm Canada and will enter production in 2022.
10 Nov, 2021
to 19 Nov, 2021
PG
Community Supporter
Ann Kaneko’s Manzanar, Diverted invokes this history to tell the story of generations of women: Native American, Japanese American WWII incarcerees, and environmentalists, fighting for the future of the valley. Through a mix of testimonials, archival, and aerial photography, Kaneko weaves intersectional histories with the urgency of the present.
Seo, the director of a romance, is at his wit’s end trying to finish his film. Editor Park has been brought in to help fix it. But it’s not your typical post-production problems of recalibrating the film’s story structure. This film is haunted.
From a pile of deteriorating 16 mm home movies from 1936 to 1951, a moving story emerges of a Chinese American family, set against the backdrop of race and class in Chicago.
Canada202110 minEnglish, Mandarin, Japanese with English subtitlesLGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Sci-fi, Women Filmmakers
In the year 2090, Sam tries to bring her lover back to life.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Lovina Yavari, Lance Fernandes
Lovina Yavari is a Canadian actor, director, artist, fashion designer, and internationally published model in Toronto. She can be seen in DC’s Shazam, Polar, and The Boys.
Lance Fernandes, a graduate of the Toronto Film School, is a commercial director and visual-effects artist.
10 Nov, 2021
to 19 Nov, 2021
This film is part of the Ecologies of Place shorts programme
PG13
Canada20215 minEnglish, Cantonese with English subtitlesCanadian PremiereDocumentary, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Non-binary Filmmakers, Reel Asian Award Winner, Women Filmmakers
Highlighting the rich tenacity of Toronto’s East Chinatown community, this film explores the area’s people, sidewalks, and businesses, giving voice to their experiences of community, identity, anxieties, and hopes for the future.
This presentation has English subtitles.
This presentation has open captions.
Amanda Ann-Min Wong
Amanda Ann-Min Wong (she/they) is a Toronto-based film director, writer, sound artist, and musician exploring themes of loss, nostalgia, and memory, as well as finding purpose and community through the arts.
Canada, USA202111 minEnglishComedy, Family, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Non-binary Filmmakers, Women Filmmakers
All cards are on the table when Noor brings Luz home for the first time on the family's annual game night.
This presentation has closed captions.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Fawzia Mirza
Fawzia Mirza is a queer, South Asian, Muslim (she/they) writer and director. Her feature Me, My Mom & Sharmila, inspired by her one-woman play, has been supported by Telefilm Canada and will enter production in 2022.
Canada20208 minEnglishLGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Non-binary Filmmakers
Life at home for Maya isn’t the best, but things are different when she’s with her friend, Neelam. After a heated argument with her parents, Maya goes over to Neelam’s. The tensions that rise between them reveal the undeniable love and hurt they carry.
This presentation has closed captions.
Sadiah Rahman
Sadiah Rahman is a photographer, writer, director, and arts worker based out of Toronto. In their work, they aim to understand the nuances of queer and Muslim identities, disabilities, and marginalization with an empathetic lens.
Canada202012 minEnglishLGBTQ+ Filmmakers
Nectar is a portrait film that explores the beauty and complexities of fatness, queerness, race, joy, desire, and body autonomy.
This presentation has closed captions.
Nakita Sunar
Nakita Sunar is a mental health provider, emerging filmmaker, and educator. Nakita received her Masters of Education from OISE. Nakita believes that filmmaking is her way of creating accessible education that embodies art, storytelling, and social change.
Canada202010 minEnglishLGBTQ+ Filmmakers
After trying on a binder and a packer for the first time, Krishna, a trans man, has to face his own insecurities during his journey of overcoming his fear of passing and of coming out.
This presentation has closed captions.
Rojelio Palacios
Rojelio Palacios is a queer, transgender artist, born in Mexico and currently based out of Toronto. Through his work, Palacios explores themes of gender, sexuality, and what it means to be trans.
Canada20214 minNo dialogueAnimation, Family-friendly, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Women Filmmakers
Set across three separate timelines, a couple struggle to openly love each other.
This presentation has no captions.
Sheryl Au
Sheryl Au is a Malaysian, born and raised in Singapore, who loves drawing and is pursuing a career in animation. Her aspirations have taken her to Sheridan College, where she has now graduated with a Bachelor of Animation from the school.
Canada, India, Japan, USA2021English and various languages with English SubtitlesAnimation, Comedy, Drama, Family, Family-friendly, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Music, Women Filmmakers
Fun and free, encounter a programming offering dedicated to celebrating creativity, wonder, and self-expression for audiences of all ages.
Canada20213:00EnglishAnimation, Women Filmmakers
After losing his best friend, an elderly pug named Henry must depend on his owner for help.
Ann Marie Fleming
Ann Marie Fleming is an award-winning Canadian visual artist, writer, director, animator, and cross-platform media maker who works in a variety of genres (animation, experimental, documentary and drama) that often deals with themes of family, history, and memory.
India202012 minMalayalam with English subtitlesAnimation, Family-friendly
Aisha believes it was the endless rain, while Ambadi insists it was the sea. Amid their bickering, three children embark on a quest to trace the origins of their village stream.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Balaram J
Balaram J is a writer, designer, and independent filmmaker from Kerala, India. He has created animation for the visionary filmmaker Lijo Jose Pellissery’s feature films Jallikattu (2019) and Churuli (2021).
Canada20214 minNo dialogueAnimation, Family-friendly, LGBTQ+ Filmmakers, Women Filmmakers
Set across three separate timelines, a couple struggle to openly love each other.
This presentation has no captions.
Sheryl Au
Sheryl Au is a Malaysian, born and raised in Singapore, who loves drawing and is pursuing a career in animation. Her aspirations have taken her to Sheridan College, where she has now graduated with a Bachelor of Animation from the school.
Japan20217 minEnglish, Japanese with English subtitlesCanadian PremiereAnimation, Family-friendly, Music
Inspired by the 12th- to 13th-century Japanese picture scroll Bird and Beast Character Caricature, this animation presents one unfolding scroll featuring Japanese and English wordplay through marine animals.
Koji Yamamura
Koji Yamamura is an award-winning animator and a professor at the Tokyo University of the Arts who began his artistic practice at the age of 13.
Canada20214 minCantonese with English subtitlesWorld PremiereAnimation, Family, Family-friendly
Inspired by director Aiken Chau’s experiences at the dinner table, a fly wreaks havoc on a family's dinner at a restaurant.
Aiken Chau
Aiken Chau is a Chinese Canadian artist and animator who enjoys storytelling and creating characters. A graduate from the Sheridan College animation program, he experiments with animation of all mediums.
USA20217 minEnglish, Cantonese with English subtitlesFamily, Family-friendly, Women Filmmakers
In Los Angeles’s Chinatown, Sammi tries to help her parents keep their seafood restaurant afloat during the COVID-19 pandemic.
This presentation has English subtitles.
Jane Chow
Jane Chow is a Los Angeles-based writer-director from Hong Kong. Her films and web series have screened at festivals worldwide, and she has directed commercials for TikTok, Tinder, as well as the Biden-Harris campaign.
USA202012 minEnglishToronto PremiereDrama, Family, Family-friendly, Women Filmmakers
Aishwarya Narayanan clashes with her coach father and questions the meaning of success while vying for a spot at the prestigious National Spelling Bee.
This presentation has closed captions.
Amrita Singh
Born in Tamil Nadu, India, and raised in Hyde Park, Chicago, Amrita Singh is a writer and director with an MFA in filmmaking from the NYU Tisch School of the Arts, where she later served as adjunct faculty.
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
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Back for a second year, join the Wee Asian Arts Channel for sweet and simple pre-recorded arts activities led by a line-up of talented local artists:
En Lai Mah
Transform stories into movement using a combination of Shaolin Kung Fu and contemporary dance with multidisciplinary performance artist, playwright, and choreographer En Lai Mah.
Rosena Fung
Author of Living with Viola Rosena Fung shows you how to draw and transform your favourite dumplings and other food items into cute, wacky characters.
Basil AlZeri
Visual artist and educator Basil AlZeri will show you how to both archive and achieve all your goals and aspirations.
If it had to be summed up, Code Name: Nagasaki is a documentary shot by Fredrik S. Hana, following his close friend and film protagonist Marius Lunde on his journey to connect with his estranged mother, who cut ties with the family when Lunde was a child, and relocated to Japan. The experience of watching the film, however, far exceeds this tidy storyline.
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.
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
