Canada20259 minEnglish, Korean, Italian with English subtitlesAction + Adventure, Available Online, Comedy, Science Fiction
A mixed-race student meets the full Asian and full white versions of himself from parallel universes. Together, they must find a way to get back to their own realities.
IN PERSON & ONLINE ACCESSIBILITY
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).
Devin Lee
Devin Lee is a Korean Italian actor and filmmaker. A graduate of NYU Tisch School of Arts, he received the Panavision New Filmmaker Grant and was part of Reel Asian’s Unsung Voices program.
9 Nov, 2025 1:00 pm
TIFF Lightbox C2PG
Canada20205 minNo Dialogue2slgbtq+, Aboriginal + Indigenous, Available Online, Directed By Women, Experimental, Music, Romance, Science Fiction
This experimental examination of threshold states moves through deep space time in underwater realms. Mirrored bodies spiral, suspend, and dance through Te Reo Māori and nêhiyawêwin lamentations.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: No dialogue (no audio + visual descriptions)
Moe Clark, Victoria Hunt, James Brown
Weather Beings is a Two-Spirit/takatâpui collaborative performance between Victoria Hunt (Maori dancer, choreographer) and Moe Clark (Métis sound designer, vocalist) that explores the connections between Mâori whakapapa and Métis wâhkôhtowin (the kinship system).
This film is part of the Shorts Presentation: COLLIDERS shorts programme.
16 Nov, 2024 5:00 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4USA202311 MinEnglishAction, Available Online, Directed By Women, Family-friendly, Science Fiction
Tessie, a 13-year-old science prodigy, journeys into her grandma's deteriorating mind to save one precious memory they have together.
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)
Grace Hanna
Grace Hanna is a Filipino American filmmaker. Their film, Halcyon Days, is sponsored by Film Independent and received Panavision’s NFP Grant. Their short, Lola, won the Directorial Debut Award at Indy Shorts.
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
Canada20235 MinNo Dialogue2slgbtq+, Animation, Available Online, Experimental, Family-friendly, Horror, Science Fiction
Gaze into a wondrous abyss. But what happens when you look at something too hard for too long?
IN PERSON: This film is scheduled to be presented fully captioned (all dialogue subtitled + sound cues indicated)
ONLINE: No Dialogue
Constant Yen
Constant Yen is a Toronto-based artist and animator. Their practice involves creating spontaneous and playful experimental work combining analog and digital mediums.
This film is part of the WEE ASIAN shorts programme.
23 Nov, 2024 10:00 am
Innis Town HallGA
CONTENT ADVISORY
Mild flash imagery
Indonesia202484 minEnglishHorror, Science Fiction
Five oblivious youths, a video camera, a remote rundown villa, and a creepy caretaker. Doesn’t it sound like the perfect recipe for a horror film? A mysterious death that soon follows takes the story on a route beyond the fourth wall. The group find out that they’re characters of The Draft! of a screenplay, and that their smarts will dictate their survival.
Indonesia is a strong player in the horror genre, and The Draft! is no exception, but a mild warning is due. Some may reference The Cabin in the Woods (2011), One Cut of the Dead (2017), or even Stranger than Fiction (2006), but The Draft! is a monster of its own. The element of familiarity is used to its advantage in satirically witty demeanour. Although some work is required from the audience to fully enjoy its jokes, the payoff is more than rewarding.
– June Kim
Winner Wijaya
Adhin Abdul Hakim
Ibrahim Alhami
Anggi Waluyo
OFFICIAL SELECTION
Fantastic Fest 2024
Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival 2024
AWARDS
Best Film, Best Storytelling, and Best Editing, Jogja-NETPAC Asian Film Festival, 2024
Yusron Fuadi
Yusron Fuadi lectures in the Diploma IV Program at Gadjah Mada University. He directed Tengkorak (2018), Setan Alas (2024), and Darah Nyai (2024). He is currently working on Judgement and planning the following two films of the Tengkorak trilogy. He is also directing the 3D FPS game, Ganyang Setan Alas.
16 Nov, 2024 7:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C4AA
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This film is scheduled to be presented with 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 Yusron Fuadi and actor Winner Wijaya.
Layla is a struggling Palestinian drag queen who often finds creative ways to make ends meet, surrounded by a small, supportive group of close friends within the North London queer scene. A stuffy corporate event performance goes terribly wrong, making Layla and their outrageous antics go viral, and they meet the seemingly-dull-in-comparison marketing executive Max. Despite their very different worlds, a transformative love affair ensues, much to the annoyance of their close friends, who are highly skeptical of how healthy or affirming this relationship could possibly be.
Dilber is 27 years old, preparing for her younger sister Rena’s wedding while contemplating her own future. Despite the recent nuptials in the family, their mother continues to put pressure on Dilber to find a husband soon, responding to the heightened anxiety during a time when Uyghur people are being arrested without process or reason. Dilber's friend in Paris convinces her to marry a young Uyghur man in France, a proposition that feels very attractive. But will it work out?
Sit in on this exclusive screening and deep dive of LATE BLOOMER, the groundbreaking series from the creative mind of Jasmeet Raina (Jus Reign). Centred on Jasmeet Dutta's life, the show unpacks family expectations, intergenerational relationships, and racial identity in ways rarely seen on Canadian TV. We’ll screen Episode 1: "Nudes" and Episode 4: "The Turban," offering a glimpse into Jasmeet’s complex journey as he navigates personal desires that go against familial pressures. Stick around to hear from the creative team about how Late Bloomer has landed in the community, and how it will continue to shape these conversations in real life.
Canada20249 minEnglishWorld PremiereAvailable Online, Comedy, Directed By Women, Drama, Experimental, Science Fiction
A burnt-out writer uses AI to deliver a script, only to discover the true essence of human creativity.
IN PERSON & ONLINE: This film is scheduled to be presented with subtitles for all spoken dialogue (no sound cues indicated)
*Assel Akhmetova
Assel Akhmetova (she/her) is a Toronto-based Kazakh editor and director, with a passion for writing and a curiosity for exploring new ways of cinema.
This film is part of the Shorts Presentation: UNSUNG VOICES 13 shorts programme.
16 Nov, 2024 2:30 pm
TIFF Lightbox C3Canada, Indonesia202321 minIndonesian, Mandarin, Dutch with English subtitlesDirected By Women, Drama, Science Fiction
In a post-New Order Jakarta, native Indonesians (Pribumi) are legalized to perform the black magic ritual babi ngepet to balance their economy against Chinese Indonesians.
*Andrea Nirmala Widjajanto
Andrea Nirmala Widjajanto is an Indonesian writer and director currently residing in Toronto. Her works explore genre films as a medium to depict current political, social, and cultural issues.
This film is part of the Shorts Presentation: HERE WE ARE shorts programme.
At the heart of Baby Queen is a tender and joyful relationship between Singaporean drag queen Opera Tang and her 90-year-old grandmother, who makes many of her performance costumes.
Jude Chehab, a Lebanese American cinematographer and filmmaker, has always known her mother and grandmother to be women devoted to their Muslim faith. During a trip to Lebanon, Chehab is propelled by a curiosity to understand the quest for love, acceptance, and meaning that brought three generations of women in her family to pledge loyalty to a secretive matriarchal religious order operating clandestinely in the country.
Mariam, a medical student, is dealing with her grandfather’s passing, her grieving mother, and preparing for upcoming exams. When an estranged and suspiciously helpful uncle re-enters their lives and promises support with their property and finances, Mariam senses trouble.
Philippines202322 minEnglish, Cebuano, and Tagalog with English subtitlesDark Comedy, Fiction, Monster, Science Fiction
Between nuclear reactors and military curfews, 14-year-old Jani lives in a dystopian world oppressively devoid of empathy. Together, she and her slippery new friend Kiefer the talking catfish gear up to strike a surreal blow for freedom.
Stephen Lopez
Stephen Lopez graduated from the University of Santo Tomas in 2012 with a degree in nursing. But due to the glut of underpaid health-care professionals in his country, he decided to be broke on his own terms and become a filmmaker instead.
CONTENT WARNING: Depictions of bullying, blood and violence
This film is part of the Shorts Presentation: HERE WE ARE shorts programme.
When Azra, a queer Muslim grad student, hears of her father’s sudden death, she flies back to her ancestral home in Karachi, Pakistan for the funeral, where she is received by her conservative mother, Mariam, perpetually disappointed by Azra’s choices. As a self-assured Azra wrestles with Karachi’s customs and norms, we time travel back to Mariam’s own life in the city 30 years ago, a remarkably different era in Pakistan’s political and cultural history.
Explore this app for mobile devices that shares the journey of a child refugee, activated by the steps you take.
Following our Building Forces: The Director Producer Relationship panel, stay for a reception with Canadian Media Producers Association, a chance to network, ask questions, and enjoy snacks and refreshments. Especially good for Producers!
UK20223 minEnglishAnimation, Experimental, Science Fiction
A mad clock takes the viewer on a time trip to a random planet where the concept of time is experienced differently from the one we know...
*Shunny Kim & Taewan Kim
Shunny Kim and Taewan Kim are animators based in London. Co-directing their BA graduation film, their interests aligned through experimental animation, character design and collaboration.
CONTENT WARNING: Flashing lights
This film is part of the Shorts Presentation: THE STRANGE, THE ODD, AND THE FAMILIAR shorts programme.
Mariam, a medical student, is dealing with her grandfather’s passing, her grieving mother, and preparing for upcoming exams. When an estranged and suspiciously helpful uncle re-enters their lives and promises support with their property and finances, Mariam senses trouble.
Discover the comedically honest and heartwarming story of the CBC Gem original short-form series How to Fail as a Popstar in our screening of the first three episodes followed by a panel discussion, "The Clumsy Art of Finding Yourself."
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
