The screening for Moving On will be shown at TIFF Bell Lightbox 4.
Australia, Canada, Malaysia, Philippines, South Korea202275 minutesEnglish and other languages with English subtitlesAnimation, Docu-fiction, Drama, Experimental, Women Filmmakers
These films do not shy away from difficult and layered stories, distant memories, and buried feelings. Our characters ground, trace, and reconnect pathways toward recognizing the resiliency within oneself through their roots and relations to the places around them.
South Korea202226 minutes Korean and Jeju dialect with English subtitlesDrama, Women Filmmakers
Deep in the dry stream, Yu-bin and Geon are each other’s only friends. To them, this place is the best hideout and playground—but no one seems to understand.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
Kang Ji-hyo
Kang Ji-hyo majored in film studies in college. Her previous short film Interpreting Hyun-ju (2020) won the Grand Prize at Aichi International Women’s Film Festival, and screened in festivals locally and internationally.
Canada, USA202111 minutesEnglish and Uchinaaguchi with English and Japanese textDocumentary, Experimental, Family
Director Shō Yamagushiku presents a poetic and sensorial tribute to ancestors in Okinawa: “Our uyafaafuji (ancestors) appear to intervene in our daily lives, refusing to let us forget, refusing to let us compromise, and refusing to let us live restrained by the laws of the nations that seek to claim us.”
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
RATING
RATED G
Shō Yamagushiku
Shō Yamagushiku’s creative practice is grounded in a diasporic islander consciousness. He is committed to cultivating the space to tell difficult and complicated stories in hopes of dismantling the separation and stagnation that inform the world he was born into.
Malaysia202216 minutes English, Malay, Tamil and Mandarin with English subtitlesDocu-fiction
In the aftermath of the world's greatest financial sham in 2015, this docu-fiction follows a Malaysian child who finds solace and guidance from an unlikely figurehead.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
RATING
RATED PG
Content Warning: Trauma, Criminality
Ananth Subramaniam
Ananth Subramaniam is a Malaysian-based filmmaker and architect. His films often explore his ancestral identity and family within the context of a multi-layered genre.
Canada20223 minutesTamil with English subtitlesExperimental
A feller cuts down a forest until he arrives at the last tree standing. The tree confronts the feller.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
Kalainithan Kalaichelvan
Kalainithan Kalaichelvan is a Toronto-based filmmaker known for directing music videos for some of Toronto’s leading artists, and was nominated for a Juno Award for Music Video of the Year in 2022.
Australia20224 minutesEnglish, Mandarin, Vietnamese and Cantonese with English subtitlesAnimation, Women Filmmakers
Snippets of daily lives and sensory experiences, children and the elderly, workers, gossiping aunties and the overwhelming feeling you get when you’re in Cabramatta that memories are constantly being created all around you.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
Anna Phuong Nguyen, Winston Liu, Lilian Yu Wen Cao
Lilian Yu Wen Cao, Winston Liu and Anna Phuong Nguyen are all recent graduates of University of Technology Sydney. Filled with childhood memories and nostalgia, 2166 is a love letter to Cabramatta and Canley Vale.
Philippines202115 minutes Ilokano with English subtitlesDrama
Lynn leaves her family behind and traverses the harrowing roads of the Cordilleran highlands to try her luck in the city as a country singer.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
RATING
Rated PG
Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan
Don Josephus Raphael Eblahan is an independent filmmaker born of Ifugao and Visayan descent. The Headhunter’s Daughter premiered at Sundance 2022, where it won the Short Film Grand Jury Prize.
10 Nov, 2022 6:30 pm
OnlineThe screening for Moving On will be shown at TIFF Bell Lightbox 4.
This shorts programme will also be shown as an online screening from Nov 14 – 20. Purchase the shorts VOD pass to watch this programme online and all other shorts in selection at the festival.
Rated PG
Join us for a Q&A immediately after the theatrical presentation with attending guests from this shorts programme, moderated by Julienne Discutido.
Julienne Discutido
Julienne (she/her) is a Filipino-Canadian film programmer dedicated to elevating the work of emerging filmmakers. She is currently a programming assistant at the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television, involved with the Canadian Screen Awards and Talent Development programs. This is her third year as part of Reel Asian’s Programming Committee. Her favourite things to watch are horror, documentary, and cult films. She is also a strong enthusiast of any potato dish.
Considering the need to keep creating within Asian Canadian cinema, this panel gathers filmmakers and artists to discuss the implications, complexities, and pressure one might face when delivering their second artistic work. Together, they offer tips, anecdotes, and lessons learned in bringing their stories into the foreground for the second time around.
CBC and Reel Asian are proud to present a special evening celebrating the traditions and spirit of Tết beautifully shown in “Li Xi”, season 1, episode 9 of Run The Burbs.
How do you love a place that doesn’t seem to love you back Director David Siev broaches that question in Bad Axe, a complicated love letter to his hometown.
Australia20224 minutesEnglish, Mandarin, Vietnamese and Cantonese with English subtitlesAnimation, Women Filmmakers
Snippets of daily lives and sensory experiences, children and the elderly, workers, gossiping aunties and the overwhelming feeling you get when you’re in Cabramatta that memories are constantly being created all around you.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
Anna Phuong Nguyen, Winston Liu, Lilian Yu Wen Cao
Lilian Yu Wen Cao, Winston Liu and Anna Phuong Nguyen are all recent graduates of University of Technology Sydney. Filled with childhood memories and nostalgia, 2166 is a love letter to Cabramatta and Canley Vale.
This film is part of the Moving On shorts programme.
South Korea202226 minutes Korean and Jeju dialect with English subtitlesDrama, Women Filmmakers
Deep in the dry stream, Yu-bin and Geon are each other’s only friends. To them, this place is the best hideout and playground—but no one seems to understand.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
Kang Ji-hyo
Kang Ji-hyo majored in film studies in college. Her previous short film Interpreting Hyun-ju (2020) won the Grand Prize at Aichi International Women’s Film Festival, and screened in festivals locally and internationally.
This film is part of the Moving On shorts programme.
Canada, China, Japan, Taiwan, USA2022English and other languages with English subtitlesAnimation, Experimental, Family, Horror, Thriller, Women Filmmakers
Festival favourite Midnight Snack returns for another bite! This time, 2.0 features six talented female directors who cook up tales full of intrigue and awareness, boldly confronting themes that are often left indigestible.
Japan, Taiwan202122 minutesTaiwanese with English subtitlesHorror, Thriller, Women Filmmakers
Xue-Lan, a striving actress, is invited to a mysterious gourmet club only to discover that her competition has prepared a horrifying banquet.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
RATING
RATED PG
Content Warning: Blood, drugs
Mai Nakanishi
Born in Tokyo but spent most of her youth abroad, Mai Nakanishi is a filmmaker who focuses on genre films. In 2013, she launched Scream Queen FilmFest Tokyo to amplify the voices of female genre filmmakers.
USA20226 minutesNo Dialogue Animation, Horror, Women Filmmakers
During a peaceful school lunchtime, children discover they can transform into animals—the only problem is will they ever stop?
ACCESSIBILITY
This film has no dialogue and is not captioned.
RATING
RATED PG
Content Warning: Violence, gore, extreme audio
Cho Yoon Hei
An animator and director from Korea, Cho Yoon Hei is located in Los Angeles and creates horrifying hand-drawn animations.
Canada, Indonesia202217 minutesIndonesian with English subtitlesHorror, Thriller, Women Filmmakers
When polar-opposite sisters Nur and Karina reunite for their grandparents’ wedding anniversary dinner, Karina starts to itch and blames Nur for putting garlic in her food.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
RATING
RATED PG
Content Warning: Eating disorder, body dysmorphia
Andrea Nirmala Widjajanto
Andrea Nirmala Widjajanto is an Indonesian writer and director currently residing in Vancouver, Canada. Her works explore genre films as a medium to depict the current condition surrounding political, social, and cultural issues.
Canada20222 minutesEnglishAnimation, Horror, Thriller, Women Filmmakers
Tired of her date’s racist and sexist comments, a woman decides to liberate his tongue.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open captions in-person and closed captions digitally.
RATING
RATED PG
Content Warning: Nudity, racist situation, sexist situation
Kaho Yoshida
Kaho Yoshida is a director and animator with a special passion for stop motion and mixed media. Her fresh aesthetics and sense of humour bring life to every frame, and her love for storytelling makes her work relatable and approachable.
Canada, USA202210 minutesEnglishFamily, Horror, Women Filmmakers
Following the death of her mysterious amah (grandma), Kat is haunted during her first night of dinner service at a high-pressure Michelin-star kitchen.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open captions in-person and closed captions digitally.
RATING
RATED PG
Content Warning: Sexist language and situations, racist language and situations, blood
Christianne Cruz
Christianne Cruz is a Filipinx writer, director and independent producer born in Toronto and based in LA. She is the mother of two young daughters and producing/life partner to Alex Ott.
China202213 minutesMandarin with English subtitlesExperimental, Women Filmmakers
As the flashy life of the influencer 33 becomes more intense, the canker sore inside her lower lip keeps growing larger…
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
RATING
RATED PG
Lin Tu
Lin Tu is a writer and director based in Beijing whose previous short films have screened internationally on the festival circuit. She is a BIFAN Fantastic Film School (2020) alumni.
The screening for Midnight Snack 2.0 will be shown at TIFF Bell Lightbox 3
This shorts programme will also be shown as an online screening from Nov 14 – 20. Purchase the shorts VOD pass to watch this programme online and all other shorts in selection at the festival.
PG
Join us for a Q&A immediately after the theatrical presentation with attending guests from this shorts programme, moderated by Kelly Lui.
Taking a wide scope, Canadian documentary filmmaker Karen Cho’s Big Fight in Little Chinatown traverses Chinatowns in New York City, Montreal, Vancouver, Toronto, and San Francisco, shining a light on the twin legacies of displacement and resistance that characterize these neighbourhoods.
In this reflective documentary, director Quen Wong turns the lens toward the intimate and vulnerable in her own life as a trans woman in Singapore.
Romeo Candido’s latest musical foray Topline takes us into the world of topliners: the people who write the lyrics, melodies, and hooks for the industry’s biggest stars.
Canada20222 minutesEnglishAnimation, Horror, Thriller, Women Filmmakers
Tired of her date’s racist and sexist comments, a woman decides to liberate his tongue.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open captions in-person and closed captions digitally.
RATING
RATED PG
Content Warning: Nudity, racist situation, sexist situation
Kaho Yoshida
Kaho Yoshida is a director and animator with a special passion for stop motion and mixed media. Her fresh aesthetics and sense of humour bring life to every frame, and her love for storytelling makes her work relatable and approachable.
This film is a part of the Midnight Snack 2.0 shorts programme.
Kiran, a first-generation Punjabi truck driver, is about to become a father, but he is preoccupied by questions and reflections on family, fatherhood, and responsibility.
Inspired by age-old Filipino folklore, this frightening thriller is a chilling story about the resurfacing of dark family secrets.
Missed chances, unspoken conversations, fated meetings, connections sparked in the most unexpected places: these shorts delve into the weight of all our relations in their fullness and in their absence.
USA20226 minutesNo Dialogue Animation, Horror, Women Filmmakers
During a peaceful school lunchtime, children discover they can transform into animals—the only problem is will they ever stop?
ACCESSIBILITY
This film has no dialogue and is not captioned.
RATING
RATED PG
Content Warning: Violence, gore, extreme audio
Cho Yoon Hei
An animator and director from Korea, Cho Yoon Hei is located in Los Angeles and creates horrifying hand-drawn animations.
This film is a part of the Midnight Snack 2.0 shorts programme.
This year, Reel Asian spotlights S-Express Indonesia programmed by Fransiska Prihadi of Minikino, featuring five short films with the hopes of recharging your festival experience.
Tune into this beloved section online to access free programming for all ages that will spark joy, inspire creativity, and encourage wonder.
Asian Canadian comics will discuss the ways they’ve broken down barriers to tell their jokes to a wide audience on stage, in sketches, and on film and TV. Together, they’ll discuss their individual approaches to the craft, how they navigate stereotypes, personal experiences in their work, and how comedy has allowed them to challenge, explore, and find comfort in their identities.
Japan, Taiwan202122 minutesTaiwanese with English subtitlesHorror, Thriller, Women Filmmakers
Xue-Lan, a striving actress, is invited to a mysterious gourmet club only to discover that her competition has prepared a horrifying banquet.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
RATING
RATED PG
Content Warning: Blood, drugs
Mai Nakanishi
Born in Tokyo but spent most of her youth abroad, Mai Nakanishi is a filmmaker who focuses on genre films. In 2013, she launched Scream Queen FilmFest Tokyo to amplify the voices of female genre filmmakers.
This film is a part of the Midnight Snack 2.0 shorts programme.
Brothers Saud and Nadeem live in a working-class, predominantly Muslim neighbourhood in New Delhi, where they have made it their lives’ work to care for injured black kites falling from the polluted skies of the city.
A recent report released by the DOC Institute points to the lack of data on funding for documentary content produced by Indigenous, Black or racialized filmmakers. This panel will discuss why it's important for agencies and broadcasters to collect and share race based data in order to achieve their stated equity goals. The panel will also analyze the stories and experiences shared by BIPOC filmmakers which speak of systemic barriers to funding.
How do our bodies and environments absorb and hold onto repetitive patterns, habits, and routines? This presentation of shorts exercises the capacity to confront harmful structures, encourage reflexivity, and affirm the embodied knowledge we carry. This shorts programme is available online.
Canada, Indonesia202217 minutesIndonesian with English subtitlesHorror, Thriller, Women Filmmakers
When polar-opposite sisters Nur and Karina reunite for their grandparents’ wedding anniversary dinner, Karina starts to itch and blames Nur for putting garlic in her food.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
RATING
RATED PG
Content Warning: Eating disorder, body dysmorphia
Andrea Nirmala Widjajanto
Andrea Nirmala Widjajanto is an Indonesian writer and director currently residing in Vancouver, Canada. Her works explore genre films as a medium to depict the current condition surrounding political, social, and cultural issues.
This film is a part of the Midnight Snack 2.0 shorts programme
From dusk ‘til dawn, the night takes centre stage as a mood, setting, tone, and place for our characters’ lives and their environments to be illuminated on screen.
In this reflective documentary, director Quen Wong turns the lens toward the intimate and vulnerable in her own life as a trans woman in Singapore.
CBC and Reel Asian are proud to present a special evening celebrating the traditions and spirit of Tết beautifully shown in “Li Xi”, season 1, episode 9 of Run The Burbs.
Canada, USA202210 minutesEnglishFamily, Horror, Women Filmmakers
Following the death of her mysterious amah (grandma), Kat is haunted during her first night of dinner service at a high-pressure Michelin-star kitchen.
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open captions in-person and closed captions digitally.
RATING
RATED PG
Content Warning: Sexist language and situations, racist language and situations, blood
Christianne Cruz
Christianne Cruz is a Filipinx writer, director and independent producer born in Toronto and based in LA. She is the mother of two young daughters and producing/life partner to Alex Ott.
This film is a part of the Midnight Snack 2.0 shorts programme.
This year’s Reel Ideas Conference gathers industry professionals, filmmakers, and performers to reflect on the specificity in their works, representing their own nuances along with their communities' lived experiences.
Amidst a mountain of food, jokes, prayers, joints, songs and Filipino Elvis impersonations, Lolo's Child questions, criticizes and celebrates the intricate underbelly of the Filipino-Canadian community. Reel Asian's Opening Night Film in 2002.
The Class of 2019 at Cawthra Park Secondary School is gearing up for their senior year. Friends Ethan and Justin set out to shoot a film under the pretense of being a yearbook project, recording pivotal moments and character portraits during this tumultuous stage of adolescence.
China202213 minutesMandarin with English subtitlesExperimental, Women Filmmakers
As the flashy life of the influencer 33 becomes more intense, the canker sore inside her lower lip keeps growing larger…
ACCESSIBILITY
This film is presented with open English subtitles in-person and digitally.
RATING
RATED PG
Lin Tu
Lin Tu is a writer and director based in Beijing whose previous short films have screened internationally on the festival circuit. She is a BIFAN Fantastic Film School (2020) alumni.
This film is a part of the Midnight Snack 2.0 shorts programme.
Missed chances, unspoken conversations, fated meetings, connections sparked in the most unexpected places: these shorts delve into the weight of all our relations in their fullness and in their absence.
In this oddly sweet and gentle story, Hong, a shy young man, opens his eyes to love when he coincidentally meets Lele, the mistress of a sex worker business.
Inspired by age-old Filipino folklore, this frightening thriller is a chilling story about the resurfacing of dark family secrets.
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
