The 2023 edition of the New York Asian Film Festival kicks off today, and if you’re lucky, you’re going to be in for quite a few selections that are only exclusive to in-person attendees, as well as award ceremonies for stars Louis Koo and Ryohei Suzuki, and filmmaker Lee Thongkam to name a few. There will be other events permeating the festival as always, and you can learn more about them at the official website.
As for coverage, movie reviews will go up as the next few weeks ensue, while friend and contributing writer Cesar Alejandro Jr. is turning in a raft of live-action narrative shortfilm write-ups to help steer things along. Feel free to follow him at Threads where he’s just getting started!
All Your Fault, PD
Director: Kim Sun-yeun
While shooting on a small film, a producer who faces verbal abuse and unpleasant working conditions is forced to risk her life when a real life zombie attack overruns the set.
Humorous with a nice touch of absurdity, this short delivers some kills, some dry humor, and a protagonist that you can’t help but root for.
Neo Portraits
Director: Gazebo
In the not too distant future, a teen rebels against the technology that allows the collective memories of a community of a deceased person to be uploaded to a digital frame so that they can ‘live on’ in a virtual self.
Some surprisingly apt effects work critiques the advance of AI and society’s reliance on technology while tackling some themes about death, grief, and acceptance.
Roadside Banquet, A
Director: Peiqi Peng
At the 1 year birthday of her little brother, a girl faces some adolescent angst and fear of abandonment when she learns that her parents were hoping for a boy when she was born.
A bit of fantasy and a nice evocative physical performance by the young Sarah Zhai highlight this short.
Fix Anything
Director: Lê Lâm Viên
After inventing a mind wiping device, an inventor father takes his son on a night of misadventure.
Beautifully shot and with a memorable score, this Vietnamese short takes place in a kooky hyper reality and plays with memory and trust.
Pufferfish
Director: Mohamad Kamal Alavi
A girl steadfastly adhering to the teachings in her religious school finds herself at odds with the domineering nature of the instruction when she attends her cousin’s birthday party.
A short that highlights the modern struggle between faith and family, this film tackles the expectedly ‘black and white’ lens through which children view the world and the turning point at which we decide where there are no absolutes.
Sweet Refuge
Director: Maryam Mir
A baker far from home attempts to sell his walnut baklava door to door when he meets a social media savvy Indian sweets maker.
Absolutely charming and sweet, this short features some poignant moments about the American experience through the eyes of immigrants and refugees while emphasizing the strength of these individuals to live as happily as possible with pride and reverence to their past.
Infant
Director: Karash Zhanyshov
A young man looks for the mother who abandoned him as a child when his girlfriend leaves him.
Dry and understated, this short features a quiet performance by lead Asan Kubanychbek Uulu that highlights the slowness of life and the search for identity. Not especially poignant, it does feature a clean shooting style, albeit somewhat sterile.
Kumbang
Director: Gwai Lou
A pair of boys aim for streaming stardom by exploding bugs in jars with firecrackers but when one of them accidentally hurts himself they discover that people are willing to pay to see more blood.
As much a commentary on the adolescent desire for online celebrity as the critique for rural living, the bits of presumably actual animal cruelty didn’t sit well to me even if it really serves its purpose in telling the story of these two misguided children.
Will You Look at Me?
Director: Shuli Huang
A young queer filmmaker shoots a film about the people around him, including his mother who tries to ignore the fact that her son is gay.
Intimate and uncomfortably voyeuristic, WYLAM? addresses themes central to Chinese culture in a modern context. Things like filial piety, the burgeoning rise of LGBTQ freedom, and the clash between the two are presented with equal parts tenderness and pain.
Resellers
Director: Lee Seung-ju
A man who makes money reselling cigarettes to teenagers finds a personal crisis when his latest customer turns out to be an elementary school kid.
Humorous but ultimately one note, this short lingers on the premise for much too long and lacks a satisfying ending of any sort. It succeeds with a chuckle here or there but it’s telegraphed through and through.
