Presenting award-winning NETPAC and Asian Indie Films in Cinemalaya’s Visions of Asia
Come August 3 to 12 of this year, the following seven award-winning Asian indie films from India, Japan, Russia, China, Thailand, and the Philippines, are to be screened in Cinemalaya’s Visions of Asia.
Directed and written by P. Sheshadri, “Beti” is the story of Suleiman and his wife Juleka. While Suleiman had gone off to work overseas immediately after marriage, his wife Juleka gave birth to their daughter, Salma. But for fear of disappointment, Suleiman was made to believe that they had a son named Salman. For years, Suleiman was unable to visit Juleka and the child, so when the news came of Suleiman’s impending return, the whole household is thrown into panic. The film won the NETPAC Award-Best Kannada Film at the 10th Bangaluru International Film Festival in 2018.
In “Goodbye, Grandpa!” by Yukihiro Morogaki, Yoshiko receives a phone call about her grandfather’s death. On the day of the funeral, the family attended – a slovenly uncle, an angry aunt, a shut-in cousin and grandma with dementia. Yoshiko marvels that nobody cries, and she witnesses her family’s adverse behavior like never before. The movie won the NETPAC Award at the Black Nights Film Festival held in Estonia in 2017.
Kseniya Zueva’s “Nearest & Dearest” follows the story of a family who lives in a small apartment in Moscow. Each family member carries a baggage of problems that torments and requires relief. Each of them dreams of support and human warmth, but finds neither one nor the other. Life seems completely unbearable, and the defenseless old woman, living in a separate room, becomes a scapegoat. It won NETPAC Award -“Pacific Meridian” at the Vladivostok International Film Festival in 2017.
Director Penfei narrates in “The Taste of Rice Flowers,” the story of Ye Nan, a mother from the Dai minority who returns to her village in Yunnan after years of working in town. She wants to take care of her rebellious-teen aged daughter, who she had left behind. However, the road to rebuild their relationship and reconnect is met with challenges and struggles as they contend with social norms and cultural traditions.
“Of Love & Law” by Hikaru Toda centers on Fumi and Kazu who are partners in love and law. They run the first law firm in Japan set up by an openly gay couple. As lawyers driven by their own experience of being an outsider, they attract a range of clients who reveal the hidden diversity of a country that prides itself for collective obedience, politeness and conformity.
Asia’s box-office hit, “Bad Genius” by Nattawut Poonpiriya, which is inspired by true events, is a story about Lynn, a genius high school student who makes money by cheating tests. She gets a new lucrative task that leads her to Sydney, Australia where she must take the international test and deliver the answers back home before the exam commences there. But she needs another genius, Bank, to pull off this difficult task. How far will she go to convince him? How bad will this genius become?
A tragedy-comedy film, “The Chanters” is about Sarah Mae, a 12 year old school girl who is the grand-daughter of the last chanter of the Panay Bukidnon tribe. As her Lolo starts losing his precious memories, Sarah Mae is tasked to help him complete the last of the remaining 12 epics, their tribe’s vanishing tradition. The film won the Pylon Award, Best Screenplay and Best Actress at the QCinema International Film Festival, 2017.
Best to receive your tickets for the above-mentioned movies as soon as possible. Early birds get the best seats and best views.
