For the second year, we are very proud to be co-presenting a program of short films at the Reel Asian Film Festival. It’s on Thursday November 7th at 6:00pm at AGO Jackman Hall, and it’s called Counter Move. Here are some details about the films in the lineup:
THE BANQUET OF THE CONCUBINE
Director: Hefang Wei | Canada 2012 | 12:19
In the year 746 AD, a banquet is given in honour of the Emperor’s favourite concubine. But can the taste of the sweet delicacies pacify her bitter jealousy?
TREASURE HILL CAMOUFLAGE
Director: soJin Chun | Taiwan 2012 | 2:00
Camouflage is a method of survival. The artist attempts to blend into the environment of a former illegal settlement and residence for ex-soldiers.
MY FATHER, FRANCIS
Director: Casey Mecija | Canada 2013 | 11:38
In the process of creating furniture together, a daughter reveals her love for her father’s lifelong practice of making recycled materials into beautiful objects.
GOOD NIGHT SWEET CHARLATAN
Director: La Chunk by Lil’ Lohan | Canada 2013 | 4:05
Back-dropped by the controversy around Blurred Lines and the MTV Music Video Awards, Toronto-based moody synthesizer duo Depression Era treacherously take their stance on the use of TIYF.
PORTRAIT AS A RANDOM ACT OF VIOLENCE
Director: Randall Okita | Canada 2012 | 4:20
An act of vandalism is transformed into a monument for reconciliation. A beautifully crafted kinetic sculpture becomes a countermovement and response to violence in history, such as the Asiatic Exclusion League attacks on Asian businesses in Vancouver, 1907.
LONESOME TOWN
Director: Grace Wang | Canada 2013 | 2:35
Of the most popular seaside towns in America, Coney Island experienced decades of neglect and a super storm that nearly destroyed it. What is left is nostalgia for a past long gone.
DAFEENA
Director: Marlene Millar and Philip Szporer | Canada 2012 | 5:25
Bharata natyam is a modern take on one of the oldest classical forms in India. This dance was choreographed by Natasha Bakht, and adapted for this site-specific film shot in a crystal mine and abandoned copper quarry.
SHIRO YAGI
Director: Cindy Mochizuki | Canada 2012 | 12:02
An animated film inspired by the last sheet of existing music of the artist’s maternal grandfather, Sueo Mori, written in 1927. Mori was a poet, composer and high school teacher based in Yokohama, Japan.
A GRAND CANAL
Director: Johnny Ma | Canada/China 2013 | 19:00
Remembered by his 10-year-old son, a captain tries collect a debt to save his fleet of boats. Like a Greek tragedy told with Chinese pop song, the film is a unique twist on personal histories.
ITEM NUMBER
Director: Oliver Husain | Canada 2012 | 16:00
Influenced by Indian musical dramas of the 1940s and ’50s, Item Number features an elegant woman delivering a melodramatic monologue before the curtain rises. Awarded for Best Contribution to German cinema at Oberhausen 2013.
CONCEIVED
Director: Eui Yong Zong | Canada 2013 | 5:04
Eui Yong confronts his family about the events around his conception, and his mother’s planned abortion.
Tickets are just $12 ($10 for seniors and students) and are available online or at the door. Use the promo code toronto17 to save 25% on tickets bought online!