Official Selections: 2nd-8th LA Asian Film Festivals
Congratulations to our accepted filmmakers!
Films are listed in alphabetical order, index to the left.
Scroll Down to learn more about each film
8Teen
USA Premiere
In the summer of 2020, Jay, a recent high school graduate who lives in a small but simple town, can’t wait to leave for college. During this time, Jay helps his grandfather with beer delivery in the village while spending his spare time with his two childhood friends Squid and Lisa. However, the monotonous life and Jay’s troubling grandfather drive him eager to leave this place as soon as he can. One day, Milan, a mysterious city girl, comes to this town. Her peculiar behavior draws Jay’s attention and her appearance sparks more of Jay’s imagination about the city but Jay soon realizes their transient encounter only reminds him of how different their worlds are.
Director: Shao Lin
Producers: Winnie Chen, Kyle Tso-Chih Yeh
Writer: Shao Lin
Cast: Tzu-Chi Pei, Guan-Zhi Huang, Lo Yu, Chia-Jung Tsai , Yung-Hui Chen
Cinematographer: Victoria Chen
Editor: Owen Chiu
We have our Taiwanese premiere at the Taipei Film Festival, and we are also the official selection of Women Make Waves and the Winner of the Best Student Film at Tokyo International Short Film Festival.
Instagram: @8teenfilm
Aida (In Between)
Los Angeles Premiere
A young mother is stuck between development and decay. Desperate to connect, she strikes a chord that links to the deepest parts of our memory.
Director: Chris Graham
Producers: Chris Graham, Joe Arney, and Kiko Wilson
Writer: Chris Graham
Cast: Kiko Wilson, Mayumi Fukuhara, HyunJin Jeong, Megumi Wilson, Kota Matsuzawa
Cinematographer: Chris Graham
Editor: Chris Graham
Audience Award Winner - Tokyo Lift-Off Film Festival
Best Actress Winner - Best Shorts Competition
Facebook: fb.com/ChrisGraham20
Instagram: @last_light_pictures
Website: lastlightpictures.com
Blaming and Shaming
In a modern portrayal of events following Sita's rescue from her abductor Ravana, as detailed in the Hindu epic poem The Ramayana, Sita finds herself in therapy and wrestles with the psychological effects of her abduction and slut shaming, leaving her with even more questions than answers.
Director: Joya Joseph
Producer: Joya Joseph, Rob Underhill
Writer: Joya Joseph
Cast: Joya Joseph, Amy Paquette, Varun Aggarwal, Kumar Gaurav, Tripti Bansal, Janice Lauren Baker, Vanessa Neff, Patcha Kidking, Genevieve Willette, Rob Simmons
Cinematographer: Rob Underhill
Editor: Rob Underhill
Any awards, accolades or additional details about the process you would like to mention:
Cineville Calcutta Global Cinefest: Best Short Film, Best Editing, Best Director, Best Producer, Best Actress
Black Swan International Film Festival: Outstanding Achievement Actress, Critic's Choice, Best Poster
San Francisco Arthouse Short Festival-July 2022: Best First Time Filmmaker
Best Istanbul Film Festival: Best Original Music
NJ Film Awards- July 2022: Best Actress in a Short, Best Female Filmmaker, Best Poster
Website: filmfreeway.com/blamingandshaming
Instagram: @blamingandshamingshortfilm
A Fleeting Moment
An animated short film that follows the journey of two raindrops, and how they come to terms with what it means to be alive.
Director: Allyanna Demafeliz
Producer: Victoria Yando
Writer: Allyanna Demafeliz, Victoria Yando, Brook Jiang
Editor: Allyanna Demafeliz, Victoria Yando
Audience Choice Award Winner and Runner Up in Animation for Flint Youth Film Festival
Semi-Finalist for Student Los Angeles Film Awards
Official Selection: DC Asian Pacific American Film Festival, streetside cinema/, Silicon Valley Asian Pacific Filmfest, San Jose International Film Festival, Chaniartoon, Student World Impact Film Festival, Golden Short Film Festival, San Diego Filipino Film Festival
Shortlist: Global University Film Awards
Websites: linktr.ee/fleetingmomentfilm
Instagram: @fleetingmomentfilm/
Arun Considers
Arun Considers follows Indian-American screenwriter and incorrigible daydreamer Arun Narayanan as he wanders the streets of Los Angeles, pondering life’s great mysteries in his darkly comedic inner monologue.
Creator: Arun Narayanan
Director: Jordan Ledy
Producer: Arun Narayanan, Jordan Ledy
Writer: Arun Narayanan, Jordan Ledy
Cast: Arun Narayanan, Francesca Eaddy, John Allen, Emily Goss, Jordan Bielsky, Knox Collier, Derek D. Dow, Wendy Kurtzman, Uttera Singh
Cinematographer: Leonora Anzaldua
Editor: Jordan Ledy, Arun Narayanan
Nominee, Best Indie Series - YouTube Streamy Awards
Winner, Audience Choice Best Web Series - South Asian Film Festival of America
Winner, Best Web Series - LA Indie Film Fest
Official Selection - Seattle International Film Festival, Brooklyn WebFest, Miami WebFest, Catalyst Content Festival, HollyWeb Festival, T.O. (Toronto) WebFest, and more
Website: arunconsiders.com
IG/Twitter: @arunconsiders
Facebook: fb.com/arunconsiders
Blood Moon
On the afternoon before a rare lunar eclipse, 13-year-old Maya prepares to go to her first high school party—until she discovers she's started her period.
Director: Shruti Parekh
Producer: Melissa Scicluna, Shruti Parekh
Writer: Shruti Parekh
Cast: Megh Basu, Deepti Gupta, Amber Romero, Shawn Denegre-Vaught
Cinematographer: Yichi Zhang
Editor: Shruti Parekh
Blood Moon is a coming of age film and a meditation on menstruation—a regular part of life rarely seen on screen. As a filmmaker, I realized there are very few realistic representations about this seminal moment in a girl's life—especially an Indian-American girl. With this film, I wanted to portray what it’s like to have a period in a society that treats the natural process of menstruation as something to be hidden, and through that, I wanted to celebrate the female relationships that build strength and solidarity through it all.
UCLA MFA Student Film
Winner/Audience Award at the South Asian Film Festival of America
Website: www.shrutiparekh.com
Instagram: @shrutiparekh
Twitter: @shruti__parekh
After Sunset, Dawn Arrives
Short
In the early 2000s, Los Angeles, introverted and unsociable 65 year-old Wan falls in love with a man who is nearly 30 years his junior and struggles to embrace his homosexuality, which he had suppressed his entire life, while also confronting his guilt towards his deceased wife.
Director: Andy Yi Li
Producer: Andy Yi Li, Bei Lameng, Yifan Wang, Yaxing Lin
Writer: Andy Yi Li
Cast: Jesse Wang, Todd Lien, Katie Chan, Austin Klopfenstein
Cinematographer (if applicable): Cory Ewing
Editor: Haoyue Yang
★ DGA Student Film Awards, 2022 Winner: Jury Prize in Best Asian American Filmmakers
★ 50th Athens International Film + Video Festival (Oscar Qualified)
Winner: 1st Prize Narrative Short
★ FIRST LOOK, 2023
Winner: Best Drama
★ Thomas Edison Film Festival, 2023
Winner for Director’s Choice Award
★ The Poppy Jasper International Film Festival
2023 Chinese Filmmaker Showcase
Winner: Best Director-Short Film
★ 2023 Wisconsin Film Festival
Honorable Mention: Golden Badger Awards
★ Wicked Queer: Boston’s LGBTQ+ Film Festival
Winner: Best of the Show
IG: @aftersunset_@dawnarrives
A Head and A Tail
Los Angeles Premiere
Shuttered due to the pandemic, 886, a NYC Taiwanese restaurant has turned to delivering bento boxes in order to provide food and resources to those most affected.
Director: Law Chen
Producer: Law Chen
Writer: Law Chen
Cast: Eric Tze, Andy Chuang, Rich Ho, Huey Cheng, Erica, Liang, Jeff Lam, Francis Yu, Yoshi Shirkakawa, GN Chan, Faye Chen
Cinematographer: Law Chen
Editors: Chris Hilk and Law Chen
Bathtub
Written by Jacky Park, Bathtub is a coming of age story that finds two childhood friends at a pivotal crossroad – while in a bathtub. A familiar scenario told from a new perspective, Bathtub highlights the experiences of a Korean-American girl dealing with her first heartache and growing up, but with her South Korean family attached.
Director: Branden Morris
Producers: Jacky Park, Branden Morris, Heather Kate Duncan
Writer: Jacky Park
Cast: Jacky Park, Austin Wages
Cinematographer: Jeff Nolde
Editor: Branden Morris
Website: ao-ent.com/bathtubthefilm
Instagram: @alpha.omega.ent
Blue Lanterns
Kit and Fai, two innocent local Hong Kong kids, are approached by Chou, a mid-level gangster, in an arcade. After gaining their trust, Chou asks for their help on a job and Kit and Fai soon find themselves as middlemen in an elaborate exchange of drugs for money. As the two boys become entangled in the world of the Hong Kong triads, their innocence disappears along with their friendship.
Director: Brandon Chi-Wei Chen
Producer: Brandon Chi-Wei Chen
Writer: Brandon Chi-Wei Chen
Cast: Julian Chan, Lucas Hui, William Tsui
Cinematographer: Federica Marchese
Editor: Yi Zhang
2021 Festigious Film Festival – Blue Lanterns – Best Director, Best Drama Film
2021 Top Shorts Film Festival – Blue Lanterns – Best Crime Film, Best Young Actor, Honorable Mention - Best Director and Best Cinematography (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
2021 Open World Toronto Film Festival – Blue Lanterns – Best Long Short, Best Director Nomination (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
2021 Los Angeles Film Awards - Blue Lanterns – Best First-Time Director, Best Cinematography, Best Young Actor (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
2021 Broadway International Film Festival - Blue Lanterns - Official Selection (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
2021 Los Angeles Cinema of Hollywood – Blue Lanterns – Best Narrative Short, Best Original Score (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
2021 Festival of Cinema NYC - Blue Lanterns -– Official Selection - Best Cinematography, Best Director Nomination (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
2021 Marina Del Rey Film Festival - Blue Lanterns - Best Narrative Short (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
2021 Disorient Asian American Film Festival of Oregon - Blue Lanterns - Official Selection (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
2021 Iowa Motion Picture Association Award - Blue Lanterns - Official Selection (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
2021 Eurovision Palermo - Blue Lanterns - Official Selection (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
2021 Houston Asian American & Pacific Islander Film Festival - Blue Lanterns - Official Selection (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
2021 Social World Film Festival - Blue Lanterns - Quarter-FinalistQuarterfinalist (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
2020 Toronto Shorts International Film Festival - Blue Lanterns - Finalist (Director, Screenwriter, Producer)
Website: www.brandonchiweichen.com
Instagram: @bluelanternsshort