Amorousness has many interpretations, and everyone experiences it differently. But no one will deny that it is through intimacy and love, among other things, we cognize ourselves.

This selection of Asian cinema is inspired by Wong Kar-Wai's iconic film, IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE. After all, for us, these feelings are ephemeral, fleeting and unspeakable, and therefore even more valuable.

Curated by Sasha Prokopenko

THE MANILA LOVER

Johanna Pyykkö

Norway, Philippines | 2019, 27 min

During a trip to the Philippines, middle-aged, Norwegian Lars has met Abigail – the Filipina he wants to share his life with, but does she share his plans.

EXTRAVAGANTLY ORDINARY NIGHT | 奢侈凡夜

Yu-An Rao

Taiwan | 2020, 6 min

Her bright world became dark after losing sight.
One day, She met him, the person she had loved when she still could see…

SUNRISE IN MY MIND | TNGAIREAH KNONG CHET

San Danech

Cambodia | 2020, 14 min

A young woman working late at night at a beauty salon gives into her restrained interest in a young man who spends his evenings driving Phnom Penh's streets by motorbike as a delivery man.

200 CIGARETTES FROM NOW | 夏日美滋滋

Tianyu Ma

China, USA | 2021, 46 min

Summer 2019, Xia suddenly has a crush on a person who then seems vanished from the world. Fall 2019, Xia moves to Boston and throws herself into a faraway filmmaking dream with her struggling-actor friend Jie. While vainly searching for her crush, Xia makes all her effort to retain the summer, but the first snow still arrives on time.

Vietnam is one of the youngest countries, concerning its film history. Its development was slowed by wars, the division of the country into two parts and 50 years of socialism.

Despite that, emerging directors from Vietnam now confidently assert themselves in the international cinema arena, introducing their own cultural codes into the modern context and reflecting on the connection with their homeland.

Curated by Sasha Prokopenko

Blood

A TRIP TO HEAVEN | TTHIÊN ĐƯỜNG GỌI TÊN

Linh Dương

Viet Nam | 2020, 15 min

During a peculiar tour bus to Mekong Delta, 50-year-old Mdm.Tam bumps into her high school sweetheart. She's hopeful for a chance of reconciliation, but maybe he's not.

LIVE IN CLOUD-CUCKOO LAND | MÂY NHU'NG KHÔNG MU'A

Phạm Hoàng Minh Thy, Vũ Minh Nghĩa

Viet Nam | 2020, 20 min

A modern tale of Kafka in Vietnam — a country in the middle of a transformation. The film feels like a piece of cultural news with daily events: a wedding, traffic congestion, a robbery, a mystical metamorphosis and a love story.

THE ETERNAL SPRINGTIME | MÙA XUÂN VĨNH CỬU

Viet Vu

Viet Nam | 2021, 25 min

In a landscape on the brink of extinction, a son and mother trek into a native cave to be revitalized. By just quietly sitting together in their humble shelter, a loving energy is shared through these two human beings’ naked bodies. This personal portrait cuts deep into the vulnerable present of an ex-colonised nation transiting into the digital age. Seen from a first-person perspective, the film also explores a new possibility of storytelling.

THE UNSEEN RIVER | GIÒNG SÔNG KHÔNG NHÌN THẤY

Pham Ngoc Lan

Viet Nam, Laos | 2020, 23 min

Stories told along the river: a woman reunites with her ex-lover at a hydroelectric plant; meanwhile, a young man travels downstream to a temple in search of a cure for his insomnia.

The new generation of independent animators from South Korea is not afraid of challenges — they take risks and experiment with style in an attempt to find their voice and uniqueness.

Curated by Sasha Prokopenko

Death, Miscarriages/Abortion, Abuse, Blood, Needles

INCOMPLETE WOMAN | 조금 부족한 여자

Huh Su-young

South Korea | 2020, 10 min

One day, the dismembered body of a woman was found.
Except for her lower body and the left hand, other body parts were disappeared without a trace and no evidence of any intrusion.
So her lower body and the left hand take the road in search of others that had left for the reason they hated each other so much.

MATE

Im Chaerin

South Korea, USA | 2019, 5 min

A close-up of the powers that influence mating rituals: powers of attraction and repulsion. An experimental film combining animation, printmaking, and photography.

40

Lee Moon-Joo

South Korea | 2020, 8 min

“Dad has aged.”
I thought that “Being old” is slowly coming.
However, it’s passing through Dad very urgently and surely.

SALVIA AT NINE | 아홉 살의 사루비아

Jang Na-ri

South Korea | 2020, 7 min

A nine-year-old girl lives in the same neighborhood as a father who watches erotic videos next to his child and an old man who habitually molests his neighborhood’s elementary school kids.
The girl goes to a corner shop and tries to steal some snacks but the shop owner catches her on the spot. The girl puts a coin on the counter which she was holding to pay for her candy and quickly leaves the shop.

A BAD DAY | 나쁜 날

Park Jung-Seo

South Korea | 2020, 11 min

A pregnant woman gets stabbed in the stomach by a child who was playing with a fish cake skewer while shopping at a supermarket...

TIGER AND OX | 호랑이 와 소

Kim Seughee

South Korea | 2019, 8 min

What does divorce mean to women in Korean patriarchal society? Is a fatherless family failure? In order to find the answer for the questions, a single mother and her daughter start the conversation.

GHOSTS | 유령들

Park Jee-Youn

South Korea | 2020, 10 min

In the boredom of life, they became ghosts. The crows are after them.

SURA | 수라

Jeong Haeji

South Korea | 2020, 6 min

High school student. My best friend is pregnant.

KKUM | 꿈

Kim Kang-Min

South Korea | 2020, 9 min

My mother's dreams have always been strong premonitions for important moments in my life. I rely on her dreams more than any religion.

MEMORY THEATRE

Hahm Heeyoon

South Korea | 2020, 5 min

The theatrical stage takes place in a foreign space and reveals a feast of different forms of memories.

SAN | 산

Jin Woo

South Korea | 2019, 7 min

Appa, Daughter, and the kid live in the mountain. Appa wants to feed his daughter, but she wants to run away from the table.

EYES AND HORNS | 아이즈앤혼즈

Im Chaerin

South Korea, Germany | 2021, 6 min

The exploration of masculinity begins with the Minotaur, a mythical creature the artist Picasso used to portray himself in his etching print series. The Minotaur goes through a violent struggle between being male and female. Finally, the lines blur, and the boundaries of sexes disappear.