From July 14 – 30, The New York Asian Film Foundation and Film at Lincoln Center will present the 22nd edition of the New York Asian Film Festival. The festival will feature over 70 new and classic films, an expanded selection of short films, and a slate of special guests from Asia and the Asian diaspora. The festival’s films range from “the deadly serious to the gleefully absurd, from the disquieting to the freaky.” The New York Asian Film Festival continues to celebrate Asia’s most vibrant and provocative cinema.
This year, the festival, in conjunction with The Japan Foundation, will feature ten films from Japan.
As shown in the header image for this article, one of those films is “#Manhole”, starring Hey! Say! JUMP‘s Yuto Nakajima.
In the film, Yuto plays a young executive stuck in a manhole in a downpour, armed only with his cell phone.
Indian director Anshul Chauhan‘s Japanese film “December” will also be screened.
This riveting courtroom drama deals with the controversial imprisonment of juvenile offenders and the gray areas of Japan’s criminal justice system, where the conviction rate is 99%. She will be at a Q&A for the film, along with one of its stars, Shogen.
Daishi Matsunaga‘s gay love story “Egoist” will show at the festival.
Described as “a poignant story of love, loss, self-sacrifice, and discovery”, “Egoist” is based on Makoto Takayama‘s semi-autobiographical novel. The director will be at a Q&A for the film, along with one of its stars, Ryohei Suzuki.
Takumi Saito will be in New York to present his film “Home Sweet Home.”
In the film, a young family moves into a new house but the cramp basement that controls the house’s perfect temperature will soon reflect all of their collective nightmares.
“A Hundred Flowers” will be screened at the festival.
Genki Kawamura, a best-selling author (“If Cats Disappeared From the World”) and producer (of anime hits like “Belle”, “Weathering With You”, and “Your Name”) makes a poetic and visually stunning feature debut, bases on his own novel.
Director Chihiro Ito will be on hand to present her film “In Her Room.”
In this erotic film, there are mysteries nestled inside of other mysteries. This film marks the directorial debut of veteran screenwriter Chihiro (“Crying Out Love in the Center of the World”, “Spring Snow”), adapted from her own novel. The director will be at a Q&A for the film, along with one of its stars, King Gnu‘s Satoru Iguchi.
“Mayhem Girls” will also be shown.
In this film, a small group of previously unassociated high school girls form a tight-knit clique when their typical adolescent hormonal changes are suddenly accompanied supernatural powers.
The film “Motherhood” will also coming to the festival.
Following a news report about a 17 year old girl’s suicide attempt, details emerge about two generations of fraught mother-daughter relationships. There are numerous twists and turns in this intense psychodrama of emotional blackmail and betrayal.
Director Takeshi Fukunaga will be in New York to present his film “Mountain Woman.”
A rural woman, whose village is in its second year of a devastating famine, goes on a quest for survival, gradually transforming into a journey to self-actualization.
Director Junji Sakamoto will show his film “Okiku and the World.”
This audacious, aesthetically brilliant Edo era period drama centers on two “manure men” who collect waste from outhouses. The film achieves a perfect blend of potty humor, cutting social commentary, and budding romance.
Tickets are now on sale and can be purchased here by clicking on the time of the screening in the Japan section.
