October 12, 2023

SHORTS: SHE STORIES

Women share their stories from in front of, and behind, the camera. Bear | Director: Morgane Frund | Producer: Volko KamenskyNEW YORK PREMIERE A student helps a filmmaker with his nature doc, and confronts him with the unexpected footage she discovers in his archive. – AR (Switzerland, 19 MIN) A Home on Every Floor | […]

October 12, 2023

INTO THE SHAOLIN

NEW YORK PREMIERE An engrossing portrait of the Shaolin Monastery, where Buddhist peace and enlightenment are pursued through the practice of martial arts. A Serbian Ph.D. candidate doing field work over the course of a year serves as the audience’s proxy, a keen observer to the daily routines that define life at the monastery and […]

October 12, 2023

DIVERSITY PLAZA

WORLD PREMIERE Drawing inspiration from Frederick Wiseman’s classic aesthetic, Nepalese filmmaker Kesang Tseten spends a year observing the community and culture of Himalayan immigrants in and around the Jackson Heights neighborhood of Queens. During the buildup to the 2020 U.S. Census, the inhabitants reveal their motivation to have their presence recorded, encouraged by visits from […]

October 12, 2023

Daughter of the Sea

NEW YORK PREMIERE A hypnotic film about a woman’s return home to Mara Island, where generations of women support their families by free-diving to harvest sea life from the ocean floor. – Anita Raswant  The first screening will be followed by a Q&A with filmmakers and special guests. All in-person screening venues provide sound amplification […]

October 13, 2022

FINDING HER BEAT

NYC PREMIERE A drum master from Japan and a Korean adoptee from Minnesota boldly convene an all-female troupe to perform Taiko, the Japanese drumming art that has been off-limits to women for centuries. As the early menace of Covid rumbles in the background, the group faces down hurdles to prepare for a historic performance in […]

October 13, 2022

DARK LIGHT VOYAGE

US PREMIERE After a shocking discovery about the fate of an old friend, director Tin Dirdamal embarks on an entrancing train through Vietnam to visit him with his young daughter. Along the way father and daughter ponder unanswered questions, with the sights they encounter on their journey resonating with the depths of their philosophical insights. […]

October 13, 2022

DEAR THIRTEEN

WORLD PREMIERE Far from the unfavorable images often espoused in pop culture, today’s teens are some of the most engaged, thoughtful, creative, courageous, and self-aware of any era. Filmmaker and middle-school educator Alexis Neophytides gifts us this survey of thirteen-year-olds from across the globe as they navigate the joys and complexities of that seminal age. […]

October 13, 2022

IN HER HANDS

During the 19 months before the Taliban retook Afghanistan, filmmaker Tamana Ayazi and Oscar-nominated director Marcel Mettelsiefen gained unique access to Zarifa Ghafari, the youngest female Afghan mayor. IN HER HANDS follows the 26-year-old Ghafari as she navigates multiple layers of political and personal turmoil, including a tense relationship with her father (a leader in […]

October 13, 2022

PHOTOGRAPHIC JUSTICE: THE CORKY LEE STORY

WORLD PREMIERE Using his camera as a “weapon against injustice,” Chinese-American photographer Corky Lee brought art and politics together through his decades-long documentation of the Asian American experience. The Queens, NY native captured all aspects of the AAPI experience, from Lunar New Year to street protests, from Pakistani Independence Day to Diwali and more, uplifting […]

October 13, 2022

Beyond the Landfill

US PREMIERE A landfill community forms its own association to help uplift its children and community before the landfill closes in the near future. – Dewitt Davis This screening will be followed by a Q&A with Director Dewi Tan.  All in-person screening venues provide hearing impaired listening devices upon request with venue management. All guests […]