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TRT 91 MINS | NOT YET RATED | USA | ENGLISH | COLOR "When we meet Monica Chowdry in 2005, the eight-year-old is on top of the world as champion of Scribbs National Spelling Bee. Fast-forward to present day: grown-up Monica (writer-director Sujata Day) is still living at home in Greensburg, Pennsylvania with her ailing mom Jaya (Anna Khaja), making a living tutoring a new crop of future overachievers while hesitating to make any big moves in her own life. Monica faces an unwelcome disruption in her mundane routine when her older brother Sonny (Ritesh Rajan) reappears from out of the blue. A sweet-natured, fitness-obsessed goofball, Sonny blithely refuses to address his bipolar disorder, and Monica is wary of embracing his presence lest they repeat past traumas. Known for her role on HBO’s INSECURE, Day has crafted an assured directorial debut that pays loving homage to Bollywood fantasy while offering a refreshingly nuanced look at a complicated South Asian-American family. An effervescent, feel-good film packing a genuine emotional punch, DEFINITION PLEASE is a lovely meditation on mental health, cultural expectations, and the universal challenges of growing up." Director Sujata Day Starring Sujata Day, Ritesh Rajan, Jake Choi, Anna Khaja, Lalaine, Parvesh Cheena, Eugene Byrd, Katrina Bowden, Levar Buton |
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South Korea / 105 minutes / Not Rated
Synopsis Saebom is a high school student, living with her mother Yunhee, who is in her 40s. After her recent divorce, Yunhee seems to be depressed, but she never shares her feelings with Saebom. One day, Saebom finds a mysterious love letter sent to Yunhee. The letter is from Hokkaido, Japan. This one letter makes Saebom wonder about the past of Yunhee she has not known. Saebom comes up with a secret plan to find the sender thinking it’d be an opportunity for her to get to know Yunhee better and for Yunhee to overcome her post-divorce depression. After Saebom’s repeated asking, Yunhee finally agrees to go on a trip to Hokkaido. Director Dae Hyung Lim Starring Hee-ae Kim, Yûko Nakamura, So-hye Kim |
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Synopsis
In 1918, Japan’s Siberian Intervention inflames a sudden rise in rice prices to supply the food for the troops. This creates economic hardship for ordinary people, including Ito, one of the wives of fisherman in a rural town, who frugally holds down the fort while their husbands are away. The authorities won’t listen wives’ pleading “Never let the rice go!”. The determination of the desperate housewives causes the legendary riot that soon spreads nationwide. Based on a true historical event, the film tells the story of regular housewives who dare to stand up to protect their families. Director Katsuhide Motoki Starring Mitsuru Fukikoshi, Tokie Hidari, Mao Inoue |
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Synopsis
Under the pain of illness and treatment, Kang (Lee Kang-sheng) finds himself adrift. He meets Non (Anong Houngheuangsy) in a foreign land. They find consolation in each other before parting ways and carrying on with their days. The latest film from Tsai Ming-liang (Goodbye Dragon Inn, Stray Dogs, The Wayward Cloud), Days marks yet another masterwork in one of contemporary cinema’s most extraordinary careers. Director Tsai Ming-liang Producer Claude Wang Starring Lee Kang-sheng, Anong Houngheuangsy |
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Synopsis
Set in Manila in the 1990s, DEATH OF NINTENDO takes us into the colorful pop- culture world of four friends, back in the days when video games were still a novelty. Mimaw and her friends Paolo, Kachi and Gilligan go on a journey of self- discovery together as they play games and wrestle with new dilemmas – puppy love, circumcision and other horror stories. Director Raya Martin Starring Noel Comia Jr., Agot Isidro |
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We are excited to showcase the amazing films from our Emerging Artists! We have Marin Lepore's final season of "I Put the Bi in Bitter", Steven Thai's "Safe", and Maddy Santamaria's "Checkbox: Other". Don't miss this year's student contributions. For more information on each of these films click on the button below.
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Synopsis
When Charles Chiu, a Chinese-American man from California, travels to Mississippi to visit the grave of his father who abandoned him as a baby, he and his family stumble upon surprising revelations that change their lives. Along the way, they meet a diverse group of local residents and historians, who shed light on the racially complex history of the Chinese in the segregated South during the Chinese Exclusion era. Their emotional journey leads them to discover how deep their roots run in America. Director Larissa Lam Cast Baldwin Chiu, Caliya Chiu |
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Synopsis Struggling with his profession as a teacher, Ugyen is sent to Lunana in northern Bhutan for his final year of training. The high altitude and the lack of amenities make Ugyen want to leave as soon as he arrives. With a warm welcome the local children try to win him over but they don’t have much time as the harsh winter is about to arrive in the glacial parts of the Himalaya… Director Pawo Choyning Dorji Cast Sherab Dorji |
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Synopsis
Mu and the Vanishing World is an 86 minute documentary feature that immerses us in the journey of a young single mother and her tribe over the course of 10 years. Ever since fleeing Myanmar as a child, Mu lives confined as a refugee and tourist attraction in a Long Neck Village in Northern Thailand. Soon after she becomes a single teenage mother, the U.N. initiates a resettlement plan for the refugee camps along the Thai-Burma border creating an opportunity for many to start new lives in the USA. Determined to pursue freedom for herself and her baby, Mu ruptures ties with her traditional mother, her culture and tribe to fulfill the requirements of the rigorous vetting process. Once she finally arrives in America, her romanticized ideas are challenged by the reality that unfolds. As Mu strives to give her son a better future, she struggles to find out where her true identity lies. Directors Jessica Leung, Paco Beltrán |
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Synopsis
Serving countless newlyweds in Hong Kong’s go-to one-stop-shop of cheap wedding supplies doesn’t exempt Fong from social pressure to marry. Since nodding to Edward’s proposal, she has been pushed beyond limits by unaffordable housing, archaic customs, and intrusive in-laws. What befuddles her further is the reappearance of Shuwei, a mainlander she’s supposed to be divorced from out of a sham marriage that solved her coming-of-age hardship. Zeroing in on nuts and bolts of modern marriage, My Prince Edward pokes around fixated correlations of freedom with relationship status and geographic residence. Like a breath of fresh air out of the breathless space it navigates, the delightful gem contributes a rare humane take on the worldly metropolis's divisions with humor and wisdom. As Fong redefines her best life and writer-director Norris Wong reclaims her home city's narrative from outsiders, the profound thrills sparked by their courage will make you wholeheartedly cheer for a woman’s independence and Hong Kong cinema’s rejuvenation. Director Yee-Lam (Norris) Wong |
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Synopsis
In 1938, Philippine President Manuel Quezon, future US president Dwight Eisenhower, and several other notable figures set out to rescue Jewish refugees from the ghettos of Germany and Austria. What seems within their power at first, turns out to be fraught with astronomical obstacles. On top of this, Quezon must battle a relapse of tuberculosis. In his final days, Quezon asks the question “Could I have done more?” before recollecting one of the least known, but most uplifting stories in the holocaust history. Director Matthew Rosen Starring Raymond Bagatsing, Rachel Alejandro |
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Synopsis
Adulteress, traitor, heroine, or prey? In 1932, Celine Navarro was buried alive by her community in Northern California. This film digs up herstory. The filmmaker, a grieving mother, with a long-term commitment to exploring race, gender and immigration, digs up Celine Navarro's story, exposing silences that haunt Filipinx American communities today, along with Celine Navarro’s family, community members and scholars who know different details about this largely untold event in American history. Director Celine Parrenas Shimizu |
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Synopsis
Amra’s father Erdene is the leader of the last nomads opposing global mining companies digging for gold in the Mongolian steppe. After his father dies in a tragic car accident, Amra sets out to continue the fight in his father's spirit – but with the tools of an 11-year-old boy. Director Byambasuren Davaa Cast Bat-Ireedui Batmunkh, Enerel Tumen |