Histoires Tangibles : une soirée de courts métrages canadiens d'origine asiatique

13e MAIFF et Art Souterrain
Heure : Vendredi 8 mai | 18 h 30 à 20 h 30
Lieu : Place-Ville-Marie
Billet : Gratuit avec RSVP

The 13th Montreal Asian International Film Festival (MAIFF), in partnership with Art Souterrain, presents “Tangible Narratives: An Evening of Asian-Canadian Short Films.” We bring the voices of the Asian-Canadian diaspora to the heart of Montreal through a free public screening under MAIFF’s new motto: UNBOUND. We invite all of Montreal to attend on May 8, 2026 at Place Ville Marie.
AmérAsia 1 finds a unique home through our partnership with Art Souterrain, resonating with their theme of Duality. Art Souterrain mobilizes vacant urban spaces, transforming them into temporary beacons of art and cinema. Arts East-West shares this nomadic, resilient, and "unfastened" materiality—a direct mirror to the diasporic nature. This evening celebrates the transformation of the Korean Film Festival Canada into MAIFF, a festival within a festival that embraces cinema and media arts across the Asian diaspora and Asia. “Tangible Narratives” will screen five outstanding Asian-Canadian shorts with five distinctive visions, representing the diversity of the Asian diaspora.

The Golden Village, The Sound of Things Ablaze, Landscapes of Home

13th MAIFF
Time: Saturday, May 16 | 5:00 PM - 7:00 PM
Venue: Cinema du Parc
Ticket: $14.50 GA, $10 Student/Senior discount

PROGRAM: 3 AMERASIA FILMS

1. The Golden Village by Karen Cho

Dotted along an elevated train line in Richmond, BC, a sea of Asian-themed plaza malls and shopping centre signposts a massive demographic shift. The Golden Village takes us inside these vibrant spaces where every shop has a story, and everyday activities become moments of connection and belonging. A celebration of the mall as a “third place,” The Golden Village is a wondrous portrait of the places where culture, commerce and community converge to form a sense of home in an ever-changing landscape.

Directed by

Karen Cho

Origin

Canada

Length

33 mins

Year

2026

Language

English, Chinese

Medium

Documentary

2. Landscapes of Home by Alice IL Shin

"Landscapes of Home" examines the lives of two doctors in the mid-20th century: Henry Shibata, a Japanese Canadian born in Vancouver, and Stuart Cooper Robinson, a Canadian born in Nagoya, Japan. Their worlds are upended by WWII, with Shibata facing internment in the Rockies, while Robinson is pushed from his lifelong home in Japan amidst growing intolerance. Charting their transformative journeys, the documentary captures their resilience and the indelible marks left by displacement. Through their stories, it reflects on the Japanese Canadian struggle from a new perspective and redefines what it means to find home against a backdrop of war and loss.

Directed by

Alice IL Shin

Origin

Canada

Length

55

Year

2024

Language

English

Medium

Documentary

3. The Sound of Things Ablaze by Hayat Najm

A woman walks down the sidewalk, avoiding the cracks in the pavement like a child. Her body remains on high alert, remembering the horrors of a war that continues to haunt her. The Sounds of Things Ablaze transforms a story about human atrocities into a poignant tribute to women who face adversity—one step at a time. For her debut animated short, which was inspired by the Japanese art of kintsugi (in which the cracks in once-broken pottery are highlighted with gold), artist Hayat Najm channels the wounds and imperfections of the past and transmutes them into a poetic work about resilience. Drawn in charcoal and gold paint, the film features a moving piano score by Jean-Michel Blais.

Directed by

Hayat Najm

Origin

Canada

Length

6 mins

Year

2025

Language

French subtitles

Medium

Animation

About the 13th MAiFF

The Montreal Asian International Film Festival (MAiFF) runs from May 8 to June 13, 2026. Under the two-year theme (2026-2027) Tangibility: Soil, Body, Stories, MAiFF is a diverse media arts platform encompassing screenings, exhibitions, and networking opportunities that center Asian voices while continuing to honor Korean cinema as our cornerstone.