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

Synopsis | Feng Xia, a 53-year-old Chinese immigrant and mother living in Montreal, has spent her life shaped by duty: to her family, her culture, and a loveless marriage. But when she meets Camille, a spirited young Québécoise, a long-buried desire is awakened. In the balmy and joyful Montreal summer, Feng Xia takes the radical step of choosing herself, embarking on a journey of forbidden love and long-overdue self-discovery. Her awakening becomes a profound reckoning with identity, exile, and the steep cost of liberation.

1. Untitled-77A by Han Okhi

Synopsis | The film depicts the inner process of an artist struggling to create a work. It explores an intense longing for something new, constant inner conflict, and the fear of bringing creation into being. Like the myth of Sisyphus, it portrays the painful and repetitive nature of the creative process. The artist is driven by a will to pursue something new, yet is haunted by nightmares of endlessly falling into despair. The film reflects on the fragile boundary between creation and censorship.

2. Only for a Day by Kyungbin Park

Synopsis | A magician is hired to spend a day with a young Korean girl, Yunseul, by taking on the role of her father who promised to come back one day. What begins as a paid performance gradually grows into a tender and unexpected bond between them. Although their time together is brief, the day leaves Yunseul with a memory of lasting magic

3. HALF by Arti Ishak

Synopsis | Sri is always the wrong "half' for any situation they are in. Not Asian enough, not Arab enough, never Queer or Muslim enough. Until they meet Erren, a Black American Muslim working through his own identity who might see Sri as a whole for the first time. HALF explores the comedy of navigating multiple identities in a world that constantly forces you to check one box.

4. Welcome Home Freckles by Park Huiju

Synopsis | For the first time in four years, a daughter returns to Daegu, South Korea, determined to end the domestic war that plagued her childhood. They have been hurting each other for years as they never learned to live harmoniously. Despite their efforts to find peace, the scars of the past remain unresolved. Through conversations with her parents, she uncovers a pattern of domestic violence deeply ingrained in her family's history. At last, she realises that only she can break this cycle.

5. Heading to the East by Lisa Ranran Hu

Synopsis | On the eve of an inevitable separation, a young Asian couple returns to the desert oasis where they first fell in love. As they get lost in the desert east of Los Angeles, the journey becomes a discovery of changes—in place, in people, and in memories.

6. Broken Dawn by Park Hae-Oh

Synopsis | As dawn approaches, Young-ok, an elderly substitute driver, spends the night driving other people’s cars home while searching for a sense of connection in the quiet hours. Moving through empty streets and brief encounters, she is met less with warmth than with indifference and quiet cruelty. Still, beneath the yellow glow of the early morning, Young-ok continues on, holding onto the hope of being truly seen and heard.