20th New York Asian Film Festival

The 20th New York Asian Film Festival was held in New York from 6 August to 22 August 2021. The opening film of the festival was Escape from Mogadishu, a South Korean film by Ryoo Seung-wan.[1] Seventy titles were screened both online, as well as in person. The 20th edition of the festival featured two world premieres, six international premieres, twenty nine North American premieres, eight U.S. premieres and nine New York premieres.[2]

20th New York Asian Film Festival
Official poster
Opening filmEscape from Mogadishu
Closing filmSinkhole
LocationFilm at Lincoln Center, New York
Founded2002
AwardsUncaged Award:
Anima by Cao Jinling
Hosted byNew York Asian Film Foundation Inc.
No. of films70 films
Festival dateOpening: 6 August 2021 (2021-08-06)
Closing: 22 August 2021 (2021-08-22)
LanguageInternational
WebsiteNYAFF
New York Asian Film Festival
19th

2021's festival featured the first ever outdoor screening of Raymond Lee’s wuxia 1992 film New Dragon Gate Inn at Lincoln Center’s Damrosch Park on August 11. The event was co-presented by Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York.[3][4]

The Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film was awarded to Anima by Cao Jinling.[5]

Screening venues

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New sections

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This year a new section is added to focus on Asian American experience.

  • Asian American Focus selection

From 20th edition of the festival the non-competitive films are grouped thematically, in the following categories:

  • Beyond Borders
  • Crowd Pleasers
  • Frontlines
  • Genre Masters
  • Next/Now
  • Standouts
  • Vanguards

Jury

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Films showcase

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Sources:[6][7][8]

Highlighted title indicates award winner
Year Title Original Title Country Director Premiere Status
Opening film
2021 Escape from Mogadishu 모가디슈 South Korea Ryoo Seung-wan International Premiere
Asian American Focus
2021 Americanish USA Iman K. Zawahry New York Premiere
2021 A Shot Through the Wall USA Aimee Long New York Premiere
2021 Snakehead (film) USA Evan Jackson Leong Special Premiere
Beyond Borders
2021 The Asian Angel アジアの天使 Japan, South Korea Yuya Ishii North American Premiere
2021 Barbarian Invasion 野蛮人入侵 Malaysia Tan Chui Mui North American Premiere
2021 Fighter 파이터 South Korea Jero Yun North American Premiere
2020 A Song for You 他与罗耶戴尔 Chinese Dukar Tserang North American Premiere
Centerpiece Presentation
2021 Raging Fire 怒火 Hong Kong, China Benny Chan International Premiere
China on the Move
2020 Anima 莫爾道嘎 China Cao Jinling North American Premiere
2020 The Old Town Girls 兔子暴力 China Shen Yu North American Premiere
2020 Tough Out 棒!少年 China Xu Hui-jing North American Premiere
Closing film
2021 Sinkhole 싱크홀 South Korea Kim Ji-hoon North American Premiere
Crowd Pleasers
2021 All U Need Is Love 總是有愛在隔離 Hong Kong Vincent Kok North American Premiere
2020 Breakout Brothers 逃獄兄弟 Hong Kong Mak Ho Pong North American Premiere
2020 The Con-Heartist อ้าย..คนหล่อลวง Thailand Mez Tharatorn North American Premiere
2020 From Today, It's My Turn!! 今日から俺は!!劇場版 Japan Yuichi Fukuda US Premiere
2020 Hold Me Back 私をくいとめて Japan Akiko Ohku US Premiere
2021 jigoku-no-hanazono: Office Royale 地獄の花園 Japan Kazuaki Seki North American Premiere
2020 My Missing Valentine 消失的情人節 Taiwan Chen Yu-hsun New York Premiere
2020 One Second Champion 一秒拳王 Hong Kong Chiu Sin Hang North American Premiere
2020 Tonkatsu DJ Agetaro とんかつDJアゲ太郎 Japan Ken Ninomiya North American Premiere
2020 Zero To Hero 媽媽的神奇小子 Hong Kong Jimmy Wan North American Premiere
Emerging Voices: Narrative Short Showcase - IRL (In Real Life)
2020 1056 Meters 一〇五六米 Singapore, United States Edwin Ho New York Premiere
2020 Chimera 키메라 United States Eileen Yoon East Coast Premiere
2020 Just Another Day India Prataya Saha World Premiere
2020 Mother Tongue United States Eris Qian
2020 Piglet Piglet 美豬肉圓 Taiwan Tsung-Yen Lin New York Premiere
Emerging Voices: Narrative Short Showcase - Missed Connections
2020 In the Dusk 长河落日 Mongolia Zhuolan New York Premiere
2021 Invited In Hong Kong Yuyu Kitamura World Premiere
2020 Journey to the East USA Eve Liu North American Premiere
2020 ufo:pm 午后飞船 Singapore Xiao Han New York Premiere
2020 Winter By the River 冬日河 Shuyao Chen
Frontlines
2020 Babi Malaysia Namewee North American Premiere
2020 A Balance 由宇子の天秤 Japan Yujiro Harumoto North American Premiere
2020 I Don't Fire Myself 나는 나를 해고하지 않는다 South Korea Lee Tae-Gyeom North American Premiere
2021 Ninja Girl シュシュシュの娘(こ) Japan Yu Irie World Premiere
2021 A Shot Through the Wall USA Aimee Long New York Premiere
2020 The Silent Forest 無聲 China Ko Chen-nien New York Premiere
2020 Three Sisters 세 자매 South Korea Lee Seung-won North American Premiere
2020 Tough Out 棒!少年 China Xu Hui-jing North American Premiere
2021 The Way We Keep Dancing 狂舞派 3 Hong Kong Adam Wong New York Premiere
Genre Masters
2021 Coffin Homes 鬼同你住 Hong Kong Fruit Chan North American Premiere
2021 The Fable: The Killer Who Doesn't Kill ザ・ファブル 殺さない殺し屋 Japan Kan Eguchi North American Premiere
2021 Last of the Wolves 孤狼の血 LEVEL2 Japan Kazuya Shiraishi North American Premiere
2021 Limbo 智齒 Hong Kong Soi Cheang North American Premiere
2021 Midnight 미드나이트 South Korea Kwon Oh-seung International Premiere
2021 The Prayer 간호중 South Korea Min Kyu-dong International Premiere
2021 Rising Shaolin: The Protector 少林寺之得宝传奇 China Stanley Tong International Premiere
2020 Sweetie, You Won't Believe it ЖАНЫМ, ТЫ НЕ ПОВЕРИШЬ! Kazakhstan Yernar Nurgaliyev North American Premiere
Hong Kong Panorama
1982 Boat People 投奔怒海 Hong Kong Ann Hui Retrospective/Tribute Screening
1992 New Dragon Gate Inn 新龍門客棧 Hong Kong Raymond Lee NYAFF 20th Anniversary Screening
1981 The Story of Woo Viet 胡越的故事 Hong Kong Ann Hui Retrospective/Tribute Screening
Next/Now
2021 Here and There Dito at Doon Philippines JP Habac North American Premiere
2020 Keep Rolling 好好拍電影 Hong Kong Man Lim Chung New York Premiere
2020 Money Has Four Legs ခြေလေးချောင်း Myanmar Maung Sun North American Premiere
2020 Shadows 殘影空間 Singapore Glenn Chan North American Premiere
2020 Snowball 최선의 삶 South Korea Lee Woo-jeong International Premiere
2021 Time 殺出個黃昏 Hong Kong Ricky Ko North American Premiere
Standouts
2021 Blue ブルー Japan Keisuke Yoshida US Premiere
2021 The Book of Fish 자산어보 South Korea Lee Joon-ik International Premiere
2020 A Leg 腿반 Taiwan Chang Yao-sheng U.S. Continental Premiere
2020 Samjin Company English Class 삼진그룹 영어토익반 South Korea Lee Jong-pil New York Premiere
2020 Under the Open Sky すばらしき世界 Japan Miwa Nishikawa New York Premiere
Vanguards
2020 As We Like It 揭大歡喜 Taiwan Muni Wei, Chen Hung-i East Coast Premiere
2021 Junk Head Japan Takahide Hori U.S. Premiere
2021 Zokki ゾッキ Japan Naoto Takenaka, Takayuki Yamada, Takumi Saitoh North American Premiere

Films by country or region

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Year Title Original Title Region/Country Director Premiere status
New Cinema from Japan
2021 Over the Town 街の上で East Asia Rikiya Imaizumi U.S. Premiere
2021 Sensei, Would You Sit Beside Me? 先生、私の隣に座っていただけませんか? East Asia Takahiro Horie World Premiere
South Korea
2021 Ryuk-sa: A Teaser 력사 East Asia Cho Jin-woong International Premiere
2021 Spiritwalker 유체이탈자 East Asia Yoon Jae-keun North American Premiere

Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film Competition

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Highlighted title indicates award winner
Year Title Original Title Country Director Award status
2020 Anima 莫爾道嘎 China Cao Jinling Won
2020 City of Lost Things 廢棄之城 Taiwan Yee Chih-yen
2020 Hand Rolled Cigarette 手捲煙 Hong Kong Chan Kin-long Variety Star Asia Award: Gordon Lam
2021 Joint Japan Oudai Kojima
2020 Ten Months 십개월 South Korea Namkoong Sun Honorable Mention[9]
2020 Tiong Bahru Social Club Singapore Tan Bee Thiam

Awards and winners

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Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film

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Year Title Original Title Country Director/Actor Ref.
2020 Anima 莫爾道嘎 China Cao Jinling [5]

Audience Award

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Year Title Original Title Country Director/Actor Ref.
2021 Americanish USA Iman K. Zawahry [5]
2021 Junk Head Japan Takahide Hori

Daniel Craft Award for Excellence in Action Cinema

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Year Title Original Title Country Director/Actor Ref.
2021 Spiritwalker 유체이탈자   South Korea Yoon Kye-sang [10]

Star Asia Awards

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Image Actor/Actress Country Ref.
Variety Star Asia Award
 
Gordon Lam   Hong Kong [11]
Variety Star Asia Lifetime Achievement Award
 
Ann Hui Hong Kong [12]
Rising Star Asia Award
 
Sosuke Ikematsu   Japan [13]
 
Janine Gutierrez   Philippines
 
Bang Min-ah South Korea

References

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  1. ^ "The 20th New York Asian Film Festival is Here!". NYAFF. July 19, 2021. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  2. ^ Ferme, Antonio (August 6, 2021). "New York Asian Film Festival Goes Hybrid to Accommodate a Global Audience". Variety. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  3. ^ Ehrlich, David (July 21, 2021). "The New York Asian Film Festival Returns in Theaters and Online in 2021". IndieWire. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  4. ^ Leiber, Sarah Jae (July 8, 2021). "New York Asian Film Festival Celebrates 20th Anniversary". Broadway World. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  5. ^ a b c Criscitiello, Alexa (August 23, 2021). "NYAFF 2021 Closes 20th Edition Announcing Winners of The Audience Award and Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film". Broadway World. Retrieved August 24, 2021.
  6. ^ Ehrlich, David (August 6, 2021). "New York Asian Film Festival 2021: Five Must-See Movies to See in Theaters or Watch from Home". IndieWire. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  7. ^ MacDonald, Joan (July 20, 2021). "20th New York Asian Film Festival Screens Several South Korean Films". Forbes. Archived from the original on July 20, 2021. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  8. ^ "6 Taiwan productions set to screen at New York Asian Film Festival". Taiwan Today. August 4, 2021. Retrieved August 23, 2021.
  9. ^ Han Mi-hee (August 25, 2021). "'십개월의 미래' 뉴욕아시안영화제 특별 언급" [Special mention of 'The Future of Ten Months' at New York Asian Film Festival]. Yonhap News (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved August 25, 2021.
  10. ^ "윤계상 '유체이탈자', 제20회 뉴욕아시안영화제 액션시네마상 수상(공식)" [Yoon Kye-sang's 'Fluid Fugitive' won the Action Cinema Award at the 20th New York Asian Film Festival (official)]. Herald POP (in Korean). Naver. July 25, 2021. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  11. ^ Frater, Patrick (August 6, 2021). "Variety Honors Hong Kong's Long-Distance Runners at NYAFF". Variety. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  12. ^ "Unveiling the Second Wave of Titles and Award Honoree Ann Hui for the 20th Edition of the New York Asian Film Festival". Film at Lincoln Center. July 19, 2021. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  13. ^ Kim Yu-jin (July 26, 2021). "최선의 삶' 방민아, 제20회 뉴욕아시안영화제 라이징 스타상 수상 "큰 기쁨"" [The Best Life' Bang Min-ah won the Rising Star Award at the 20th New York Asian Film Festival "Great joy]. Export News (in Korean). Retrieved August 20, 2021 – via Naver.
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