Asian Crossroads
Discover the most exciting films to come from Earth’s largest continent this year with SIFF’s Asian Crossroads program. Selected films represent a diverse collection of genres from across the regions and cultures of Central, East, and South Asia.
Agent of Happiness
Bhutan | 2024 | 93 min. | Dorottya Zurbó, Arun Bhattarai
Amber is a government employee tasked with conducting “happiness scale” surveys in the remote Himalayas.
Agra
India | 2023 | 132 min. | Kanu Behl
A self-pitying twentysomething struggles for sexual independence amid a society that overemphasizes masculine stereotypes.
All Shall Be Well
Hong Kong | 2024 | 93 min. | Ray Yeung
After her girlfriend’s sudden passing, Angie must fight for her own peace of mind and keep the apartment they called home.
Black Box Diaries
Japan | 2024 | 104 min. | Shiori Ito
A journalist takes on Japan’s patriarchal sociopolitical system as she investigates her own sexual assault.
The Box Man
Japan | 2024 | 120 min. | Gakuryû Ishii
A man moves through Tokyo wearing a cardboard box while fighting off those who want to take his place.
City of Wind
Mongolia | 2023 | 103 min. | Lkhagvadulam Purev-Ochir
A 17-year-old Mongolian shaman becomes enamored with a peer who needs heart surgery.
Dragon Superman
Taiwan | 1968 | 90 min. | Satoru Kobayashi, Shao Lo-hui
When the fearsome Cosmos Gang crosses him, nothing will stop our masked, motorcycle-riding hero from doling out justice.
Evil Does Not Exist
Japan | 2023 | 105 min. | Ryûsuke Hamaguchi
Mizubiki, a remote lakeside village, is about to be overtaken by a new “glamping” site built on sensitive natural land.
Girls Will Be Girls
India | 2024 | 118 min. | Shuchi Talati
Mira crashes headfirst into teenage love, her country’s oppression of female agency, and her own mother’s stifled desires.
In Flames
Pakistan | 2023 | 98 min. | Zarrar Kahn
A widow, her adult daughter, and her tween-aged son are haunted by ghosts of the past when their patriarch dies.
In Our Day
South Korea | 2023 | 84 min. | Hong Sang-soo
Two parallel stories thematically link together—an actress unsure of her future and an aging poet unsure of his past.
Iron Mask
South Korea | 2023 | 100 min. | Kim Sung Hwan
Jae-woo reaches the upper ranks of his national kendo team and must face off against the man who accidentally killed his brother.
A Journey in Spring
Taiwan | 2023 | 90 min. | Wang Ping-Wen, Peng Tzu-Hui
A man unwilling to grapple with the grief of his wife’s sudden death places her body in the freezer…until family comes to visit.
July Rhapsody
Hong Kong | 2002 | 103 min. | Ann Hui
A high school teacher must navigate his troubled family life, his wife’s sick ex, and the interests of a lovestruck student.
Killing Romance
South Korea | 2023 | 107 min. | Lee Won-suk
A studious young man and the famous retired actress next door fall in love and conspire to murder her vain, possessive husband.
The Missing
Philippines | 2023 | 90 min. | Carl Joseph E. Papa
A mute gay animator sent to check in on his missing uncle encounters the alien who stole his mouth as a child.
Pigsy
Taiwan | 2023 | 95 min. | Li Wei Chiu
A fast-paced, action-packed animated science fiction extravaganza about a streetwise pig in a bustling future metropolis.
Tenement
Cambodia | 2024 | 84 min. | Sokyou Chea, Inrasothythep Neth
When a manga artist moves into her late mother’s old apartment, she discovers it contains deep, dark, nightmarish secrets.
Tiger Stripes
Malaysia | 2023 | 95 min. | Amanda Nell Eu
Rebellious 12-year-old Zaffan has hit puberty early, except her physical and behavioral changes seem to be anything but normal.