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<\/a><\/p>\nFilm at Lincoln Center and the New York Asian Film Foundation announce the 18th edition of the New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF), June 28 \u2013 July 14, 2019.<\/p>\n
After last year\u2019s Savage Seventeen, this year\u2019s program is dubbed the \u201cStill Too Young to Die\u201d edition with five international premieres, 23 North American premieres, four U.S. premieres, and eight New York premieres, showcasing the most exciting action, comedy, drama, thriller, romance, horror, and art-house films from East Asia, and bringing close to 30 directors and nine actors from Asia.<\/p>\n
Eighteen \u2013 Still Too Young to Die: Many will recognize the cheeky reference to NYAFF 2016 audience award winner, Kudo Kankuro\u2019s Too Young to Die!, in which a busload of high-school students plummet to their deaths. They either end up in heaven or hell, both of which defy expectations. Graduating into adulthood, NYAFF aims to defy expectations cinematically.<\/p>\n
With the irreverent action-comedy stylings of the gonzo manga adaptation The Fable and the singularly Singaporean zom-com Zombiepura as just two examples, NYAFF boasts both high-concept thrills and lowbrow gags. Rich contrasts can be found in deeply profound moral tales such as actor Kim Yoon-seok\u2019s stunning directorial debut Another Child, or Huang Chao-liang\u2019s literally explosive drama Han Dan, both in this year\u2019s competition.<\/p>\n
From the deadly serious to the gleefully absurd, from the disquieting to the freaky, NYAFF continues to celebrate the most vibrant and provocative cinema out of Asia today.<\/p>\n
Opening Night is the North American premiere of Bernard Rose\u2019s Samurai Marathon, featuring a star-studded cast and a score by Philip Glass. This original take on the jidaigeki (period piece) reinterprets a lesser-known real event out of history in the wake of the West\u2019s arrival in Japan during the 1850s. Packed full of intrigue, thrills, and comic relief, and including both ninjas and royal rebels, the film is a marvelous amalgam of transnational aesthetics and distinctly Japanese genre traditions.<\/p>\n
The Centerpiece is the North American premiere of The Fable, directed by Eguchi Kan, who will attend the festival. The film captures the spirit that has sustained NYAFF over the years: a sprightly combination of action and pop comedy that never takes itself seriously but never completely leaves its brain at the door.<\/p>\n
Seven films will vie for the Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film in the third edition of the festival\u2019s Main Competition: Moon Sung-ho\u2019s 5 Million Dollar Life (Japan), Kim Yoon-seok\u2019s Another Child (South Korea), Huang Chao-liang\u2019s Han Dan (Taiwan), Nojiri Katsumi\u2019s Lying to Mom (Japan), Kenneth Lim Dagatan\u2019s Ma (Philippines), Yi Ok-seop\u2019s Maggie (South Korea), and Wu Nan\u2019s Push and Shove (China). Six of the films are North American premieres at NYAFF, with one international premiere, and six of the competition titles are feature debuts, underlining the competition\u2019s mission to showcase new cinematic voices.<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s competition jury consists of prominent personalities from the film business that bridge Asia and America: Doris Pfardrescher (President & CEO, Well Go USA), producer Guan Yadi (Wind Blast, Assembly), Tim League (CEO, Alamo Drafthouse), and actress and producer Veronica Ngo.<\/p>\n
Vietnamese singing and dancing sensation turned movie star Veronica Ngo burst into action with her starring role in the breakthrough martial-arts megahit The Rebel (NYAFF 2008). She continued to flex her fighting muscles in Clash and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny, as well as acting in films of other genres, including Star Wars: The Last Jedi. Ngo also took to producing as well and has proved one of the most dynamic forces in the Vietnamese film industry today. NYAFF commemorates her incredible contributions to cinema with the Daniel A. Craft Award for Excellence in Action Cinema and a special screening of what may be her best film to date, the phenomenal action opus Furie. NYAFF is proud that Ms. Ngo will also serve on this year\u2019s competition jury.<\/p>\n
The Star Asia Lifetime Achievement Award will go to Hong Kong action choreographer and director extraordinaire Yuen Woo-ping, perhaps best known to Western audiences for his work on The Matrix; Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; and Kill Bill. The extremely prolific Yuen started as an actor and stuntman in the \u201960s. In 1978, he made his phenomenal directorial debut with the smash hit Snake in the Eagle\u2019s Shadow, and followed quickly with an even greater success, Drunken Master \u2014 the two films that not only made Jackie Chan an international star but practically created the indelible kung-fu\/comedy genre. His filmography features a plethora of kung-fu classics marked by innovations in fight choreography and hyperkinetic genre stylings. Screening in the festival are the seminal Donnie Yen vehicle Iron Monkey (on 35mm), now a classic of the \u201990s \u201cNew Wave\u201d of kung fu; the brand-new Master Z: Ip Man Legacy, an exciting entry in the popular Ip Man film series, starring Max Zhang, Michelle Yeoh, and Tony Jaa; and The Miracle Fighters, Yuen\u2019s first of several absolutely crazy meldings of kung fu, fantasy, and comedy that must be seen to be believed.<\/p>\n
As announced by NYAFF\u2019s media partners and sponsors of the prize, the Screen International Rising Star Asia Award will be given to both Komatsu Nana and Ryu Jun-yeol. Komatsu will receive her honor before the festival\u2019s Opening Night screening of Samurai Marathon on June 28, and Ryu will receive his award on July 6.<\/p>\n
Previous recipients of the Screen International Rising Star Asia Award include Japan\u2019s Nikaido Fumi in 2014 and Sometani Shota in 2015; Japan\u2019s Ayano Go, China\u2019s Jelly Lin, and the Philippines\u2019 Teri Malvar in 2016; Thailand\u2019s Chutimon \u201cAokbab\u201d Chuengcharoensukying in 2017; and Hong Kong\u2019s Stephy Tang in 2018.<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s Hong Kong Panorama, presented with the support of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York, the longest-standing partner and sponsor organization of the festival, offers an exciting feast of compassion, innovation, and nostalgia across 10 diverse and exciting films. The Tribute to Yuen Woo-ping honors the legendary master with screenings of three stellar martial-arts films from his incredible oeuvre: Iron Monkey (1993), a rare showing of The Miracle Fighters (1982), and Master Z: Ip Man Legacy (2018). G Affairs (Lee Cheuk-pan) has its North American premiere, showcasing a fierce, transgressive directorial voice. Another debut, Still Human (Oliver Chan), produced by Fruit Chan, reveals a bittersweet and touching side of Hong Kong. See You Tomorrow (Zhang Jiajia), a gonzo high-concept rom-com and then some, produced by Wong Kar-wai and starring Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Kaneshiro Takeshi, and Angelababy, has been unearthed by the programmers to make its North American premiere, two years after it wrapped production. Veteran filmmakers are further represented by the international premiere of The Attorney (Wong Kwok-fai), an exciting and insightful courtroom mystery-thriller, and wild auteur Pang Ho-cheung\u2019s outrageous Chinese New Year comedy Missbehavior. No Hong Kong lineup would be complete without hyperkinetic modern action. The Fatal Raid (Jacky Lee) is an explosive new take on the classic \u201cgirls with guns\u201d genre, featuring Jade Leung (Black Cat).<\/p>\n
Finally, this year\u2019s Secret Screening is a Hong Kong classic given a novel live-music treatment by the hip-hop collective Shaolin Jazz. Part of NYAFF Uncaged Award Ceremony for Best Picture on Saturday, July 13, 8pm at SVA Theatre (333 West 23rd Street).<\/p>\n
Conceived by Gerald Watson and produced by DJ 2-Tone Jones, \u201cShaolin Jazz \u2013 The 37th Chamber\u201d is a testament to the stylistic connections between both Jazz and hip-hop. It is a mix project whereby various jazz songs and breaks are fused with a cappellas and vocal samples from the iconic hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan. The music and lyrics are astutely crafted to match both in cadence and tone, with the jazz selections used also helping to further accentuate the essence and intensity of the Clan.<\/p>\n
The creators of Shaolin Jazz\u2019s unique film experience \u201cCan I Kick It?\u201d caters to lovers of kung-fu flicks and the music they inspired. For each event, cult-classic martial-arts films are screened and scored (scene by scene) with a blend of hip-hop, soul, funk, and more mixed on stage by DJ 2-Tone Jones. The result is a live, remixed soundtrack using music and DJ techniques to accentuate elements of specific scenes and fight sequences. Shaolin Jazz presents \u201cCan I Kick It?\u201d as this year\u2019s NYAFF secret screening.<\/p>\n
The China selection continues to grow exponentially and includes a wide-ranging selection of titles reflecting the complexities and contradictions of a film world whose theatrical market has surpassed that of North America. Bold and already masterful directorial visions such as The Crossing by female director Bai Xue or Wushu Orphan by Huang Huang will be screened alongside movies that show the China familiar to the audiences of European international film festivals and their art-house fare: A First Farewell (Wang Lina, 2018), a rare look at the struggles of growing up as a member of the Uighur minority in Muslim-dominated Xinjiang; Jinpa (Pema Tseden, 2018), an abstract Tibetan Western produced by Wong Kar-wai; or The Rib (Zhang Wei, 2018), a raw gem focusing on transgender issues, that miraculously passed censorship. The deliberately broad selection gives a glimpse of entire worlds beyond the films of Bi Gan and Jia Zhangke and puts the spotlight on a new Chinese cinema yet to be museified and mummified. Further to this point, this year\u2019s edition showcases unorthodox, smart social comedies, filled with pop energy and eccentricity: Push And Shove (Wu Nan, 2019), Uncle and House (Luo Hanxing, 2018), which put the spotlight on a living culture miles away from the CNN caricatures. At the opposite end of the spectrum, the selection offers a dark but superb discovery with the highly aestheticized historical observations of Winter After Winter (Xing Jian, 2019). At the same time, NYAFF never ignores films that are beloved in their home countries, as represented here by the animated fantasy White Snake (Amp Wong and Zhao Ji, 2019), a massive box-office hit domestically, and the action-packed wintry western Savage (Cui Siwei, 2018).<\/p>\n
The New Cinema from Japan lineup represents both the popular and the highbrow from a film culture that has established itself as one of the pillars of world cinema. The group of selected titles demonstrate the perennial and proverbial originality of Japanese visual storytelling, most of all with Sabu’s new film, Jam, an almost indescribable dramedy driven by random yet fateful encounters. For the occasion, the festival is bringing back the director\u2019s 2017 film Mr. Long, the strange tale of a Taiwanese hit man stranded in Japan after a disastrous job. Two Japanese titles made the cut for the competition this year: 5 Million Dollar Life (Moon Sung-ho, 2019) and Lying to Mom (Nojiri Katsumi, 2018). Both films share exceptionally compelling narratives on the fundamentals of life, death, and the hardships of dealing with family and strangers alike, navigating the thin line between comedy and tragedy. As can be expected from Japan, the quirky, the poignant, and the absolutely nuts find a cinematic home in the following, just to name a few: Fly Me to the Saitama (Takeuchi Hideki, 2019), Hard-Core (Yamashita Nobuhiro, 2018), and the obsessive noir The Gun (Take Masaharu, 2018). This is all a far cry from your average tea ceremony.<\/p>\n
There are nine films in the South Korean Cinema section: beyond Bong Joon-ho, the Palme d\u2019Or, the glam of Park Chan-wook, and the commercial cinema that hits U.S. theaters via limited theatrical releases, the festival has shifted its attention to lesser-known but equally unique directorial visions that exist outside the system. In Kim Yu-ri\u2019s Sub-Zero Wind and Jeong Seung-o\u2019s Move the Grave, the programming team has found unforgettable portrayals of youths who endure the full force and fire of the hard times that only adults should fall on. Star actor Kim Yoon-seok\u2019s remarkable debut behind the camera, Another Child, making its North American Premiere at the festival, displays the same stylized, somber realism, but with a light-touch comedic mastery that earned it a place in the competition section. Maggie (Yi Ok-seop, 2018), the other Korean entry for this year\u2019s competition, shares this humorous streak but with more extravagant innovations. The historical drama A Resistance (Joe Min-ho, 2019), offers a formidable vehicle for actress Ko A-sung as the real-life heroine of the 1919 independence movement, exactly a hundred years ago. Last but not least, NYAFF expands for the first time to the grand Alice Tully Hall with the film concert Kokdu: A Story of Guardian Angels, a once-in-a-lifetime experience marrying cinema with traditional Korean music (gugak) performed live by a 20-member ensemble from the National Gugak Center, who will be playing the score for the first time in the U.S.<\/p>\n
The four-film selection from Taiwan is resolutely pop, accessible, and unapologetically fun in a way not normally associated with productions from the island better known for its art-house and experimental output. The festival\u2019s picks show a specific brand of Taiwanese cool, be it competition title Han Dan (Huang Chao-liang, 2019), a macho tale of friendship and betrayal anchored in the savagery of local tradition where fireworks are shot at a parading half-naked man; or in the madcap comedy about TV producers gone wild and wrong It\u2019s A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad Show (Hsieh Nien-tsu, 2019); the violent action piece The Scoundrels (Hung Tzu-hsuan, 2018); and the decidedly unrepentant rom-com Someone in the Clouds (Mitch Lin and Gary Tseng, 2018).<\/p>\n
This year\u2019s Southeast Asian Vanguard selection spotlights a fascinatingly varied breadth of electrifying cinema. From the Philippines comes Ma, a chilling debut feature from a director who was born to make horror films. On the other side of the spectrum is Signal Rock, the Philippines\u2019 entry for the Oscars earlier this year\u2014a realist yet poetic drama that shows what life is really like on one of the country\u2019s many little islands. In similar contrast are the two films from Vietnam. Furie is a balls-to-the-wall actioner starring the dynamic Veronica Ngo, while Song Lang is a sweeping and touching drama that combines a story of traditional opera with both crime and LGBTQ elements. Indonesia brings an old-school matinee-style comedy and martial-arts adventure with 212 Warrior, and from Malaysia comes the brooding (and actually quite scary) psychological horror film Walk with Me. The living dead are represented this year by the hilarious Singaporean zom-com Zombiepura. Capping it all off is Thailand\u2019s The Pool, a stunningly original existentialist thriller that redefines the meaning of \u201chitting rock bottom\u201d in the most literal way.<\/p>\n
As TV and film increasingly converge, for the first time, NYAFF will screen, ahead of its August 12 release on AMC (at 9:00 p.m. ET\/8:00 p.m. CT on AMC) The Terror: Infamy. Set during World War II, the haunting and suspenseful second season of the horror-infused anthology centers on a series of bizarre deaths that haunt a Japanese-American community, and a young man\u2019s journey to understand and combat the malevolent entity responsible. The series stars Derek Mio, Sukezane Kiki (Lost in Space, NYAFF 2018 jury), Usami Shingo (Unbroken) and renowned actor, producer, author and activist George Takei (Star Trek). The Terror: Infamy is an AMC Studios production, co-created and executive produced by Alexander Woo and Max Borenstein, with Woo also serving as showrunner. Ridley Scott, David W. Zucker, Alexandra Milchan, Scott Lambert, Guymon Casady and Jordan Sheehan serve as executive producers.<\/p>\n