Non-binary Japanese-Irish drag artist ShayShay storms the UK’s cabaret scene with a gender-diverse, Pan-Asian collective to dismantle racial stereotypes with love and glitter.
DUST & METAL (CAT BUI & KIM LOAI) brings together for the first time a live cinema documentary featuring past and present stories of freedom in Vietnam. With a population of 97 million, and 45 million registered motorbikes (the highest in South East Asia) that’s almost one bike for every two people. The urban roads and ‘hem’ alleys are only accessible by two-wheels. These roads are awash with the transportation of goods of all types and sizes on the back of motorbikes, including washing machines, entire families, and chickens. The sounds of engines and horns create a symphony of Vietnamese life. In a unique partnership with the Vietnam Film Institute, archive film is edited alongside contemporary footage and a live score composed/performed by Vietnamese artist Xo Xinh.
Official Selection Sheffield DocFest 2022 - Rhythms - World premiere
Having been supporting her family in China alone for decades, the dry-cleaning shop owner meets a new customer, who liberates her from the lonely and colourless life in this foreign land. As a loyal wife who has been sticking to her family responsibilities, she shows doubt in her belief...
FREEDOM SWIMMER documents a mass migration story from the 20th century, which is relatively untold in the Western world— and offers context for a city in turmoil, today.
A granddaughter asks her grandfather to recount his journey from China, swimming to Hong Kong in the 1970’s.
One of two million mainland residents who swam across the southern sea border. Many others died trying or were captured and sent to labour camps. He was one of the lucky ones.
From the 1950’s to 1980’s Hong Kong was a symbol of freedom to many Chinese, glimpsed across the water. The grandfather, like many others, went on to have a successful life in Hong Kong and was part of the working-class movement that helped transform the city into a financial success story.
FREEDOM SWIMMER explores the effect of past cultural trauma, exploring a new perspective on the current situation. It reflects the depth of a symbol that is ‘freedom’ - that Hong Kong both represents and holds onto so tightly.
On a wider-scale, this is a universal story of the dispossessed— what it takes to flee your country, what it means to fight for freedom, what it is like to leave everything in hope of liberty.
Zara, a schoolgirl in Karachi, shares a sensual dance video with her virtual boyfriend, who then blackmails her.
Official Selection Hamburg International Short Film Festival 2022
A shapeshifting noirish romance about 20-something Mina. By day, she holds down a professional job. By night, Mina practices martial arts. A clash with a stranger triggers a supernatural occurrence that will draw her deep into the very ancestral traditions that she has been trying to escape.
A parallel plot following teenagers Ayesha and Chloe who are neighbours, yet inhabit very different worlds, and think that the grass is greener on the other side.
This urgent film beds in with Hong Kong’s pro-democracy demonstrations, offering a frontline portrait of four young protesters through a year of struggle. We see their hopes for a freer life and feel their fears as the authorities crack down. Pulse-racing scenes bring the viewer to street level, where peaceful protest is met with fury and tear gas. Clear-eyed about the complications and contradictions that come with a movement that changed Hong Kong forever, it is a brave document of troubled times.
Official Selection CPH:DOX Festival 2021 - F:act Award - World premiere
Two twenty-something former best friends Margo and Celeste meet again at a hen party back in Cornwall, but under the waves of disappointment and failure, will the reunion cause them to sink or swim?
Two ex-lovers bump into each other at a train station.
Official Selection Annecy Film Festival 2021 - World premiere
Official Selection SXSW Film Festival 2022
