Film Series: “Asian Cinema from OFF-AFFBCN”

Casa Àsia is part of the programme Acció Cinema, promoted by Plataforma CFF | Catalunya Film Festivals and CCAD | Cooperative Catalan Agency for Development, and the first touring from the initiative is destined to Mostra de CineBaix | MCBAIX Festival de cinema internacional del Baix Llobregat. Casa Àsia collaborates in this event with six titles articulated around the project “Cinemes d’Àsia | Cines de Asia” from OFF-AFFBCN, which will be circulating around other headquarters in the rest of Catalonia.

The main objective from the programme is to bring the public closer to Asian cinema d’auteur, a cinema which if it is starting to appear in commercial chains is only in a selective manner. In this way, we try to connect cultures from this vast continent through a very effective means such as cinema, understood as an insurmountable medium for communication. Through these commonly shared narratives and the exploration of diversity, besides collective and personal experiences susceptible to be rescued for its transmission, this contact with other cultures finds an exceptional place in cinema. The geography encompassed through the selected films runs across Central Asia, with its soviet ex-republics (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tayikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan), Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and all countries from Southeast Asia, China, Korea, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, besides Australia and New Zealand. Obviously bearing in mind this immense territory is integrated by many different “Asias” and cultures which, although in many cases sharing borders, are radically different between each other. In this way, the programme gathers six films, produced mostly between 2019 and 2021, representative of some of these nationalities, ethnicities, and Asian cultures.

PROGRAMME:

CineBaix Cinema Associatiu Sant Feliu de Llobregat

My Childhood, My Country: 20 Years in Afghanistan follows the journey of Mir Hussain, who grew up in a war-torn land. In the beginning, he is an eight-year-old boy playing among the ruins of the Buddhas of Bamiyan in rural Afghanistan. In 2002, U.S. troops land in Afghanistan, beginning a seemingly endless war in one of the world’s poorest countries. This intimate documentary traces the two decades of a conflict that has never ended. Beginning on September 11, 2001, My Childhood, My Country: 20 Years in Afghanistan is a unique review of a personal life and the life of a nation, where 40 countries have invested more than a trillion dollars and more than 150,000 lives have been lost. Was it worth the effort to be now back at the beginning?

A newlywed woman expects to have a few happy days ahead of her. Yet, the wife’s day begins in the kitchen and ends in the kitchen. Her husband works as a school teacher and her mother-in-law flies to the United States for the birth of their daughter. In the meantime, she is looking for a job and when she decides to apply for one, her father-in-law stops her. With each day that passes, the inconveniences add up, and finally the protagonist realizes that this is not the place for her, and decides to react in a truly beautiful way.

Right before Soodeh Sharifzadegan’s second marriage, her 11-year-old son, Matiar, is kidnapped. After considerable effort, Soodeh is forced to ask for the ransom money from her ex-husband, Peyman. After Matiar’s release, Soodeh, being curious, comes to the sudden realization that it was all her son’s plan to provide the grounds for his father’s return.

Jekshen, an exceptional 12-year-old runner, lives in a beautiful mountain village in Kyrgyzstan. His parents are divorced and life with his alcoholic father is complicated. The lonely Jekshen has only the support of his school girlfriend and his father’s friends. They encourage him to take part in an important race that could change his life.

Young-jin’s company rarely recognizes her dedication to her job because she is a woman, while her co-worker, Ju-seol, has had no trouble working her way up to Young-jin’s boss thanks to his connections. Young-jin sees Jun-seol as an enemy, but at the same time feels sympathy for his emptiness and helps him adjust to the company. But Jun-seol nevertheless does not hesitate to steal his subordinate’s designs without her consent. Young-jin wishes to get the stolen design back, but finds it very difficult to give up his hard-earned love for Jun-seol.

Haruko’s “family” is a little different from the others. She is a single mother and lives with her son Riku, her friend Meiko and Meiko’s boyfriend Sorao. One day, she receives a text message from her old friend, the now famous influencer Tomoko, asking Haruko to authorize her 17-year-old daughter Yuko to participate in her summer art school program. And so begins a summer of self-discovery for young Yuko, caught between trying to live up to her famous and stylish mother’s legacy and discovering her own path.

Centre Cultural i d’Esbarjo Sant Pol de Mar

Biblioteca Districte 3 Terrassa

28/01/2022
CineBaix Cinema Associatiu: from the 28th to the 31st of January 2022.
Centre Cultural i d’Esbarjo: on the 6th and 20th of February 2022.
Biblioteca Districte 3: from the 12th of March to the 28th of May 2022.
CineBaix Cinema Associatiu
c/ Joan Batllori, 21
Sant Feliu de Llobregat
Centre Cultural i d’Esbarjo
c/ Consolat de Mar, 65
Sant Pol de Mar
Biblioteca Districte 3
c/ Germà Joaquim, 66
Terrassa
CineBaix Cinema Associatiu:
Ticket price: 6 euros.
Ticket price for people below age 12, above age 65 and Carnet Jove: 5 euros.
Centre Cultural i d’Esbarjo:
Ticket price: 6 euros.
Subscriber ticket price: 5 euros.
Biblioteca Districte 3:
Free entry.
Casa Àsia, in collaboration with CineBaix, Centre Cultural i d’Esbarjo, Biblioteca Districte 3, Ajuntament de Terrassa, Acció Cinema, Generalitat de Catalunya and Catalunya Film Festivals.