Asian Film Festival Barcelona at Acció Cinema 3

November 8th, December 20th, 2025

Casa Asia is part of the new edition of the ACCIÓ>CINEMA program, promoted by the CFF Platform | Catalunya Film Festivals and the ACCD | Catalan Agency for Development Cooperation. The main goal of the program is to bring Asian auteur cinema closer to the public. This type of cinema is starting to appear in commercial theaters, but only in a very limited way. With this program, we try to connect the cultures of this large continent through cinema, which is a very powerful way to communicate.

Through shared stories, cultural diversity and personal and collective experiences, cinema becomes a special place to learn about other cultures. The eighteen selected films cover a wide geography : Australia, Central Asia, from Kazakhstan to Pakistan, Iran, Banglasdesh, India, and countries in Southeast and East Asia such as China, Japna, Malaysia, Vietnam, and the Philippines. This is a very big territory with many different “Asias” and cultures that are often very different from each other, even when they share borders.

The program includes films from eleven countries, most of them produced between 2024 and 2025. These films represent different Asian nationalities, ethnicities, and cultures. They talk about gender issues, human rights violations, the fight against climate change, and problems such as child exploitation and abuse. The aim is to help people understand these important issues that still exist in today’s world.

PROGRAM

TERRASA

Biblioteca 3 | Terrassa

Carrer del Germà Joaquim, 66, Can Palet, 08223, Terrassa, Barcelona

Saturday, November 8th, 2025, 11:30 a.m.

Saturday, November 15th, 2025, 11:30 a.m.

Saturday, November 22nd, 2025, 11:30h a.m.

Saturday, November 29th, 2025, 11:30h a.m.

Saturday, December 13th, 2025, 11:30h a.m.

Saturday, December 20th, 2025, 11:30h a.m.

SANTA COLOMA DE GRAMANET

Biblioteca Singuerlín – Salvador Cabré | Santa Coloma de Gramanet

Plaça Sagrada Família, S/N, 08924, Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Barcelona.

Friday November 28th, 2025, 6 p.m.

Biblioteca Fondo | Santa Coloma de Gramenet

Carrer de Massenet, 28, 08922 Santa Coloma de Gramenet, Barcelona.

Friday December 5th, 2025, 6 p.m.

GAVÀ

Espai Maragall | Gavà

Passeig de Joan Maragall, 11, 08850, Gavà, Barcelona

Friday December 12th, 2025

GIRONA

Casa de Cultura de Girona

Plaça de l’Hospital, 6, 17002, Girona (Sala Aula Magna)

Thursday December 11th, 2025, 6 p.m.

Friday December 12th, 2025, 6 p.m.

Saturday, December 13th, 2025

12 p.m. Qian Tang River | Xina | 2024 | 92’ | Drama, History

MOVIES

BANGLADESH

Saba | Maksud Hossain | 2024 | 95’| Drama

With her father missing, Saba is the sole caregiver to her paraplegic mother, Shirin, who suffers from acute heart disease. Although Shirin’s condition binds them together, her frustration with their situation often manifests as bitterness and anger towards her daughter, so they live in their own separate worlds. When Shirin has a heart attack, Saba has to sell their home in order to pay for her mom’s heart surgery. As her mother’s death approaches, Saba faces a life-altering transformation.

Maksud Hossain is a writer-director born and raised in the United Arab Emirates, who studied at Purdue University. Over the last 15 years, he has directed more than 200 television commercials and over 15 short films, such as Three Beauties (2006). His debut feature film, Saba (2024), was nominated for the Discovery Award (for Debut Feature), Best Debut Director, Best International Feature, and Best Performance in a Debut Feature at the 33rd Raindance Film Festival (2025).

CHINA

Karst | Yang Suiyi | 2024 | 107’ | Drama

In the stunning, rugged karst region of southwestern China, Long Ziying works as a cattle breeder in a small village far from the city. When her cattle inexplicably falls ill and the local village clinic offers no solution, Ziying is forced to venture to the town’s agricultural and animal husbandry pharmacy for a consultation. As she navigates her rural community and interacts with its inhabitants, fragments of her history emerge through conversations and encounters, painting a portrait of quiet resilience and determination. Ziying’s journey to save her animals becomes a path to confronting her own unspoken past.

Yang Suiyi was born in 1997 in Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, Guizhou Province. He graduated from Beijing Film Academy, majoring in art theory. During his studies, he shot several short feature films.vHis first feature film Karst (2024), won the Fei Mu Best Film Award in the Chinese Film Hidden Dragon Unit at the 8th Pingyao International Film Festival.

Qian Tang River | Wan Bo | 2024 | 92’ | Drama, History

One river, three generations, countless failures and a village deeply affected by recurrent tidal floods. In the late 1950s, a young man who is swept away by the river’s tides finds himself in said village, where the villagers make the collective decision to undertake an ambitious project: the construction of a dyke. This monumental effort becomes a central focus, illustrating their fight for survival, their unwavering beliefs, and their shared determination to tame the river and reclaim their land.

Wan Bo is a director and photographer from mainland China. He graduated from the China Academy of Art with both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in photography and drama and film directing. He holds a Ph.D. in Film Production from the Beijing Film Academy. Regarding his filmography, his most notable work to date is The Qiang River (2024), was nominated for Best Feature Film in the Asian New Talent section at the 2024 Shanghai International Film Festival and won the prestigious Golden Cocoon Award for Best Director at the 2024 Silk Road International Film Festival. He currently balances his filmmaking activities with significant academic work, serving as an associate professor and master’s supervisor at Zhejiang University of Media and Communications.

PHILIPPINES

Olsen’s Day | JP Habac | 2025 | 89’ | Drama, Coming-of-age

Ol Olsen, a 30‑year‑old researcher, is assigned to deliver a package from his provincial town to Manila. Along the way, he picks up a father and young son as passengers. What begins as a routine trip evolves into a deeply personal journey as Olsen reflects on his own life and the grief left by his late father. Through quiet conversations and shared silences, Olsen awakens to new possibilities for connection and healing. , un investigador de treinta años, tiene el encargo de transportar un paquete desde su ciudad provincial hasta Manila. En el camino, recoge a un padre e hijo como pasajeros. Lo que empieza como un viaje rutinario se convierte en un trayecto de búsqueda personal, en el que, a través de conversaciones y silencios compartidos, Olsen reflexiona sobre su vida y el duelo de su difunto padre, despertando nuevas posibilidades de conexión y sanación.

JP Habac (Manila, 1987) is a Filipino filmmaker graduated in Film from the University of the Philippines Film Institute. Throughout his nearly two decades of career, Habac has established himself as a prominent director, writer, and producer in Filipino cinema, especially known for his heartfelt storytelling focusing on LGBTQIA+ themes and romantic dramas. His notable works include the critically acclaimed film I’m Drunk, I Love You (2017), the web series Gaya sa Pelikula (2020) and Drag You & Me (2023). His most recent film, Olsen’s Day (2025), featured in the CinePanalo Film Festival 2025.

Salum | TM Malones | 2025 | 92’ | Drama, Enviromental

A father and daughter, both exceptional scallop divers, discover a rare clam allegedly containing a pearl worth millions, an unexpected opportunity that confronts them with questions of tradition, survival, and environmental responsibility. As the community grapples with modern development and ancestral rights, their relationship serves as the emotional core of a film that examines the costs and rewards of stewardship.

TM Malones is an independent Filipino filmmaker, director, cinematographer, and producer. His notable works include Buang-bulawan (2016), Sea Serpent (2017), Kargo (2022) and Salum (2025), featured in the CinePanalo Film Festival 2025.

IRAN

Summertime | Mahmoud Kalari | 2024 | 108’ | Drama

Since moving in with their grandmother, cousins Atta and Masi adapted to the absence of their parents. Atta’s father was in prison and Masi’s father had passed away. Despite the U.S. intervention in Iran in 1953, these children experienced an innocent childhood, unaware of the events unfolding around them. When their aunt, Marzi, accused Masi’s brother of stealing her jewels and forced Atta to identify him as the thief, their lives were thrown into turmoil. Years later, a 77-year-old Atta returns to Iran to visit his old home, evoking indelible childhood memories filled with love, admiration, and betrayal.

Mahmoud Kalari (1951) is one of the most recognized filmmakers of the New Iranian Cinema, collaborating with other directors and winning four Best Film awards at the Fajr National Film Festival. He began his artistic career in 1974, completed photography courses in New York, and worked at the Sigma Photo press agency based in Paris. In 1980, Time magazine named him one of the “15 Best Photographers of the Year” and called him “The Eye of Iran.” In 1998, he debuted with the feature The Cloud And The Rising Sun. His most recent work, Summertime (2024), received the Special Jury Prize and a Special Mention at the Fajr Film Festival 2024.

JAPAN

Good Luck | Adachi Shin | 2024 | 104’ | Drama, Crime

Taro is an independent filmmaker who is invited to appear at a screening of his personal documentary a film festival in Oita Prefecture. He goes in high spirits, but is rapidly depressed when the woman who organizes the festival harshly criticizes his film. Taro does not attend the party and wanders off the next day to a neighboring town. There, he meets a woman named Miki, and they decide to go on a small trip together. Throughout their brief acquaintance, they open up to each other, deepening their newly made bond. When Taro returns to Tokyo, his girlfriend is waiting for him.

Adachi Shin (1972) is a Japanese screenwriter and director. After graduating from the Japan Institute of the Moving Image, he studied under Director Somai Shinji. He began writing screenplays after working as an assistant director and in theater. In 2015, he won the 39th Japan Academy Film Prize for Best Screenplay Award for 100 Yen Love (2014). His most recent film, Good Luck (2024), was selected for the Tokyo International Film Festival, the Udine Far East Film Festival and the Fribourg Asian Film Festival.

KAZAKHSTAN

Longer Than a Day | Malika Mukhamejan | 2024 | 112’ | Drama

The lives of Karlygash (Kazakh for “swallow”) and Ilyas, a young married couple living on a horse ranch in a remote settlement of the Kazakh steppe, are drastically changed by the arrival of a French traveller named Louis. Karlygash moves from emotionally depending on Ilyas to fleeing, ultimately stepping into an uncertain future. The film explores how women cope with loneliness through a story of love and passion that ends with the marriage.

Malika Mukhamejan (Shu, 1993) is a Kazakh filmmaker who graduated in directing from the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography (VGIK) in 2021. Her work focuses on women’s stories, loneliness, and isolation. She is the founder of QYZQARAS, a platform that supports female filmmakers in Kazakhstan. Her first feature film, Longer Than A Day (2024), was selected for the Asian New Talent section at the 26th Shanghai International Film Festival (SIFF).

PAKISTAN

Nayab | Umair Nasir Ali | 2024 | 153’ | Drama, Sports

Nayab, a middle-class girl full of passion, dreams of making it big in the competitive world of cricket. However, her family is not supportive of her dreams. Her brother, once a rising star himself, grapples with his past while debating whereas helping his little sister rebel their parents’ expectations.

Umair Nasir Ali is an acclaimed filmmaker with over fifteen years of experience in advertising and film industry. He is founder of Num Films. Known for his creative storytelling, he has directed numerous award-winning TVC campaigns for leading brands, earning recognition as an ace ad filmmaker. His debut feature film, Nayab (2024) won the Best First Time Filmmaker award in Cannes and was an official competition at the Shanghai Film Festival 2025.