Film: KD

Madhumita Sundararaman | 115min | 2019 | India

Karuppudurai, an 80-year-old man, bedridden for the past three months in a coma, suddenly wakes up one fine day to overhear his family planning to kill him by performing an ancient euthanasia ritual. Hurt, heartbroken and afraid, Karuppudurai runs away from the only home he has ever known. On an aimless path with nowhere to go, he accidentally meets a 10-year-old orphan, Kutty. Kutty is everything Karuppudurai isn’t; smart, spunky and full of life. The fiercely independent Kutty encourages KD to chalk out a bucket list and start living for himself. Thus begins an eventful road trip of this unlikely pair–an old man running away from his family and a young boy who never had one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Madhumita Sundararaman

Madhumita is a prolific Indian writer-director, primarily working in Tamil language cinema. Her first short film Abstract Identity won the BBC Award in the Best in the World category. Having done a course in Direction from the New York Film Academy, she has also briefly worked on Pirates of the Caribbean III. Madhumita recently completed a Tamil-Telugu bilingual feature, titled Moone Moonu Varthai/Moodu Mukkallo Cheppalante as a director, and a Hindi feature film, Tadka, as a creative producer.

 

 

 

Kick off the largest South Asian film festival on the Red Carpet, with celebrities Suraj Sharma (Life of Pi), Shabana Azmi, Danish Renzu, Tanuja Chandra, Gazal Dhaliwal, and other filmmakers. Followed by a Bollywood dance party with delicious Indian food. Actress Shabana Azmi will be presented with the Tasveer Emerald Award.

PROGRAM
6:30 PM: Red Carpet Walk with celebrities Shabana Azmi, Sumantra Ghosal, Suraj Sharma, Danish Renzu, Tanuja Chandra, Gazal Dhaliwal, Asavari Kumar, and many more
-Tasveer Emerald Award to Legendary Actor Shabana Azmi
7:00 PM: Film The Illegal and talk with filmmaker Danish Renzu, and Suraj Sharma
9:30 PM: Party begins at The Summit on Pike (420 E Pike St, Seattle, WA 98122)

Film: The Illegal

Danish Renzu | 86min | 2018 | US/India

A gritty, realistic story about a young film school student from middle-class India who’s forced to drop out to support his family while staying in the United States.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Danish Renzu

Danish Renzu is a Kashmir-born film director, whose work, direction, and writing have received critical acclaim, whilst his work in drama specifically has earned him an official selection at various film festivals and recognition in press and media. Danish Renzu grew up in the conflict-driven valley of Kashmir where he lived through frequent bombings, shutdowns, and abuse of human rights. He realized early in life that a true solution lies in investing our energies toward personal development, education, and community growth. A graduate of the University of California Los Angeles, he came to America all by himself at a very young age to pursue his dreams. He also holds a Bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering.

 

 

 

 

Film: Kaifinama

Sumantra Ghosal | 90min | 2019 | India

Kaifinama looks at the life and art of the Urdu Progressive poet Kaifi Azmi. Kaifi Azmi was both a poet for social change as well as one of the foremost lyricists in the Hindi film industry. Not content to limit himself to fine writing, he worked ceaselessly throughout his life as a catalyst for change among the disenfranchised.

The screening will be followed by a Q&A, moderated by Pulkit Datta.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sumantra Ghosal

Sumantra Ghosal spent the better part of his life making advertising films for his companies Cinematix and Equinox. Now, he makes documentaries. Noteworthy among his several films on the arts are the two feature-length films: The Speaking Hand (on the tabla maestro Zakir Hussain) and The Unseen Sequence (on the Bharatanatyam dancer Malavika Sarukkai). In 2017, Sumantra completed The Space Between The Notes – a documentary on a concert by Zakir Hussain and Niladri Kumar. He also served as a creative collaborator with Malavika Sarukkai and wrote the poems for the full-length dance project Thari – The Loom.

 

 

 

 

Trailer

 

Fundraiser: Dinner with Shabana, buy your tickets here (not included in the festival pass).

 

 

Short Film: Kamali

Sasha Rainbow | 24 min | 2019 | United Kingdom

Kamali is the only girl skateboarder in a fishing village. Her timorous mother, Suganthi makes a pilgrimage in a quest for self-discovery. Separated for the first time, they must find freedom in a man’s world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sasha Rainbow

Sasha Rainbow is a director who has worked across multiple disciplines including film, art direction, photography, and costume. Sasha believes storytelling can throw light onto communities to showcase heroic role models, which is just what the world needs.

 

 

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Aguan – Sun Behind the Horizon

Novera Hasan Nikkon | 9 min | 2019 | Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s socio-cultural environment is built on gender discrimination. Girls are often considered to be financial burdens on their family from the time of birth and empowering women is still a dream from generation to generation. This is the story of Rahela Begum, a 22-year-old single mother who becomes a female rickshaw-puller, breaking traditional gender roles while supporting her two children after her husband leaves her. Muslim-majority Bangladesh is one of Asia’s most conservative societies, one in which the idea of a woman doing such a job had been unheard of before Rahela hit the road three years ago in the capital city Dhaka. Barring senseless conventions and stereotypes from consideration, Rahela is a model for women’s empowerment in the sub-continent.

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Novera Hasan Nikkon

Novera Hasan Nikkon is a student filmmaker from Dhaka, Bangladesh. She is an undergraduate student in the Fine Arts department at Jagannath University, Dhaka. Her works include three short documentary films on girls’ and womens’ rights. Her debut solo film, Let Me Breathe with my Dream (2017), has earned several inspiring awards and official nominations. Her second and third films, We Could be Champion Too and Aguan, have also received prestigious awards. Ms. Nikkon’s proposed production proposal, The Girls are not Brides, received the prestigious Hoso Bunka Foundation Award in the NHK Japan Prize competition in 2016. In the 56 year-history of the Japan Prize, she is the first 19-year-old and the first Bangladeshi citizen to win this prestigious prize.

Short Film: The Stitch

Asiya Zahor | 8min | 2019 | India

The Stitch is set near the LOC Line of Control–not a recognized international boundary but a de facto border between India and Pakistan in Baramulla/Uri, towards the extreme north of Kashmir. The film takes us into the life of a nine-year-old girl, who takes respite in drawing, even though she has to navigate difficult geographical terrain and occasionally a curfew or a crossfire, in order to fulfill small aspirations like going to school. By zooming into the microcosm of the girl’s life, this short film endeavours to portray the larger story of Kashmir and the negotiations the people in any contested territory have to make to deal with fissures in their geographical and personal identities. As a conscious act of resistance against the infidelity of language, there is no dialogue in the film.

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asiya Zahor

Asiya Zahoor, the director of the film teaches literature in Baramulla. She writes poetry and occasionally experiments with the visual medium. The film has brought together a group of people with an urge to tell their story. These are mostly students from Baramulla with an exception of the musician, Ghulam Hassan, who plays rabab after a day’s toil of sweeping the Baramulla college.

 

 

 

Short Film: A for Apple

Sarah Aminuddin | 14 min | 2019 | Canada

Inside the home of an upper-class Pakistani family, teenage servant Humaira receives English lessons from her young mistress, Sabina. The classes awaken in Humaira the desire for an education of which she has been deprived as a maid. When Naseem, her mother, notices the lessons are distracting her from her work, she reprimands the girl for transgressing her social position and gender expectations. Despite constant discouragement from her mother and employers, Humaira continues to pursue her dream of learning English.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sarah Aminuddin

Sarah Aminuddin is a Pakistani-Canadian filmmaker and has completed her BA Honours in Film Production from York University. Her films focus on various social issues prevalent in Pakistan such as child marriage, female education, and homophobia. Her work has been screened at Regent Park Film Festival, International Film Festival of South Asia Toronto, and won ‘Best Film’ at York’s Cinesiege. Currently, she runs the video department at a digital media company in Lahore while writing a mini-series about the class divide in Pakistan. She is passionate about bringing change to her country through her work, which pushes her to make content which leaves a long-lasting impact on the viewer.

Short Film: Nooreh

Ashish Pandey | 20min | 2019 | India

Nestled in the Kashmir valley sits a small village on the India-Pakistan border, perpetually caught in the crossfire between the two warring nations. One night an eight-year-old girl, Nooreh, discovers that the gun battle rages when she sleeps and the bloody duel stops when she keeps her eyes open.

 

 

Filmmaker: Ashish Pandey

Ashish began his quest to find unheard marginal voices with his first short The Cabin Man (2007), which dealt with the loneliness of a cabin man guarding an abandoned railway cabin. In Open Doors (2010), he reflected upon the apathy of a son towards his fragile mother, who hopes to return home, till her last breath. Nooreh (2018) portrays an innocent belief of a young Kashmiri girl, growing up in a conflict-ridden village on the India-Pakistan border. Pandey is a graduate from Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, Kolkata, with specialization in sound.

Short Film: Gaash

Danish Renzu | 14min | 2019 | India

Under a shroud of life, Fatima embarks on a journey in search of her beloved Gaash (light).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Danish Renzu

Danish Renzu is a Kashmir born film director, whose work, direction, and writing have received critical acclaim, whilst his work in drama specifically has earned him an official selection at various film festivals and recognition in press and media. Danish Renzu grew up in the conflict-driven valley of Kashmir where he lived through frequent bombings, shutdowns, and abuse of human rights; he realized early in life that true solution lies in investing our energies toward personal development, education, and community growth. A graduate of the University of California Los Angeles, he came to America all by himself at a very young age to pursue his dreams.

Short Film: Passage

Asavari Kumar | 6min | 2019 | US/India

Passage is an animated short film that recounts the journey of a young immigrant woman from India in the aftermath of the US Presidential Elections of 2016. The film unfolds like an animated essay, portraying the woman’s personal journey through a quagmire of memories, changing identities, and the idea of belonging. Amidst rising global anti-immigrant sentiments and divisive discourses within the immigrant communities, Passage hopes to explore overlapping narratives across varied immigrant experiences.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asavari Kumar

Asavari is an Animation Director from New Delhi, India currently based in Los Angeles. She owns and operates the collective Supernova Design through which she creates commercial and personal projects while collaborating with POC and women artists. Asavari’s films, installations and graphic narratives have been showcased at national and international film festivals and exhibition spaces. She uses character-driven storytelling to parse her evolving cultural and political identity and aims to generate a discourse surrounding ideas of ‘home’ and ‘belonging’ and find where her narratives intersect with those around her.

Short Film: Nooreh

Ashish Pandey | 20min | 2019 | India

Nestled in the Kashmir valley sits a small village on the India-Pakistan border, perpetually caught in the crossfire between the two warring nations. One night an eight-year-old girl, Nooreh, discovers that the gun battle rages when she sleeps and the bloody duel stops when she keeps her eyes open.

 

 

Filmmaker: Ashish Pandey

Ashish began his quest to find unheard marginal voices with his first short The Cabin Man (2007), which dealt with the loneliness of a cabin man guarding an abandoned railway cabin. In Open Doors (2010), he reflected upon the apathy of a son towards his fragile mother, who hopes to return home, till her last breath. Nooreh (2018) portrays an innocent belief of a young Kashmiri girl, growing up in a conflict-ridden village on the India-Pakistan border. Pandey is a graduate from Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, Kolkata, with specialization in sound.

 

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: A for Apple

Sarah Aminuddin | 14 min | 2019 | Canada

Inside the home of an upper-class Pakistani family, teenage servant Humaira receives English lessons from her young mistress, Sabina. The classes awaken in Humaira the desire for an education of which she has been deprived as a maid. When Naseem, her mother, notices the lessons are distracting her from her work, she reprimands the girl for transgressing her social position and gender expectations. Despite constant discouragement from her mother and employers, Humaira continues to pursue her dream of learning English.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sarah Aminuddin

Sarah Aminuddin is a Pakistani-Canadian filmmaker and has completed her BA Honours in Film Production from York University. Her films focus on various social issues prevalent in Pakistan such as child marriage, female education, and homophobia. Her work has been screened at Regent Park Film Festival, International Film Festival of South Asia Toronto, and won ‘Best Film’ at York’s Cinesiege. Currently, she runs the video department at a digital media company in Lahore while writing a mini-series about the class divide in Pakistan. She is passionate about bringing change to her country through her work, which pushes her to make content which leaves a long-lasting impact on the viewer.

Short Film: The Stitch

Asiya Zahor | 8min | 2019 | India

The Stitch is set near the LOC Line of Control–not a recognized international boundary but a de facto border between India and Pakistan in Baramulla/Uri, towards the extreme north of Kashmir. The film takes us into the life of a nine-year-old girl, who takes respite in drawing, even though she has to navigate difficult geographical terrain and occasionally a curfew or a crossfire, in order to fulfill small aspirations like going to school. By zooming into the microcosm of the girl’s life, this short film endeavours to portray the larger story of Kashmir and the negotiations the people in any contested territory have to make to deal with fissures in their geographical and personal identities. As a conscious act of resistance against the infidelity of language, there is no dialogue in the film.

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asiya Zahor

Asiya Zahoor, the director of the film teaches literature in Baramulla. She writes poetry and occasionally experiments with the visual medium. The film has brought together a group of people with an urge to tell their story. These are mostly students from Baramulla with an exception of the musician, Ghulam Hassan, who plays rabab after a day’s toil of sweeping the Baramulla college.

 

 

 

Short Film: Kamali

Sasha Rainbow | 24 min | 2019 | United Kingdom

Kamali is the only girl skateboarder in a fishing village. Her timorous mother, Suganthi makes a pilgrimage in a quest for self-discovery. Separated for the first time, they must find freedom in a man’s world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sasha Rainbow

Sasha Rainbow is a director who has worked across multiple disciplines including film, art direction, photography, and costume. Sasha believes storytelling can throw light onto communities to showcase heroic role models, which is just what the world needs.

Short Film: Aguan – Sun Behind the Horizon

Novera Hasan Nikkon | 9 min | 2019 | Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s socio-cultural environment is built on gender discrimination. Girls are often considered to be financial burdens on their family from the time of birth and empowering women is still a dream from generation to generation. This is the story of Rahela Begum, a 22-year-old single mother who becomes a female rickshaw-puller, breaking traditional gender roles while supporting her two children after her husband leaves her. Muslim-majority Bangladesh is one of Asia’s most conservative societies, one in which the idea of a woman doing such a job had been unheard of before Rahela hit the road three years ago in the capital city Dhaka. Barring senseless conventions and stereotypes from consideration, Rahela is a model for women’s empowerment in the sub-continent.

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Novera Hasan Nikkon

Novera Hasan Nikkon is a student filmmaker from Dhaka, Bangladesh. She is an undergraduate student in the Fine Arts department at Jagannath University, Dhaka. Her works include three short documentary films on girls’ and womens’ rights. Her debut solo film, Let Me Breathe with my Dream (2017), has earned several inspiring awards and official nominations. Her second and third films, We Could be Champion Too and Aguan, have also received prestigious awards. Ms. Nikkon’s proposed production proposal, The Girls are not Brides, received the prestigious Hoso Bunka Foundation Award in the NHK Japan Prize competition in 2016. In the 56 year-history of the Japan Prize, she is the first 19-year-old and the first Bangladeshi citizen to win this prestigious prize.

Short Film: Gaash

Danish Renzu | 14min | 2019 | India

Under a shroud of life, Fatima embarks on a journey in search of her beloved Gaash (light).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Danish Renzu

Danish Renzu is a Kashmir born film director, whose work, direction, and writing have received critical acclaim, whilst his work in drama specifically has earned him an official selection at various film festivals and recognition in press and media. Danish Renzu grew up in the conflict-driven valley of Kashmir where he lived through frequent bombings, shutdowns, and abuse of human rights; he realized early in life that true solution lies in investing our energies toward personal development, education, and community growth. A graduate of the University of California Los Angeles, he came to America all by himself at a very young age to pursue his dreams.

Short Film: Passage

Asavari Kumar | 6min | 2019 | US/India

Passage is an animated short film that recounts the journey of a young immigrant woman from India in the aftermath of the US Presidential Elections of 2016. The film unfolds like an animated essay, portraying the woman’s personal journey through a quagmire of memories, changing identities, and the idea of belonging. Amidst rising global anti-immigrant sentiments and divisive discourses within the immigrant communities, Passage hopes to explore overlapping narratives across varied immigrant experiences.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asavari Kumar

Asavari is an Animation Director from New Delhi, India currently based in Los Angeles. She owns and operates the collective Supernova Design through which she creates commercial and personal projects while collaborating with POC and women artists. Asavari’s films, installations and graphic narratives have been showcased at national and international film festivals and exhibition spaces. She uses character-driven storytelling to parse her evolving cultural and political identity and aims to generate a discourse surrounding ideas of ‘home’ and ‘belonging’ and find where her narratives intersect with those around her.

Short Film: A for Apple

Sarah Aminuddin | 14 min | 2019 | Canada

Inside the home of an upper-class Pakistani family, teenage servant Humaira receives English lessons from her young mistress, Sabina. The classes awaken in Humaira the desire for an education of which she has been deprived as a maid. When Naseem, her mother, notices the lessons are distracting her from her work, she reprimands the girl for transgressing her social position and gender expectations. Despite constant discouragement from her mother and employers, Humaira continues to pursue her dream of learning English.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sarah Aminuddin

Sarah Aminuddin is a Pakistani-Canadian filmmaker and has completed her BA Honours in Film Production from York University. Her films focus on various social issues prevalent in Pakistan such as child marriage, female education, and homophobia. Her work has been screened at Regent Park Film Festival, International Film Festival of South Asia Toronto, and won ‘Best Film’ at York’s Cinesiege. Currently, she runs the video department at a digital media company in Lahore while writing a mini-series about the class divide in Pakistan. She is passionate about bringing change to her country through her work, which pushes her to make content which leaves a long-lasting impact on the viewer.

 

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: The Stitch

Asiya Zahor | 8min | 2019 | India

The Stitch is set near the LOC Line of Control–not a recognized international boundary but a de facto border between India and Pakistan in Baramulla/Uri, towards the extreme north of Kashmir. The film takes us into the life of a nine-year-old girl, who takes respite in drawing, even though she has to navigate difficult geographical terrain and occasionally a curfew or a crossfire, in order to fulfill small aspirations like going to school. By zooming into the microcosm of the girl’s life, this short film endeavours to portray the larger story of Kashmir and the negotiations the people in any contested territory have to make to deal with fissures in their geographical and personal identities. As a conscious act of resistance against the infidelity of language, there is no dialogue in the film.

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asiya Zahor

Asiya Zahoor, the director of the film teaches literature in Baramulla. She writes poetry and occasionally experiments with the visual medium. The film has brought together a group of people with an urge to tell their story. These are mostly students from Baramulla with an exception of the musician, Ghulam Hassan, who plays rabab after a day’s toil of sweeping the Baramulla college.

 

 

 

Short Film: Kamali

Sasha Rainbow | 24 min | 2019 | United Kingdom

Kamali is the only girl skateboarder in a fishing village. Her timorous mother, Suganthi makes a pilgrimage in a quest for self-discovery. Separated for the first time, they must find freedom in a man’s world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sasha Rainbow

Sasha Rainbow is a director who has worked across multiple disciplines including film, art direction, photography, and costume. Sasha believes storytelling can throw light onto communities to showcase heroic role models, which is just what the world needs.

Short Film: Aguan – Sun Behind the Horizon

Novera Hasan Nikkon | 9 min | 2019 | Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s socio-cultural environment is built on gender discrimination. Girls are often considered to be financial burdens on their family from the time of birth and empowering women is still a dream from generation to generation. This is the story of Rahela Begum, a 22-year-old single mother who becomes a female rickshaw-puller, breaking traditional gender roles while supporting her two children after her husband leaves her. Muslim-majority Bangladesh is one of Asia’s most conservative societies, one in which the idea of a woman doing such a job had been unheard of before Rahela hit the road three years ago in the capital city Dhaka. Barring senseless conventions and stereotypes from consideration, Rahela is a model for women’s empowerment in the sub-continent.

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Novera Hasan Nikkon

Novera Hasan Nikkon is a student filmmaker from Dhaka, Bangladesh. She is an undergraduate student in the Fine Arts department at Jagannath University, Dhaka. Her works include three short documentary films on girls’ and womens’ rights. Her debut solo film, Let Me Breathe with my Dream (2017), has earned several inspiring awards and official nominations. Her second and third films, We Could be Champion Too and Aguan, have also received prestigious awards. Ms. Nikkon’s proposed production proposal, The Girls are not Brides, received the prestigious Hoso Bunka Foundation Award in the NHK Japan Prize competition in 2016. In the 56 year-history of the Japan Prize, she is the first 19-year-old and the first Bangladeshi citizen to win this prestigious prize.

Short Film: Nooreh

Ashish Pandey | 20min | 2019 | India

Nestled in the Kashmir valley sits a small village on the India-Pakistan border, perpetually caught in the crossfire between the two warring nations. One night an eight-year-old girl, Nooreh, discovers that the gun battle rages when she sleeps and the bloody duel stops when she keeps her eyes open.

 

 

Filmmaker: Ashish Pandey

Ashish began his quest to find unheard marginal voices with his first short The Cabin Man (2007), which dealt with the loneliness of a cabin man guarding an abandoned railway cabin. In Open Doors (2010), he reflected upon the apathy of a son towards his fragile mother, who hopes to return home, till her last breath. Nooreh (2018) portrays an innocent belief of a young Kashmiri girl, growing up in a conflict-ridden village on the India-Pakistan border. Pandey is a graduate from Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, Kolkata, with specialization in sound.

Short Film: Gaash

Danish Renzu | 14min | 2019 | India

Under a shroud of life, Fatima embarks on a journey in search of her beloved Gaash (light).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Danish Renzu

Danish Renzu is a Kashmir born film director, whose work, direction, and writing have received critical acclaim, whilst his work in drama specifically has earned him an official selection at various film festivals and recognition in press and media. Danish Renzu grew up in the conflict-driven valley of Kashmir where he lived through frequent bombings, shutdowns, and abuse of human rights; he realized early in life that true solution lies in investing our energies toward personal development, education, and community growth. A graduate of the University of California Los Angeles, he came to America all by himself at a very young age to pursue his dreams.

Short Film: Passage

Asavari Kumar | 6min | 2019 | US/India

Passage is an animated short film that recounts the journey of a young immigrant woman from India in the aftermath of the US Presidential Elections of 2016. The film unfolds like an animated essay, portraying the woman’s personal journey through a quagmire of memories, changing identities, and the idea of belonging. Amidst rising global anti-immigrant sentiments and divisive discourses within the immigrant communities, Passage hopes to explore overlapping narratives across varied immigrant experiences.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asavari Kumar

Asavari is an Animation Director from New Delhi, India currently based in Los Angeles. She owns and operates the collective Supernova Design through which she creates commercial and personal projects while collaborating with POC and women artists. Asavari’s films, installations and graphic narratives have been showcased at national and international film festivals and exhibition spaces. She uses character-driven storytelling to parse her evolving cultural and political identity and aims to generate a discourse surrounding ideas of ‘home’ and ‘belonging’ and find where her narratives intersect with those around her.

Short Film: Gaash

Danish Renzu | 14min | 2019 | India

Under a shroud of life, Fatima embarks on a journey in search of her beloved Gaash (light).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Danish Renzu

Danish Renzu is a Kashmir born film director, whose work, direction, and writing have received critical acclaim, whilst his work in drama specifically has earned him an official selection at various film festivals and recognition in press and media. Danish Renzu grew up in the conflict-driven valley of Kashmir where he lived through frequent bombings, shutdowns, and abuse of human rights; he realized early in life that true solution lies in investing our energies toward personal development, education, and community growth. A graduate of the University of California Los Angeles, he came to America all by himself at a very young age to pursue his dreams.

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Nooreh

Ashish Pandey | 20min | 2019 | India

Nestled in the Kashmir valley sits a small village on the India-Pakistan border, perpetually caught in the crossfire between the two warring nations. One night an eight-year-old girl, Nooreh, discovers that the gun battle rages when she sleeps and the bloody duel stops when she keeps her eyes open.

 

 

Filmmaker: Ashish Pandey

Ashish began his quest to find unheard marginal voices with his first short The Cabin Man (2007), which dealt with the loneliness of a cabin man guarding an abandoned railway cabin. In Open Doors (2010), he reflected upon the apathy of a son towards his fragile mother, who hopes to return home, till her last breath. Nooreh (2018) portrays an innocent belief of a young Kashmiri girl, growing up in a conflict-ridden village on the India-Pakistan border. Pandey is a graduate from Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, Kolkata, with specialization in sound.

Short Film: A for Apple

Sarah Aminuddin | 14 min | 2019 | Canada

Inside the home of an upper-class Pakistani family, teenage servant Humaira receives English lessons from her young mistress, Sabina. The classes awaken in Humaira the desire for an education of which she has been deprived as a maid. When Naseem, her mother, notices the lessons are distracting her from her work, she reprimands the girl for transgressing her social position and gender expectations. Despite constant discouragement from her mother and employers, Humaira continues to pursue her dream of learning English.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sarah Aminuddin

Sarah Aminuddin is a Pakistani-Canadian filmmaker and has completed her BA Honours in Film Production from York University. Her films focus on various social issues prevalent in Pakistan such as child marriage, female education, and homophobia. Her work has been screened at Regent Park Film Festival, International Film Festival of South Asia Toronto, and won ‘Best Film’ at York’s Cinesiege. Currently, she runs the video department at a digital media company in Lahore while writing a mini-series about the class divide in Pakistan. She is passionate about bringing change to her country through her work, which pushes her to make content which leaves a long-lasting impact on the viewer.

Short Film: The Stitch

Asiya Zahor | 8min | 2019 | India

The Stitch is set near the LOC Line of Control–not a recognized international boundary but a de facto border between India and Pakistan in Baramulla/Uri, towards the extreme north of Kashmir. The film takes us into the life of a nine-year-old girl, who takes respite in drawing, even though she has to navigate difficult geographical terrain and occasionally a curfew or a crossfire, in order to fulfill small aspirations like going to school. By zooming into the microcosm of the girl’s life, this short film endeavours to portray the larger story of Kashmir and the negotiations the people in any contested territory have to make to deal with fissures in their geographical and personal identities. As a conscious act of resistance against the infidelity of language, there is no dialogue in the film.

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asiya Zahor

Asiya Zahoor, the director of the film teaches literature in Baramulla. She writes poetry and occasionally experiments with the visual medium. The film has brought together a group of people with an urge to tell their story. These are mostly students from Baramulla with an exception of the musician, Ghulam Hassan, who plays rabab after a day’s toil of sweeping the Baramulla college.

 

 

 

Short Film: Kamali

Sasha Rainbow | 24 min | 2019 | United Kingdom

Kamali is the only girl skateboarder in a fishing village. Her timorous mother, Suganthi makes a pilgrimage in a quest for self-discovery. Separated for the first time, they must find freedom in a man’s world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sasha Rainbow

Sasha Rainbow is a director who has worked across multiple disciplines including film, art direction, photography, and costume. Sasha believes storytelling can throw light onto communities to showcase heroic role models, which is just what the world needs.

Short Film: Aguan – Sun Behind the Horizon

Novera Hasan Nikkon | 9 min | 2019 | Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s socio-cultural environment is built on gender discrimination. Girls are often considered to be financial burdens on their family from the time of birth and empowering women is still a dream from generation to generation. This is the story of Rahela Begum, a 22-year-old single mother who becomes a female rickshaw-puller, breaking traditional gender roles while supporting her two children after her husband leaves her. Muslim-majority Bangladesh is one of Asia’s most conservative societies, one in which the idea of a woman doing such a job had been unheard of before Rahela hit the road three years ago in the capital city Dhaka. Barring senseless conventions and stereotypes from consideration, Rahela is a model for women’s empowerment in the sub-continent.

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Novera Hasan Nikkon

Novera Hasan Nikkon is a student filmmaker from Dhaka, Bangladesh. She is an undergraduate student in the Fine Arts department at Jagannath University, Dhaka. Her works include three short documentary films on girls’ and womens’ rights. Her debut solo film, Let Me Breathe with my Dream (2017), has earned several inspiring awards and official nominations. Her second and third films, We Could be Champion Too and Aguan, have also received prestigious awards. Ms. Nikkon’s proposed production proposal, The Girls are not Brides, received the prestigious Hoso Bunka Foundation Award in the NHK Japan Prize competition in 2016. In the 56 year-history of the Japan Prize, she is the first 19-year-old and the first Bangladeshi citizen to win this prestigious prize.

Short Film: Passage

Asavari Kumar | 6min | 2019 | US/India

Passage is an animated short film that recounts the journey of a young immigrant woman from India in the aftermath of the US Presidential Elections of 2016. The film unfolds like an animated essay, portraying the woman’s personal journey through a quagmire of memories, changing identities, and the idea of belonging. Amidst rising global anti-immigrant sentiments and divisive discourses within the immigrant communities, Passage hopes to explore overlapping narratives across varied immigrant experiences.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asavari Kumar

Asavari is an Animation Director from New Delhi, India currently based in Los Angeles. She owns and operates the collective Supernova Design through which she creates commercial and personal projects while collaborating with POC and women artists. Asavari’s films, installations and graphic narratives have been showcased at national and international film festivals and exhibition spaces. She uses character-driven storytelling to parse her evolving cultural and political identity and aims to generate a discourse surrounding ideas of ‘home’ and ‘belonging’ and find where her narratives intersect with those around her.

Short Film: Passage

Asavari Kumar | 6min | 2019 | US/India

Passage is an animated short film that recounts the journey of a young immigrant woman from India in the aftermath of the US Presidential Elections of 2016. The film unfolds like an animated essay, portraying the woman’s personal journey through a quagmire of memories, changing identities, and the idea of belonging. Amidst rising global anti-immigrant sentiments and divisive discourses within the immigrant communities, Passage hopes to explore overlapping narratives across varied immigrant experiences.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asavari Kumar

Asavari is an Animation Director from New Delhi, India currently based in Los Angeles. She owns and operates the collective Supernova Design through which she creates commercial and personal projects while collaborating with POC and women artists. Asavari’s films, installations and graphic narratives have been showcased at national and international film festivals and exhibition spaces. She uses character-driven storytelling to parse her evolving cultural and political identity and aims to generate a discourse surrounding ideas of ‘home’ and ‘belonging’ and find where her narratives intersect with those around her.

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Gaash

Danish Renzu | 14min | 2019 | India

Under a shroud of life, Fatima embarks on a journey in search of her beloved Gaash (light).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Danish Renzu

Danish Renzu is a Kashmir born film director, whose work, direction, and writing have received critical acclaim, whilst his work in drama specifically has earned him an official selection at various film festivals and recognition in press and media. Danish Renzu grew up in the conflict-driven valley of Kashmir where he lived through frequent bombings, shutdowns, and abuse of human rights; he realized early in life that true solution lies in investing our energies toward personal development, education, and community growth. A graduate of the University of California Los Angeles, he came to America all by himself at a very young age to pursue his dreams.

Short Film: Nooreh

Ashish Pandey | 20min | 2019 | India

Nestled in the Kashmir valley sits a small village on the India-Pakistan border, perpetually caught in the crossfire between the two warring nations. One night an eight-year-old girl, Nooreh, discovers that the gun battle rages when she sleeps and the bloody duel stops when she keeps her eyes open.

 

 

Filmmaker: Ashish Pandey

Ashish began his quest to find unheard marginal voices with his first short The Cabin Man (2007), which dealt with the loneliness of a cabin man guarding an abandoned railway cabin. In Open Doors (2010), he reflected upon the apathy of a son towards his fragile mother, who hopes to return home, till her last breath. Nooreh (2018) portrays an innocent belief of a young Kashmiri girl, growing up in a conflict-ridden village on the India-Pakistan border. Pandey is a graduate from Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, Kolkata, with specialization in sound.

Short Film: A for Apple

Sarah Aminuddin | 14 min | 2019 | Canada

Inside the home of an upper-class Pakistani family, teenage servant Humaira receives English lessons from her young mistress, Sabina. The classes awaken in Humaira the desire for an education of which she has been deprived as a maid. When Naseem, her mother, notices the lessons are distracting her from her work, she reprimands the girl for transgressing her social position and gender expectations. Despite constant discouragement from her mother and employers, Humaira continues to pursue her dream of learning English.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sarah Aminuddin

Sarah Aminuddin is a Pakistani-Canadian filmmaker and has completed her BA Honours in Film Production from York University. Her films focus on various social issues prevalent in Pakistan such as child marriage, female education, and homophobia. Her work has been screened at Regent Park Film Festival, International Film Festival of South Asia Toronto, and won ‘Best Film’ at York’s Cinesiege. Currently, she runs the video department at a digital media company in Lahore while writing a mini-series about the class divide in Pakistan. She is passionate about bringing change to her country through her work, which pushes her to make content which leaves a long-lasting impact on the viewer.

Short Film: Kamali

Sasha Rainbow | 24 min | 2019 | United Kingdom

Kamali is the only girl skateboarder in a fishing village. Her timorous mother, Suganthi makes a pilgrimage in a quest for self-discovery. Separated for the first time, they must find freedom in a man’s world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sasha Rainbow

Sasha Rainbow is a director who has worked across multiple disciplines including film, art direction, photography, and costume. Sasha believes storytelling can throw light onto communities to showcase heroic role models, which is just what the world needs.

Short Film: The Stitch

Asiya Zahor | 8min | 2019 | India

The Stitch is set near the LOC Line of Control–not a recognized international boundary but a de facto border between India and Pakistan in Baramulla/Uri, towards the extreme north of Kashmir. The film takes us into the life of a nine-year-old girl, who takes respite in drawing, even though she has to navigate difficult geographical terrain and occasionally a curfew or a crossfire, in order to fulfill small aspirations like going to school. By zooming into the microcosm of the girl’s life, this short film endeavours to portray the larger story of Kashmir and the negotiations the people in any contested territory have to make to deal with fissures in their geographical and personal identities. As a conscious act of resistance against the infidelity of language, there is no dialogue in the film.

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asiya Zahor

Asiya Zahoor, the director of the film teaches literature in Baramulla. She writes poetry and occasionally experiments with the visual medium. The film has brought together a group of people with an urge to tell their story. These are mostly students from Baramulla with an exception of the musician, Ghulam Hassan, who plays rabab after a day’s toil of sweeping the Baramulla college.

 

Short Film: Aguan – Sun Behind the Horizon

Novera Hasan Nikkon | 9 min | 2019 | Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s socio-cultural environment is built on gender discrimination. Girls are often considered to be financial burdens on their family from the time of birth and empowering women is still a dream from generation to generation. This is the story of Rahela Begum, a 22-year-old single mother who becomes a female rickshaw-puller, breaking traditional gender roles while supporting her two children after her husband leaves her. Muslim-majority Bangladesh is one of Asia’s most conservative societies, one in which the idea of a woman doing such a job had been unheard of before Rahela hit the road three years ago in the capital city Dhaka. Barring senseless conventions and stereotypes from consideration, Rahela is a model for women’s empowerment in the sub-continent.

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Novera Hasan Nikkon

Novera Hasan Nikkon is a student filmmaker from Dhaka, Bangladesh. She is an undergraduate student in the Fine Arts department at Jagannath University, Dhaka. Her works include three short documentary films on girls’ and womens’ rights. Her debut solo film, Let Me Breathe with my Dream (2017), has earned several inspiring awards and official nominations. Her second and third films, We Could be Champion Too and Aguan, have also received prestigious awards. Ms. Nikkon’s proposed production proposal, The Girls are not Brides, received the prestigious Hoso Bunka Foundation Award in the NHK Japan Prize competition in 2016. In the 56 year-history of the Japan Prize, she is the first 19-year-old and the first Bangladeshi citizen to win this prestigious prize.

Short Film: The Stitch

Asiya Zahor | 8min | 2019 | India

The Stitch is set near the LOC Line of Control–not a recognized international boundary but a de facto border between India and Pakistan in Baramulla/Uri, towards the extreme north of Kashmir. The film takes us into the life of a nine-year-old girl, who takes respite in drawing, even though she has to navigate difficult geographical terrain and occasionally a curfew or a crossfire, in order to fulfill small aspirations like going to school. By zooming into the microcosm of the girl’s life, this short film endeavours to portray the larger story of Kashmir and the negotiations the people in any contested territory have to make to deal with fissures in their geographical and personal identities. As a conscious act of resistance against the infidelity of language, there is no dialogue in the film.

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asiya Zahor

Asiya Zahoor, the director of the film teaches literature in Baramulla. She writes poetry and occasionally experiments with the visual medium. The film has brought together a group of people with an urge to tell their story. These are mostly students from Baramulla with an exception of the musician, Ghulam Hassan, who plays rabab after a day’s toil of sweeping the Baramulla college.

 

 

 

Short Film: Aguan – Sun Behind the Horizon

Novera Hasan Nikkon | 9 min | 2019 | Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s socio-cultural environment is built on gender discrimination. Girls are often considered to be financial burdens on their family from the time of birth and empowering women is still a dream from generation to generation. This is the story of Rahela Begum, a 22-year-old single mother who becomes a female rickshaw-puller, breaking traditional gender roles while supporting her two children after her husband leaves her. Muslim-majority Bangladesh is one of Asia’s most conservative societies, one in which the idea of a woman doing such a job had been unheard of before Rahela hit the road three years ago in the capital city Dhaka. Barring senseless conventions and stereotypes from consideration, Rahela is a model for women’s empowerment in the sub-continent.

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Novera Hasan Nikkon

Novera Hasan Nikkon is a student filmmaker from Dhaka, Bangladesh. She is an undergraduate student in the Fine Arts department at Jagannath University, Dhaka. Her works include three short documentary films on girls’ and womens’ rights. Her debut solo film, Let Me Breathe with my Dream (2017), has earned several inspiring awards and official nominations. Her second and third films, We Could be Champion Too and Aguan, have also received prestigious awards. Ms. Nikkon’s proposed production proposal, The Girls are not Brides, received the prestigious Hoso Bunka Foundation Award in the NHK Japan Prize competition in 2016. In the 56 year-history of the Japan Prize, she is the first 19-year-old and the first Bangladeshi citizen to win this prestigious prize.

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Kamali

Sasha Rainbow | 24 min | 2019 | United Kingdom

Kamali is the only girl skateboarder in a fishing village. Her timorous mother, Suganthi makes a pilgrimage in a quest for self-discovery. Separated for the first time, they must find freedom in a man’s world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sasha Rainbow

Sasha Rainbow is a director who has worked across multiple disciplines including film, art direction, photography, and costume. Sasha believes storytelling can throw light onto communities to showcase heroic role models, which is just what the world needs.

 

Short Film: The Stitch

Asiya Zahor | 8min | 2019 | India

The Stitch is set near the LOC Line of Control–not a recognized international boundary but a de facto border between India and Pakistan in Baramulla/Uri, towards the extreme north of Kashmir. The film takes us into the life of a nine-year-old girl, who takes respite in drawing, even though she has to navigate difficult geographical terrain and occasionally a curfew or a crossfire, in order to fulfill small aspirations like going to school. By zooming into the microcosm of the girl’s life, this short film endeavours to portray the larger story of Kashmir and the negotiations the people in any contested territory have to make to deal with fissures in their geographical and personal identities. As a conscious act of resistance against the infidelity of language, there is no dialogue in the film.

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asiya Zahor

Asiya Zahoor, the director of the film teaches literature in Baramulla. She writes poetry and occasionally experiments with the visual medium. The film has brought together a group of people with an urge to tell their story. These are mostly students from Baramulla with an exception of the musician, Ghulam Hassan, who plays rabab after a day’s toil of sweeping the Baramulla college.

 

 

Short Film: A for Apple

Sarah Aminuddin | 14 min | 2019 | Canada

Inside the home of an upper-class Pakistani family, teenage servant Humaira receives English lessons from her young mistress, Sabina. The classes awaken in Humaira the desire for an education of which she has been deprived as a maid. When Naseem, her mother, notices the lessons are distracting her from her work, she reprimands the girl for transgressing her social position and gender expectations. Despite constant discouragement from her mother and employers, Humaira continues to pursue her dream of learning English.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sarah Aminuddin

Sarah Aminuddin is a Pakistani-Canadian filmmaker and has completed her BA Honours in Film Production from York University. Her films focus on various social issues prevalent in Pakistan such as child marriage, female education, and homophobia. Her work has been screened at Regent Park Film Festival, International Film Festival of South Asia Toronto, and won ‘Best Film’ at York’s Cinesiege. Currently, she runs the video department at a digital media company in Lahore while writing a mini-series about the class divide in Pakistan. She is passionate about bringing change to her country through her work, which pushes her to make content which leaves a long-lasting impact on the viewer.

Short Film: Nooreh

Ashish Pandey | 20min | 2019 | India

Nestled in the Kashmir valley sits a small village on the India-Pakistan border, perpetually caught in the crossfire between the two warring nations. One night an eight-year-old girl, Nooreh, discovers that the gun battle rages when she sleeps and the bloody duel stops when she keeps her eyes open.

 

 

Filmmaker: Ashish Pandey

Ashish began his quest to find unheard marginal voices with his first short The Cabin Man (2007), which dealt with the loneliness of a cabin man guarding an abandoned railway cabin. In Open Doors (2010), he reflected upon the apathy of a son towards his fragile mother, who hopes to return home, till her last breath. Nooreh (2018) portrays an innocent belief of a young Kashmiri girl, growing up in a conflict-ridden village on the India-Pakistan border. Pandey is a graduate from Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, Kolkata, with specialization in sound.

Short Film: Gaash

Danish Renzu | 14min | 2019 | India

Under a shroud of life, Fatima embarks on a journey in search of her beloved Gaash (light).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Danish Renzu

Danish Renzu is a Kashmir born film director, whose work, direction, and writing have received critical acclaim, whilst his work in drama specifically has earned him an official selection at various film festivals and recognition in press and media. Danish Renzu grew up in the conflict-driven valley of Kashmir where he lived through frequent bombings, shutdowns, and abuse of human rights; he realized early in life that true solution lies in investing our energies toward personal development, education, and community growth. A graduate of the University of California Los Angeles, he came to America all by himself at a very young age to pursue his dreams.

 

Short Film: Passage

Asavari Kumar | 6min | 2019 | US/India

Passage is an animated short film that recounts the journey of a young immigrant woman from India in the aftermath of the US Presidential Elections of 2016. The film unfolds like an animated essay, portraying the woman’s personal journey through a quagmire of memories, changing identities, and the idea of belonging. Amidst rising global anti-immigrant sentiments and divisive discourses within the immigrant communities, Passage hopes to explore overlapping narratives across varied immigrant experiences.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asavari Kumar

Asavari is an Animation Director from New Delhi, India currently based in Los Angeles. She owns and operates the collective Supernova Design through which she creates commercial and personal projects while collaborating with POC and women artists. Asavari’s films, installations and graphic narratives have been showcased at national and international film festivals and exhibition spaces. She uses character-driven storytelling to parse her evolving cultural and political identity and aims to generate a discourse surrounding ideas of ‘home’ and ‘belonging’ and find where her narratives intersect with those around her.

Short Film: The Stitch

Asiya Zahor | 8min | 2019 | India

The Stitch is set near the LOC Line of Control–not a recognized international boundary but a de facto border between India and Pakistan in Baramulla/Uri, towards the extreme north of Kashmir. The film takes us into the life of a nine-year-old girl, who takes respite in drawing, even though she has to navigate difficult geographical terrain and occasionally a curfew or a crossfire, in order to fulfill small aspirations like going to school. By zooming into the microcosm of the girl’s life, this short film endeavours to portray the larger story of Kashmir and the negotiations the people in any contested territory have to make to deal with fissures in their geographical and personal identities. As a conscious act of resistance against the infidelity of language, there is no dialogue in the film.

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asiya Zahor

Asiya Zahoor, the director of the film teaches literature in Baramulla. She writes poetry and occasionally experiments with the visual medium. The film has brought together a group of people with an urge to tell their story. These are mostly students from Baramulla with an exception of the musician, Ghulam Hassan, who plays rabab after a day’s toil of sweeping the Baramulla college.

 

 

 

Short Film: Kamali

Sasha Rainbow | 24 min | 2019 | United Kingdom

Kamali is the only girl skateboarder in a fishing village. Her timorous mother, Suganthi makes a pilgrimage in a quest for self-discovery. Separated for the first time, they must find freedom in a man’s world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sasha Rainbow

Sasha Rainbow is a director who has worked across multiple disciplines including film, art direction, photography, and costume. Sasha believes storytelling can throw light onto communities to showcase heroic role models, which is just what the world needs.

Short Film: Aguan – Sun Behind the Horizon

Novera Hasan Nikkon | 9 min | 2019 | Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s socio-cultural environment is built on gender discrimination. Girls are often considered to be financial burdens on their family from the time of birth and empowering women is still a dream from generation to generation. This is the story of Rahela Begum, a 22-year-old single mother who becomes a female rickshaw-puller, breaking traditional gender roles while supporting her two children after her husband leaves her. Muslim-majority Bangladesh is one of Asia’s most conservative societies, one in which the idea of a woman doing such a job had been unheard of before Rahela hit the road three years ago in the capital city Dhaka. Barring senseless conventions and stereotypes from consideration, Rahela is a model for women’s empowerment in the sub-continent.

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Novera Hasan Nikkon

Novera Hasan Nikkon is a student filmmaker from Dhaka, Bangladesh. She is an undergraduate student in the Fine Arts department at Jagannath University, Dhaka. Her works include three short documentary films on girls’ and womens’ rights. Her debut solo film, Let Me Breathe with my Dream (2017), has earned several inspiring awards and official nominations. Her second and third films, We Could be Champion Too and Aguan, have also received prestigious awards. Ms. Nikkon’s proposed production proposal, The Girls are not Brides, received the prestigious Hoso Bunka Foundation Award in the NHK Japan Prize competition in 2016. In the 56 year-history of the Japan Prize, she is the first 19-year-old and the first Bangladeshi citizen to win this prestigious prize.

Short Film: A for Apple

Sarah Aminuddin | 14 min | 2019 | Canada

Inside the home of an upper-class Pakistani family, teenage servant Humaira receives English lessons from her young mistress, Sabina. The classes awaken in Humaira the desire for an education of which she has been deprived as a maid. When Naseem, her mother, notices the lessons are distracting her from her work, she reprimands the girl for transgressing her social position and gender expectations. Despite constant discouragement from her mother and employers, Humaira continues to pursue her dream of learning English.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Sarah Aminuddin

Sarah Aminuddin is a Pakistani-Canadian filmmaker and has completed her BA Honours in Film Production from York University. Her films focus on various social issues prevalent in Pakistan such as child marriage, female education, and homophobia. Her work has been screened at Regent Park Film Festival, International Film Festival of South Asia Toronto, and won ‘Best Film’ at York’s Cinesiege. Currently, she runs the video department at a digital media company in Lahore while writing a mini-series about the class divide in Pakistan. She is passionate about bringing change to her country through her work, which pushes her to make content which leaves a long-lasting impact on the viewer.

Short Film: Nooreh

Ashish Pandey | 20min | 2019 | India

Nestled in the Kashmir valley sits a small village on the India-Pakistan border, perpetually caught in the crossfire between the two warring nations. One night an eight-year-old girl, Nooreh, discovers that the gun battle rages when she sleeps and the bloody duel stops when she keeps her eyes open.

 

 

Filmmaker: Ashish Pandey

Ashish began his quest to find unheard marginal voices with his first short The Cabin Man (2007), which dealt with the loneliness of a cabin man guarding an abandoned railway cabin. In Open Doors (2010), he reflected upon the apathy of a son towards his fragile mother, who hopes to return home, till her last breath. Nooreh (2018) portrays an innocent belief of a young Kashmiri girl, growing up in a conflict-ridden village on the India-Pakistan border. Pandey is a graduate from Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute, Kolkata, with specialization in sound.

Short Film: Gaash

Danish Renzu | 14min | 2019 | India

Under a shroud of life, Fatima embarks on a journey in search of her beloved Gaash (light).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Danish Renzu

Danish Renzu is a Kashmir born film director, whose work, direction, and writing have received critical acclaim, whilst his work in drama specifically has earned him an official selection at various film festivals and recognition in press and media. Danish Renzu grew up in the conflict-driven valley of Kashmir where he lived through frequent bombings, shutdowns, and abuse of human rights; he realized early in life that true solution lies in investing our energies toward personal development, education, and community growth. A graduate of the University of California Los Angeles, he came to America all by himself at a very young age to pursue his dreams.

Short Film: Passage

Asavari Kumar | 6min | 2019 | US/India

Passage is an animated short film that recounts the journey of a young immigrant woman from India in the aftermath of the US Presidential Elections of 2016. The film unfolds like an animated essay, portraying the woman’s personal journey through a quagmire of memories, changing identities, and the idea of belonging. Amidst rising global anti-immigrant sentiments and divisive discourses within the immigrant communities, Passage hopes to explore overlapping narratives across varied immigrant experiences.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Asavari Kumar

Asavari is an Animation Director from New Delhi, India currently based in Los Angeles. She owns and operates the collective Supernova Design through which she creates commercial and personal projects while collaborating with POC and women artists. Asavari’s films, installations and graphic narratives have been showcased at national and international film festivals and exhibition spaces. She uses character-driven storytelling to parse her evolving cultural and political identity and aims to generate a discourse surrounding ideas of ‘home’ and ‘belonging’ and find where her narratives intersect with those around her.

Short Film: Turtle

Dinesh S. Yadav | 64min | 2019 | India

A folktale is a fabrication of anecdotes by our ancestors in the past, foreseeing our present of the eventualities in our future. In this folktale, Turtle digs the earth to deepen the water. The film is a metaphorical depiction of the turtle; in a drought-struck village of Rajasthan, Ramkaran Chowdhary is churning the parched, sun-baked earth to extract water, while the common folk indulge in a tug-of-war, rotating on his shell, desperate to quench their thirst.

Our sardonic folklorist, the alghoza, is like the effusive river of sand flowing in the desert, who has intertwined in his ceaseless moustache mythical allegory and macabre images in this rustic tale of the desert. Here, by means of spells, black magic, and incantations, the village folk try to rid themselves of a calamitous jinx that has led all the water bodies in the area to dry up.

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Dinesh S. Yadav

Hailing from a pilgrimage site in India, Maheshwar, Dinesh S. Yadav, more than a director, is an ‘evocateur.’ To satisfy a quest for self-realization and in search of himself, he found the art of filmmaking, which was shaped by the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII).

Before taking up film editing from the FTII, he did his Masters in Television Direction and Graduation in Film and Television production from EMRC, Indore. But long before he started his formal education in filmmaking, he came onto the floor with a couple of music videos, animation videos, theatre, and short films. Two of his short films, Aashadh (monsoon) and Umas, (Stifle, or Suffocation) were critically acclaimed, winning him awards in international and national film festivals. Turtle is his debut feature film; in it he has soulfully and skillfully interweaved the subject in a story and braided macabre images in the desert with the echoing sounds of the chants into the moustache of the Alghoza.

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Unkept

Michael P. Vidler | 16min | 2019 | Canada

Sweet and playful Kamal is a 10-year old boy who loves his mom and baseball, but he’s beginning to realize that he doesn’t look like the world around him. The strength of the bond between mother and son is especially revealed through these beautifully intimate moments between mother and son. This film is a story of belonging, one where a little boy’s distinctive appearance makes him feel left out and alone. Kamal doesn’t know it, but he is engaged in one of life’s greatest battles, the one for his identity. Kamal struggles between who he is and who he is expected to be

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Michael P. Vidler

Michael Vidler is an independent film director whose innovative work has been repeatedly recognized across mediums. His recent work has been showcased in internationally renowned venues including Vancouver’s highly competitive Crazy 8s, where his script for UnKept, was selected as one of only six entries accepted from a group of 200 applicants. His film, William Wishes, was awarded Best Short Film, Best Screenplay, and Best Editing in the Albuquerque Mindfield festival. An earlier production, the psychological thriller Mine, was selected as Best International Short at the Williamsburg film festival in 2015 and is currently featured on Direct TV and Amazon Prime. With a full-length production planned for 2021, his original signature can be seen in commercial work such as Hockey Night in Punjabi as well as in music and commercial videos. Not only does Michael excel in working with diverse film styles and formats, he consistently brings project work on deadline within budget.

Short Film: Hargun

Gurleen Kaur | 11min | 2019 | Canada

The story revolves around a bright young elementary school student named Hargun who has taken the mission upon herself to become a part of the popular kids. Leaving her old friends behind, she does everything in her power to impress Syra and her crew. And after being rejected numerous times, she realises who her true friends really are.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Gurleen Kaur

Gurleen Kaur is an emerging filmmaker, screenplay writer, and photographer studying at Capilano University. She has photographed numerous community events, along with directing a handful of short films. Her volunteering within her Sikh community has taken her on a journey where she has coordinated and curated art exhibits at Guildford Mall and at Surrey City Hall. She believes in bringing her culture and heritage into her work of art and that is what drives her to do what she does. She enjoys hiking and archery, taking them as a means to refocus on her goals.

Short Film: Unkept

Michael P. Vidler | 16min | 2019 | Canada

Sweet and playful Kamal is a 10-year old boy who loves his mom and baseball, but he’s beginning to realize that he doesn’t look like the world around him. The strength of the bond between mother and son is especially revealed through these beautifully intimate moments between mother and son. This film is a story of belonging, one where a little boy’s distinctive appearance makes him feel left out and alone. Kamal doesn’t know it, but he is engaged in one of life’s greatest battles, the one for his identity. Kamal struggles between who he is and who he is expected to be

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Michael P. Vidler

Michael Vidler is an independent film director whose innovative work has been repeatedly recognized across mediums. His recent work has been showcased in internationally renowned venues including Vancouver’s highly competitive Crazy 8s, where his script for UnKept, was selected as one of only six entries accepted from a group of 200 applicants. His film, William Wishes, was awarded Best Short Film, Best Screenplay, and Best Editing in the Albuquerque Mindfield festival. An earlier production, the psychological thriller Mine, was selected as Best International Short at the Williamsburg film festival in 2015 and is currently featured on Direct TV and Amazon Prime. With a full-length production planned for 2021, his original signature can be seen in commercial work such as Hockey Night in Punjabi as well as in music and commercial videos. Not only does Michael excel in working with diverse film styles and formats, he consistently brings project work on deadline within budget.

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Hargun

Gurleen Kaur | 11min | 2019 | Canada

The story revolves around a bright young elementary school student named Hargun who has taken the mission upon herself to become a part of the popular kids. Leaving her old friends behind, she does everything in her power to impress Syra and her crew. And after being rejected numerous times, she realises who her true friends really are.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Gurleen Kaur

Gurleen Kaur is an emerging filmmaker, screenplay writer, and photographer studying at Capilano University. She has photographed numerous community events, along with directing a handful of short films. Her volunteering within her Sikh community has taken her on a journey where she has coordinated and curated art exhibits at Guildford Mall and at Surrey City Hall. She believes in bringing her culture and heritage into her work of art and that is what drives her to do what she does. She enjoys hiking and archery, taking them as a means to refocus on her goals.

Short Film: Turtle

Dinesh S. Yadav | 64min | 2019 | India

A folktale is a fabrication of anecdotes by our ancestors in the past, foreseeing our present of the eventualities in our future. In this folktale, Turtle digs the earth to deepen the water. The film is a metaphorical depiction of the turtle; in a drought-struck village of Rajasthan, Ramkaran Chowdhary is churning the parched, sun-baked earth to extract water, while the common folk indulge in a tug-of-war, rotating on his shell, desperate to quench their thirst.

Our sardonic folklorist, the alghoza, is like the effusive river of sand flowing in the desert, who has intertwined in his ceaseless moustache mythical allegory and macabre images in this rustic tale of the desert. Here, by means of spells, black magic, and incantations, the village folk try to rid themselves of a calamitous jinx that has led all the water bodies in the area to dry up.

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Dinesh S. Yadav

Hailing from a pilgrimage site in India, Maheshwar, Dinesh S. Yadav, more than a director, is an ‘evocateur.’ To satisfy a quest for self-realization and in search of himself, he found the art of filmmaking, which was shaped by the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII).

Before taking up film editing from the FTII, he did his Masters in Television Direction and Graduation in Film and Television production from EMRC, Indore. But long before he started his formal education in filmmaking, he came onto the floor with a couple of music videos, animation videos, theatre, and short films. Two of his short films, Aashadh (monsoon) and Umas, (Stifle, or Suffocation) were critically acclaimed, winning him awards in international and national film festivals. Turtle is his debut feature film; in it he has soulfully and skillfully interweaved the subject in a story and braided macabre images in the desert with the echoing sounds of the chants into the moustache of the Alghoza.

Short Film: Hargun

Gurleen Kaur | 11min | 2019 | Canada

The story revolves around a bright young elementary school student named Hargun who has taken the mission upon herself to become a part of the popular kids. Leaving her old friends behind, she does everything in her power to impress Syra and her crew. And after being rejected numerous times, she realizes who her true friends really are.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Gurleen Kaur

Gurleen Kaur is an emerging filmmaker, screenplay writer, and photographer studying at Capilano University. She has photographed numerous community events, along with directing a handful of short films. Her volunteering within her Sikh community has taken her on a journey where she has coordinated and curated art exhibits at Guildford Mall and at Surrey City Hall. She believes in bringing her culture and heritage into her work of art and that is what drives her to do what she does. She enjoys hiking and archery, taking them as a means to refocus on her goals.

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Unkept

Michael P. Vidler | 16min | 2019 | Canada

Sweet and playful Kamal is a 10-year old boy who loves his mom and baseball, but he’s beginning to realize that he doesn’t look like the world around him. The strength of the bond between mother and son is especially revealed through these beautifully intimate moments between mother and son. This film is a story of belonging, one where a little boy’s distinctive appearance makes him feel left out and alone. Kamal doesn’t know it, but he is engaged in one of life’s greatest battles, the one for his identity. Kamal struggles between who he is and who he is expected to be

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Michael P. Vidler

Michael Vidler is an independent film director whose innovative work has been repeatedly recognized across mediums. His recent work has been showcased in internationally renowned venues including Vancouver’s highly competitive Crazy 8s, where his script for UnKept, was selected as one of only six entries accepted from a group of 200 applicants. His film, William Wishes, was awarded Best Short Film, Best Screenplay, and Best Editing in the Albuquerque Mindfield festival. An earlier production, the psychological thriller Mine, was selected as Best International Short at the Williamsburg film festival in 2015 and is currently featured on Direct TV and Amazon Prime. With a full-length production planned for 2021, his original signature can be seen in commercial work such as Hockey Night in Punjabi as well as in music and commercial videos. Not only does Michael excel in working with diverse film styles and formats, he consistently brings project work on deadline within budget.

Short Film: Turtle

Dinesh S. Yadav | 64min | 2019 | India

A folktale is a fabrication of anecdotes by our ancestors in the past, foreseeing our present of the eventualities in our future. In this folktale, Turtle digs the earth to deepen the water. The film is a metaphorical depiction of the turtle; in a drought-struck village of Rajasthan, Ramkaran Chowdhary is churning the parched, sun-baked earth to extract water, while the common folk indulge in a tug-of-war, rotating on his shell, desperate to quench their thirst.

Our sardonic folklorist, the alghoza, is like the effusive river of sand flowing in the desert, who has intertwined in his ceaseless moustache mythical allegory and macabre images in this rustic tale of the desert. Here, by means of spells, black magic, and incantations, the village folk try to rid themselves of a calamitous jinx that has led all the water bodies in the area to dry up.

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Dinesh S. Yadav

Hailing from a pilgrimage site in India, Maheshwar, Dinesh S. Yadav, more than a director, is an ‘evocateur.’ To satisfy a quest for self-realization and in search of himself, he found the art of filmmaking, which was shaped by the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII).

Before taking up film editing from the FTII, he did his Masters in Television Direction and Graduation in Film and Television production from EMRC, Indore. But long before he started his formal education in filmmaking, he came onto the floor with a couple of music videos, animation videos, theatre, and short films. Two of his short films, Aashadh (monsoon) and Umas, (Stifle, or Suffocation) were critically acclaimed, winning him awards in international and national film festivals. Turtle is his debut feature film; in it he has soulfully and skillfully interweaved the subject in a story and braided macabre images in the desert with the echoing sounds of the chants into the moustache of the Alghoza.

Film: Namdev Bhau in Search of Silence

Dar Gai | 90min | 2019 | India

A 65-year-old chauffeur, who is tired of the noise of the obstreperous Mumbai City life and has completely stopped speaking, decides to leave everything in the search for ‘Silent Valley’ which boasts of naturally occurring phenomena having almost a zero decibel sound level. On this journey, he chances upon an exasperating 12-year old boy, who happens to be on his own solo expedition to the mystical “Red Castle.”
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Dar Gai

Dar was born and brought up in Kyiv, Ukraine. From the age of 10 Dar was a part of a Ukrainian theater group “Incunabula.” Dar has been writing and directing feature films, TV shows, commercials, short films, and music videos in India. While exploring the country she came across many underlying societal idiosyncrasies which were fascinating when looked at from an objective point of view. Her first few films are deeply rooted in India but have a wide international reach, as they have been told with more of a European sensibility. Her first narrative feature called Teen Aur Aadha is being co-produced and presented by noted Indian filmmaker Anurag Kashyap.

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: A Monsoon Date

Tanuja Chandra | 21min | 2019 | India

A Monsoon Date is about an eventful, rainy evening when a young woman is on her way to see a young man she is dating. Along the way, she experiences bittersweet moments with a series of strangers, even as a storm brews inside her. Today, she has decided to reveal to the young man a heart-breaking truth about her past. This truth, she knows, is not possible for anybody to understand. And yet, she hopes that he would. With her heart pounding like the torrential rain around her, she holds on to this unreasonable hope.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shown with feature documentary Aunty Sudha Aunty Radha

Trailer

 

Film: Aunty Sudha Aunty Radha 

Tanuja Chandra | 49min | 2019 | India

Three hours outside of the capital of India is a village called Lahra. This film follows two widowed sisters, aged 86 and 93, who have retired to this village, whose days are spent with their adopted family of domestic help. Pulling along with their walkers (because of bad knees that turned inoperative a decade ago) the sisters do as they please, pay heed to no one and don’t bother with unsolicited advice. They don’t let their ailments unsettle them much and remain largely unfearful of death. With a rare acceptance of old-age and all that it brings, they spend their time gossiping, watching T.V., soaking in the sun and bonding with the help in a hearty sharing of community life. With the filmmaker being their niece who visits their home for the first time, the film resolutely assumes the tone of this oddball group of people – a facile easy-going manner, that gazes lightly at the passing of days. And yet, from this light-heartedness, emerge lessons. Of courage and perseverance, of camaraderie and care-giving, of destiny and faith, and the most significant one: when we engage in conversations of death, we improve the quality of life

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Tanuja Chandra

Known for making films with female protagonists, Tanuja Chandra was among a handful of women directors when she first started out. Even now, with 20 years in the industry, as a director of seven feature films, she continues to champion stories of women by women, for women and she hopes to be a part of this genre of filmmaking for a long time.

After receiving a B.A. degree in English Literature in Mumbai, Chandra completed further studies towards an MFA in Film Direction and Writing in the U.S.A. She returned to India and directed television shows and co-wrote the scripts of Mahesh Bhatt’s films, Zakhm and Tamanna, both of which won National awards, and Yash Chopra’s Dil Toh Pagal Hai. She began independent film direction in 1998 with Dushman and directed Sangharsh, Sur, Zindaggi Rocks, Hope, and A Little Sugar in 2008, amongst others. Several of her films received awards and her English film received recognition in international film festivals. In 2017, her most recent film, Qarib Qarib Singlle, a rom-com starring Irrfan Khan and Parvathy, was released. Her collection of short stories, Bijnis Woman, was published by Penguin Random House. She is working on the script of her next feature, along with developing content for longer format projects.

Film: Aunty Sudha Aunty Radha 

Tanuja Chandra | 49min | 2019 | India

Three hours outside of the capital of India is a village called Lahra. This film follows two widowed sisters, aged 86 and 93, who have retired to this village, whose days are spent with their adopted family of domestic help. Pulling along with their walkers (because of bad knees that turned inoperative a decade ago) the sisters do as they please, pay heed to no one and don’t bother with unsolicited advice. They don’t let their ailments unsettle them much and remain largely unfearful of death. With a rare acceptance of old-age and all that it brings, they spend their time gossiping, watching T.V., soaking in the sun and bonding with the help in a hearty sharing of community life. With the filmmaker being their niece who visits their home for the first time, the film resolutely assumes the tone of this oddball group of people – a facile easy-going manner, that gazes lightly at the passing of days. And yet, from this light-heartedness, emerge lessons. Of courage and perseverance, of camaraderie and care-giving, of destiny and faith, and the most significant one: when we engage in conversations of death, we improve the quality of life

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: A Monsoon Date

Tanuja Chandra | 21min | 2019 | India

A Monsoon Date is about an eventful, rainy evening when a young woman is on her way to see a young man she is dating. Along the way, she experiences bittersweet moments with a series of strangers, even as a storm brews inside her. Today, she has decided to reveal to the young man a heart-breaking truth about her past. This truth, she knows, is not possible for anybody to understand. And yet, she hopes that he would. With her heart pounding like the torrential rain around her, she holds on to this unreasonable hope.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Tanuja Chandra

Known for making films with female protagonists, Tanuja Chandra was among a handful of women directors when she first started out. Even now, with 20 years in the industry, as a director of seven feature films, she continues to champion stories of women by women, for women and she hopes to be a part of this genre of filmmaking for a long time.

After receiving a B.A. degree in English Literature in Mumbai, Chandra completed further studies towards an MFA in Film Direction and Writing in the U.S.A. She returned to India and directed television shows and co-wrote the scripts of Mahesh Bhatt’s films, Zakhm and Tamanna, both of which won National awards, and Yash Chopra’s Dil Toh Pagal Hai. She began independent film direction in 1998 with Dushman and directed Sangharsh, Sur, Zindaggi Rocks, Hope, and A Little Sugar in 2008, amongst others. Several of her films received awards and her English film received recognition in international film festivals. In 2017, her most recent film, Qarib Qarib Singlle, a rom-com starring Irrfan Khan and Parvathy, was released. Her collection of short stories, Bijnis Woman, was published by Penguin Random House. She is working on the script of her next feature, along with developing content for longer format projects.

Film: The Price of Free

Derek Doneen | 92min | 2018 | United States

This film depicts how Nobel Peace Prize-winning Kailash Satyarthi left a career as an electrical engineer and started Bachpan Bachao Andolan (Save the Childhood Movement) to rescue children from slavery. In the decades since, he has rescued more than 87,000 children and built a global movement including one of the largest civil society movements, the Global March Against Child Labor, which demanded an international law on the worst forms of child labor, and the 100 Million Campaign, a youth-driven call to action ensuring every child in the world is free, safe and educated.

 

Nobel Laureate Mr. Kailash Satyarthi in attendance.
In partnership with Indiaspora

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Derek Doneen

The Price of Free marks director Derek Doneen’s feature documentary debut. Doneen has worked closely with Davis Guggenheim, since creating content for Guggenheim’s documentary Waiting for “Superman” while working at Participant Media. Their creative partnership grew during Guggenheim’s 2016 convention film for President Obama, which Doneen edited. Prior to directing Kailash, Doneen directed the documentary short Spent: Looking for Change, produced the documentaries The Dream Is Now and Shot in the Dark, and edited Showtime’s Kobe Bryant’s Muse.

Tasveer South Asian Film Festival and Local Sightings Film Festival present

Film: Vellai Pookal

Vivek Elangovan | 122min | 2019 | India,USA

Vellai Pookal is a thriller based on the story of a retired Indian cop who travels to the USA to meet his son and fatefully finds himself caught in a web of disappearance, death, and deceit. Follow Rudhran through his experiences in the Pacific Northwest and you will smile, laugh heartily, gasp with fear and be chilled with thrills as he unravels the mystery of the kidnappings in his neighborhood.

 

Dir. Vivek Elangovan and Cinematographer Jerry Peters will be in attendance.

 

 

Filmmaker: Vivek Elangovan

Vivek Elangovan is a software engineer by profession currently working for Microsoft, and a theatre veteran, a film director and writer by passion. He has been in the directorial team for many of the Indus theatre/film productions. His shorts Odam and Navam won numerous accolades around the world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Before I Go

Dennis Tran | 15min | 2019 | United States

This film highlights the impact mental illness has on family dynamics, as told through the relationship between a father, Rakesh, and his daughter Kareena. As they build their cupcake catering business, Rakesh struggles to cope with OCD while Kareena is faced with making a life-changing decision.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Dennis Tran

Dennis has had a passion for storytelling from a young age. Growing up in a Vietnamese household, Dennis has grappled with the Asian American experience for as long as he can remember. As a child of two different cultures, the feeling of alienation from both has fueled his drive for film and has allowed him to carve out his own identity in what it means to be Asian American. Since graduating from the University of Washington’s CineMedia program for visual storytelling, he continues to grow as a filmmaker, exploring the human condition as well as themes of cultural identity with his work. The concept of mental health as it exists within the Asian community has been a particular area of interest for him, to which he explores in his film Before I Go.

 

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: The Concurrence

Esha More | 10min | 2019 | United States

A group of students in high school detention try to escape by trying various methods; meanwhile, the faculty of that school is trying to resolve an urgent academic crisis.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Esha More

Esha More graduated from the University of Washington in 2019. An actress around the Seattle area, she has also directed two films, The Book and The Concurrence. She interned at Cascade Public Media and the Seattle International Film Festival during college and gained an interest in filmmaking after discovering the need for diverse narratives on the big screen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Short Film: Lucy and Tenzin

Khenrab Palden | 7min | 2019 | United States

When Lucy arrives at her friend Tenzin’ s house, she witnesses a most intimate ritual performed in Tibetan culture.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Khenrab Palden

Khenrab Palden was born in a small Tibetan refugee settlement in India in 1981. After completing middle school in Bir, Himachal Pradesh, where he was raised, in 2000 he joined Central University of Tibetan Studies in the Indian city of Varanasi. In 2005 he was awarded the Five College Tibetan Studies Program Scholarship at Hampshire College, Amherst, MA. Palden graduated from Hampshire College in 2009 with an undergraduate’s degree in Film Studies and Anthropology. Khenrab works for Tasveer, a non-profit based in Seattle where he has been the Sponsorship Coordinator since 2016. 

Work is important for Khenrab but creating a community around his work is more important to him. “It’s not about the best that comes out of what I do but rather it’s all about the best that I can give to it,” is Khenrab’s mantra in life.

Short Film: Tina

Gayatri Bahl | 9min | 2019 | United States

After undergoing self-transformation therapy, a woman is visited by an Indian classical dancer, forcing her to confront herself in a way she never expected.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Gayatri Bahl

Gayatri Bahl is an award-winning filmmaker, actor, and Indian classical dancer. Gayatri’s short film TINA, which she wrote, directed, produced, and starred in is currently on the festival circuit, where it recently won Best Short Film at the Big Apple Film Festival & Best Thriller/Horror at the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival. As an actor, she can be seen in Mr Robot, The Loudest Voice, Vinyl, Law & Order SVU, the Hindi film Let’s Dance, and Rishta.com (Netflix). As a dancer, Gayatri has performed at Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theatre, SummerStage, NJPAC, Lincoln Center and has been featured in Elle Magazine’s Movement Series.

 

 

 

Short Film: Brunch Wars
Kamran Khan | 10min | 2019 | United States

Three best friends meet every month for a cook-off where they each prepare a dish and try to outdo one another. But this time, revenge is on the menu when unresolved issues from their past bubble to the surface.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kamran Khan

Kamran grew up in Peoria, IL, so knows very well the old vaudeville saying of what “plays in Peoria.” He’s taken this innate industry insight and funnelled it into his passion for visual storytelling through his writing, directing and award-winning photography, which has been featured in Ron Howard’s Project Imaginat10n and Hasselblad’s Masters Competition. His scripts (pre-WGA) have placed at the American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition, Rhode Island International Film Festival (Academy and BAFTA Qualifying), PAGE Awards, the Cannes Script Contest, FilmQuest, the Austin Revolution Film Festival, Scriptapalooza, WorldFest Houston, Screencraft, New York Television Festival, and the New Hope Film Festival. Kamran is also a member of the NY State Bar where his passion for fictional storytelling is not as enthusiastically received.

Short Film: Closet Supes
Kesav Wable | 15min | 2019 | United States

Two East-Indian step-brothers, one straight and the other queer, host a podcast where they discuss queer innuendo in their favourite comics growing up. When a mysterious listener confronts one of them after an episode covering Hindu religious comics that were popular in 1980s India, the duo is taken on an unexpected journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kesav Wable

Kesav Wable is an award-winning actor/writer/director based in Brooklyn, New York. He won the 2006-07 inaugural Indo-American Arts Council playwriting fellowship at the Lark Play Development Center in New York City, for his play For Flow. He later co-produced a short film that he adapted from Flow which was a finalist at the 2011 HBO American Black Film Festival and later aired on HBO and Cinemax. His original feature screenplay, Dear Brother, was one of three scripts from the U.S.A selected for the Maison des Scenaristes Author-Producer meetings at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.

 

 

 

 

Short Film: A Sari for Pallavi
Kate Chamuris | 10min | 2019 | United States

When traditional Thini & promiscuous Pallavi get into a culture clash, Pallavi has to decide between honouring the Indian traditions of her family or staying true to her modern American identity. A conversation about what not to wear spirals into a comedic exploration of cultural identity and tradition,

 

 

Filmmaker: Kate Chamuris

Originally from Bucks County Pennsylvania, Kate is a Puerto Rican/American producer, writer-director and actor based in LA. Her recent producing work includes AFI thesis films MILLER & SON (BAFTA Student Award for Live Action), IF THIS IS WRONG (Citizen Jane) and BALLOON (Palm Springs International ShortFest). She produced the AFI Directing Workshop for Women short, UNSPEAKABLE, which was named an official selection of SXSW and Series Fest. She is the creator and director of the comedic web series BREAKFAST IN BED that premiered at SideWalk Film Festival. Kate’s upcoming projects include developing the feature film adaptation of Danielle Sepulveres’s memoir LOSING IT…THE SEMI-SCANDALOUS STORY OF AN EX VIRGIN, that Kate is writing and will direct.

 

 

Short Film: The Concurrence

Esha More | 10min | 2019 | United States

A group of students in high school detention try to escape by trying various methods; meanwhile, the faculty of that school is trying to resolve an urgent academic crisis.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Esha More

Esha More graduated from the University of Washington in 2019. An actress around the Seattle area, she has also directed two films, The Book and The Concurrence. She interned at Cascade Public Media and the Seattle International Film Festival during college and gained an interest in filmmaking after discovering the need for diverse narratives on the big screen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Before I Go

Dennis Tran | 15min | 2019 | United States

This film highlights the impact mental illness has on family dynamics, as told through the relationship between a father, Rakesh, and his daughter Kareena. As they build their cupcake catering business, Rakesh struggles to cope with OCD while Kareena is faced with making a life-changing decision.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Dennis Tran

Dennis has had a passion for storytelling from a young age. Growing up in a Vietnamese household, Dennis has grappled with the Asian American experience for as long as he can remember. As a child of two different cultures, the feeling of alienation from both has fueled his drive for film and has allowed him to carve out his own identity in what it means to be Asian American. Since graduating from the University of Washington’s CineMedia program for visual storytelling, he continues to grow as a filmmaker, exploring the human condition as well as themes of cultural identity with his work. The concept of mental health as it exists within the Asian community has been a particular area of interest for him, to which he explores in his film Before I Go.

Short Film: Lucy and Tenzin

Khenrab Palden | 7min | 2019 | United States

When Lucy arrives at her friend Tenzin’ s house, she witnesses a most intimate ritual performed in Tibetan culture.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Khenrab Palden

Khenrab Palden was born in a small Tibetan refugee settlement in India in 1981. After completing middle school in Bir, Himachal Pradesh, where he was raised, in 2000 he joined Central University of Tibetan Studies in the Indian city of Varanasi. In 2005 he was awarded the Five College Tibetan Studies Program Scholarship at Hampshire College, Amherst, MA. Palden graduated from Hampshire College in 2009 with an undergraduate’s degree in Film Studies and Anthropology. Khenrab works for Tasveer, a non-profit based in Seattle where he has been the Sponsorship Coordinator since 2016. 

Work is important for Khenrab but creating a community around his work is more important to him. “It’s not about the best that comes out of what I do but rather it’s all about the best that I can give to it,” is Khenrab’s mantra in life.

Short Film: Tina

Gayatri Bahl | 9min | 2019 | United States

After undergoing self-transformation therapy, a woman is visited by an Indian classical dancer, forcing her to confront herself in a way she never expected.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Gayatri Bahl

Gayatri Bahl is an award-winning filmmaker, actor, and Indian classical dancer. Gayatri’s short film TINA, which she wrote, directed, produced, and starred in is currently on the festival circuit, where it recently won Best Short Film at the Big Apple Film Festival & Best Thriller/Horror at the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival. As an actor, she can be seen in Mr Robot, The Loudest Voice, Vinyl, Law & Order SVU, the Hindi film Let’s Dance, and Rishta.com (Netflix). As a dancer, Gayatri has performed at Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theatre, SummerStage, NJPAC, Lincoln Center and has been featured in Elle Magazine’s Movement Series.

Short Film: Brunch Wars
Kamran Khan | 10min | 2019 | United States

Three best friends meet every month for a cook-off where they each prepare a dish and try to outdo one another. But this time, revenge is on the menu when unresolved issues from their past bubble to the surface.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kamran Khan

Kamran grew up in Peoria, IL, so knows very well the old vaudeville saying of what “plays in Peoria.” He’s taken this innate industry insight and funnelled it into his passion for visual storytelling through his writing, directing and award-winning photography, which has been featured in Ron Howard’s Project Imaginat10n and Hasselblad’s Masters Competition. His scripts (pre-WGA) have placed at the American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition, Rhode Island International Film Festival (Academy and BAFTA Qualifying), PAGE Awards, the Cannes Script Contest, FilmQuest, the Austin Revolution Film Festival, Scriptapalooza, WorldFest Houston, Screencraft, New York Television Festival, and the New Hope Film Festival. Kamran is also a member of the NY State Bar where his passion for fictional storytelling is not as enthusiastically received.

Short Film: Closet Supes
Kesav Wable | 15min | 2019 | United States

Two East-Indian step-brothers, one straight and the other queer, host a podcast where they discuss queer innuendo in their favourite comics growing up. When a mysterious listener confronts one of them after an episode covering Hindu religious comics that were popular in 1980s India, the duo is taken on an unexpected journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kesav Wable

Kesav Wable is an award-winning actor/writer/director based in Brooklyn, New York. He won the 2006-07 inaugural Indo-American Arts Council playwriting fellowship at the Lark Play Development Center in New York City, for his play For Flow. He later co-produced a short film that he adapted from Flow which was a finalist at the 2011 HBO American Black Film Festival and later aired on HBO and Cinemax. His original feature screenplay, Dear Brother, was one of three scripts from the U.S.A selected for the Maison des Scenaristes Author-Producer meetings at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.

Short Film: A Sari for Pallavi
Kate Chamuris | 10min | 2019 | United States

When traditional Thini & promiscuous Pallavi get into a culture clash, Pallavi has to decide between honouring the Indian traditions of her family or staying true to her modern American identity. A conversation about what not to wear spirals into a comedic exploration of cultural identity and tradition,

 

 

Filmmaker: Kate Chamuris

Originally from Bucks County Pennsylvania, Kate is a Puerto Rican/American producer, writer-director and actor based in LA. Her recent producing work includes AFI thesis films MILLER & SON (BAFTA Student Award for Live Action), IF THIS IS WRONG (Citizen Jane) and BALLOON (Palm Springs International ShortFest). She produced the AFI Directing Workshop for Women short, UNSPEAKABLE, which was named an official selection of SXSW and Series Fest. She is the creator and director of the comedic web series BREAKFAST IN BED that premiered at SideWalk Film Festival. Kate’s upcoming projects include developing the feature film adaptation of Danielle Sepulveres’s memoir LOSING IT…THE SEMI-SCANDALOUS STORY OF AN EX VIRGIN, that Kate is writing and will direct.

Short Film: Tina

Gayatri Bahl | 9min | 2019 | United States

After undergoing self-transformation therapy, a woman is visited by an Indian classical dancer, forcing her to confront herself in a way she never expected.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Gayatri Bahl

Gayatri Bahl is an award-winning filmmaker, actor, and Indian classical dancer. Gayatri’s short film TINA, which she wrote, directed, produced, and starred in is currently on the festival circuit, where it recently won Best Short Film at the Big Apple Film Festival & Best Thriller/Horror at the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival. As an actor, she can be seen in Mr Robot, The Loudest Voice, Vinyl, Law & Order SVU, the Hindi film Let’s Dance, and Rishta.com (Netflix). As a dancer, Gayatri has performed at Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theatre, SummerStage, NJPAC, Lincoln Center and has been featured in Elle Magazine’s Movement Series.

 

 

 

Trailer

 

Short Film: The Concurrence

Esha More | 10min | 2019 | United States

A group of students in high school detention try to escape by trying various methods; meanwhile, the faculty of that school is trying to resolve an urgent academic crisis.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Esha More

Esha More graduated from the University of Washington in 2019. An actress around the Seattle area, she has also directed two films, The Book and The Concurrence. She interned at Cascade Public Media and the Seattle International Film Festival during college and gained an interest in filmmaking after discovering the need for diverse narratives on the big screen.

Short Film: Before I Go

Dennis Tran | 15min | 2019 | United States

This film highlights the impact mental illness has on family dynamics, as told through the relationship between a father, Rakesh, and his daughter Kareena. As they build their cupcake catering business, Rakesh struggles to cope with OCD while Kareena is faced with making a life-changing decision.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Dennis Tran

Dennis has had a passion for storytelling from a young age. Growing up in a Vietnamese household, Dennis has grappled with the Asian American experience for as long as he can remember. As a child of two different cultures, the feeling of alienation from both has fueled his drive for film and has allowed him to carve out his own identity in what it means to be Asian American. Since graduating from the University of Washington’s CineMedia program for visual storytelling, he continues to grow as a filmmaker, exploring the human condition as well as themes of cultural identity with his work. The concept of mental health as it exists within the Asian community has been a particular area of interest for him, to which he explores in his film Before I Go.

Short Film: Lucy and Tenzin

Khenrab Palden | 7min | 2019 | United States

When Lucy arrives at her friend Tenzin’ s house, she witnesses a most intimate ritual performed in Tibetan culture.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Khenrab Palden

Khenrab Palden was born in a small Tibetan refugee settlement in India in 1981. After completing middle school in Bir, Himachal Pradesh, where he was raised, in 2000 he joined Central University of Tibetan Studies in the Indian city of Varanasi. In 2005 he was awarded the Five College Tibetan Studies Program Scholarship at Hampshire College, Amherst, MA. Palden graduated from Hampshire College in 2009 with an undergraduate’s degree in Film Studies and Anthropology. Khenrab works for Tasveer, a non-profit based in Seattle where he has been the Sponsorship Coordinator since 2016. 

Work is important for Khenrab but creating a community around his work is more important to him. “It’s not about the best that comes out of what I do but rather it’s all about the best that I can give to it,” is Khenrab’s mantra in life.

Short Film: Brunch Wars
Kamran Khan | 10min | 2019 | United States

Three best friends meet every month for a cook-off where they each prepare a dish and try to outdo one another. But this time, revenge is on the menu when unresolved issues from their past bubble to the surface.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kamran Khan

Kamran grew up in Peoria, IL, so knows very well the old vaudeville saying of what “plays in Peoria.” He’s taken this innate industry insight and funnelled it into his passion for visual storytelling through his writing, directing and award-winning photography, which has been featured in Ron Howard’s Project Imaginat10n and Hasselblad’s Masters Competition. His scripts (pre-WGA) have placed at the American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition, Rhode Island International Film Festival (Academy and BAFTA Qualifying), PAGE Awards, the Cannes Script Contest, FilmQuest, the Austin Revolution Film Festival, Scriptapalooza, WorldFest Houston, Screencraft, New York Television Festival, and the New Hope Film Festival. Kamran is also a member of the NY State Bar where his passion for fictional storytelling is not as enthusiastically received.

Short Film: Closet Supes
Kesav Wable | 15min | 2019 | United States

Two East-Indian step-brothers, one straight and the other queer, host a podcast where they discuss queer innuendo in their favourite comics growing up. When a mysterious listener confronts one of them after an episode covering Hindu religious comics that were popular in 1980s India, the duo is taken on an unexpected journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kesav Wable

Kesav Wable is an award-winning actor/writer/director based in Brooklyn, New York. He won the 2006-07 inaugural Indo-American Arts Council playwriting fellowship at the Lark Play Development Center in New York City, for his play For Flow. He later co-produced a short film that he adapted from Flow which was a finalist at the 2011 HBO American Black Film Festival and later aired on HBO and Cinemax. His original feature screenplay, Dear Brother, was one of three scripts from the U.S.A selected for the Maison des Scenaristes Author-Producer meetings at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.

Short Film: A Sari for Pallavi
Kate Chamuris | 10min | 2019 | United States

When traditional Thini & promiscuous Pallavi get into a culture clash, Pallavi has to decide between honouring the Indian traditions of her family or staying true to her modern American identity. A conversation about what not to wear spirals into a comedic exploration of cultural identity and tradition,

 

 

Filmmaker: Kate Chamuris

Originally from Bucks County Pennsylvania, Kate is a Puerto Rican/American producer, writer-director and actor based in LA. Her recent producing work includes AFI thesis films MILLER & SON (BAFTA Student Award for Live Action), IF THIS IS WRONG (Citizen Jane) and BALLOON (Palm Springs International ShortFest). She produced the AFI Directing Workshop for Women short, UNSPEAKABLE, which was named an official selection of SXSW and Series Fest. She is the creator and director of the comedic web series BREAKFAST IN BED that premiered at SideWalk Film Festival. Kate’s upcoming projects include developing the feature film adaptation of Danielle Sepulveres’s memoir LOSING IT…THE SEMI-SCANDALOUS STORY OF AN EX VIRGIN, that Kate is writing and will direct.

Short Film: Brunch Wars
Kamran Khan | 10min | 2019 | United States

Three best friends meet every month for a cook-off where they each prepare a dish and try to outdo one another. But this time, revenge is on the menu when unresolved issues from their past bubble to the surface.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kamran Khan

Kamran grew up in Peoria, IL, so knows very well the old vaudeville saying of what “plays in Peoria.” He’s taken this innate industry insight and funneled it into his passion for visual storytelling through his writing, directing and award-winning photography, which has been featured in Ron Howard’s Project Imaginat10n and Hasselblad’s Masters Competition. His scripts (pre-WGA) have placed at the American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition, Rhode Island International Film Festival (Academy and BAFTA Qualifying), PAGE Awards, the Cannes Script Contest, FilmQuest, the Austin Revolution Film Festival, Scriptapalooza, WorldFest Houston, Screencraft, New York Television Festival, and the New Hope Film Festival. Kamran is also a member of the NY State Bar where his passion for fictional storytelling is not as enthusiastically received.

Short Film: The Concurrence

Esha More | 10min | 2019 | United States

A group of students in high school detention try to escape by trying various methods; meanwhile, the faculty of that school is trying to resolve an urgent academic crisis.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Esha More

Esha More graduated from the University of Washington in 2019. An actress around the Seattle area, she has also directed two films, The Book and The Concurrence. She interned at Cascade Public Media and the Seattle International Film Festival during college and gained an interest in filmmaking after discovering the need for diverse narratives on the big screen.

Short Film: Before I Go

Dennis Tran | 15min | 2019 | United States

This film highlights the impact mental illness has on family dynamics, as told through the relationship between a father, Rakesh, and his daughter Kareena. As they build their cupcake catering business, Rakesh struggles to cope with OCD while Kareena is faced with making a life-changing decision.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Dennis Tran

Dennis has had a passion for storytelling from a young age. Growing up in a Vietnamese household, Dennis has grappled with the Asian American experience for as long as he can remember. As a child of two different cultures, the feeling of alienation from both has fueled his drive for film and has allowed him to carve out his own identity in what it means to be Asian American. Since graduating from the University of Washington’s CineMedia program for visual storytelling, he continues to grow as a filmmaker, exploring the human condition as well as themes of cultural identity with his work. The concept of mental health as it exists within the Asian community has been a particular area of interest for him, to which he explores in his film Before I Go.

Short Film: Lucy and Tenzin

Khenrab Palden | 7min | 2019 | United States

When Lucy arrives at her friend Tenzin’ s house, she witnesses a most intimate ritual performed in Tibetan culture.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Khenrab Palden

Khenrab Palden was born in a small Tibetan refugee settlement in India in 1981. After completing middle school in Bir, Himachal Pradesh, where he was raised, in 2000 he joined Central University of Tibetan Studies in the Indian city of Varanasi. In 2005 he was awarded the Five College Tibetan Studies Program Scholarship at Hampshire College, Amherst, MA. Palden graduated from Hampshire College in 2009 with an undergraduate’s degree in Film Studies and Anthropology. Khenrab works for Tasveer, a non-profit based in Seattle where he has been the Sponsorship Coordinator since 2016. 

Work is important for Khenrab but creating a community around his work is more important to him. “It’s not about the best that comes out of what I do but rather it’s all about the best that I can give to it,” is Khenrab’s mantra in life.

Short Film: Tina

Gayatri Bahl | 9min | 2019 | United States

After undergoing self-transformation therapy, a woman is visited by an Indian classical dancer, forcing her to confront herself in a way she never expected.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Gayatri Bahl

Gayatri Bahl is an award-winning filmmaker, actor, and Indian classical dancer. Gayatri’s short film TINA, which she wrote, directed, produced, and starred in is currently on the festival circuit, where it recently won Best Short Film at the Big Apple Film Festival & Best Thriller/Horror at the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival. As an actor, she can be seen in Mr Robot, The Loudest Voice, Vinyl, Law & Order SVU, the Hindi film Let’s Dance, and Rishta.com (Netflix). As a dancer, Gayatri has performed at Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theatre, SummerStage, NJPAC, Lincoln Center and has been featured in Elle Magazine’s Movement Series.

Short Film: Closet Supes
Kesav Wable | 15min | 2019 | United States

Two East-Indian step-brothers, one straight and the other queer, host a podcast where they discuss queer innuendo in their favourite comics growing up. When a mysterious listener confronts one of them after an episode covering Hindu religious comics that were popular in 1980s India, the duo is taken on an unexpected journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kesav Wable

Kesav Wable is an award-winning actor/writer/director based in Brooklyn, New York. He won the 2006-07 inaugural Indo-American Arts Council playwriting fellowship at the Lark Play Development Center in New York City, for his play For Flow. He later co-produced a short film that he adapted from Flow which was a finalist at the 2011 HBO American Black Film Festival and later aired on HBO and Cinemax. His original feature screenplay, Dear Brother, was one of three scripts from the U.S.A selected for the Maison des Scenaristes Author-Producer meetings at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.

Short Film: A Sari for Pallavi
Kate Chamuris | 10min | 2019 | United States

When traditional Thini & promiscuous Pallavi get into a culture clash, Pallavi has to decide between honoring the Indian traditions of her family or staying true to her modern American identity. A conversation about what not to wear spirals into a comedic exploration of cultural identity and tradition,

 

 

Filmmaker: Kate Chamuris

Originally from Bucks County Pennsylvania, Kate is a Puerto Rican/American producer, writer-director and actor based in LA. Her recent producing work includes AFI thesis films MILLER & SON (BAFTA Student Award for Live Action), IF THIS IS WRONG (Citizen Jane) and BALLOON (Palm Springs International ShortFest). She produced the AFI Directing Workshop for Women short, UNSPEAKABLE, which was named an official selection of SXSW and Series Fest. She is the creator and director of the comedic web series BREAKFAST IN BED that premiered at SideWalk Film Festival. Kate’s upcoming projects include developing the feature film adaptation of Danielle Sepulveres’s memoir LOSING IT…THE SEMI-SCANDALOUS STORY OF AN EX VIRGIN, that Kate is writing and will direct.

Short Film: Closet Supes
Kesav Wable | 15min | 2019 | United States

Two East-Indian step-brothers, one straight and the other queer, host a podcast where they discuss queer innuendo in their favourite comics growing up. When a mysterious listener confronts one of them after an episode covering Hindu religious comics that were popular in 1980s India, the duo is taken on an unexpected journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kesav Wable

Kesav Wable is an award-winning actor/writer/director based in Brooklyn, New York. He won the 2006-07 inaugural Indo-American Arts Council playwriting fellowship at the Lark Play Development Center in New York City, for his play For Flow. He later co-produced a short film that he adapted from Flow which was a finalist at the 2011 HBO American Black Film Festival and later aired on HBO and Cinemax. His original feature screenplay, Dear Brother, was one of three scripts from the U.S.A selected for the Maison des Scenaristes Author-Producer meetings at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.

 

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: The Concurrence

Esha More | 10min | 2019 | United States

A group of students in high school detention try to escape by trying various methods; meanwhile, the faculty of that school is trying to resolve an urgent academic crisis.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Esha More

Esha More graduated from the University of Washington in 2019. An actress around the Seattle area, she has also directed two films, The Book and The Concurrence. She interned at Cascade Public Media and the Seattle International Film Festival during college and gained an interest in filmmaking after discovering the need for diverse narratives on the big screen.

Short Film: Before I Go

Dennis Tran | 15min | 2019 | United States

This film highlights the impact mental illness has on family dynamics, as told through the relationship between a father, Rakesh, and his daughter Kareena. As they build their cupcake catering business, Rakesh struggles to cope with OCD while Kareena is faced with making a life-changing decision.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Dennis Tran

Dennis has had a passion for storytelling from a young age. Growing up in a Vietnamese household, Dennis has grappled with the Asian American experience for as long as he can remember. As a child of two different cultures, the feeling of alienation from both has fueled his drive for film and has allowed him to carve out his own identity in what it means to be Asian American. Since graduating from the University of Washington’s CineMedia program for visual storytelling, he continues to grow as a filmmaker, exploring the human condition as well as themes of cultural identity with his work. The concept of mental health as it exists within the Asian community has been a particular area of interest for him, to which he explores in his film Before I Go.

Short Film: Lucy and Tenzin

Khenrab Palden | 7min | 2019 | United States

When Lucy arrives at her friend Tenzin’ s house, she witnesses a most intimate ritual performed in Tibetan culture.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Khenrab Palden

Khenrab Palden was born in a small Tibetan refugee settlement in India in 1981. After completing middle school in Bir, Himachal Pradesh, where he was raised, in 2000 he joined Central University of Tibetan Studies in the Indian city of Varanasi. In 2005 he was awarded the Five College Tibetan Studies Program Scholarship at Hampshire College, Amherst, MA. Palden graduated from Hampshire College in 2009 with an undergraduate’s degree in Film Studies and Anthropology. Khenrab works for Tasveer, a non-profit based in Seattle where he has been the Sponsorship Coordinator since 2016. 

Work is important for Khenrab but creating a community around his work is more important to him. “It’s not about the best that comes out of what I do but rather it’s all about the best that I can give to it,” is Khenrab’s mantra in life.

Short Film: Tina

Gayatri Bahl | 9min | 2019 | United States

After undergoing self-transformation therapy, a woman is visited by an Indian classical dancer, forcing her to confront herself in a way she never expected.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Gayatri Bahl

Gayatri Bahl is an award-winning filmmaker, actor, and Indian classical dancer. Gayatri’s short film TINA, which she wrote, directed, produced, and starred in is currently on the festival circuit, where it recently won Best Short Film at the Big Apple Film Festival & Best Thriller/Horror at the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival. As an actor, she can be seen in Mr Robot, The Loudest Voice, Vinyl, Law & Order SVU, the Hindi film Let’s Dance, and Rishta.com (Netflix). As a dancer, Gayatri has performed at Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theatre, SummerStage, NJPAC, Lincoln Center and has been featured in Elle Magazine’s Movement Series.

Short Film: Brunch Wars
Kamran Khan | 10min | 2019 | United States

Three best friends meet every month for a cook-off where they each prepare a dish and try to outdo one another. But this time, revenge is on the menu when unresolved issues from their past bubble to the surface.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kamran Khan

Kamran grew up in Peoria, IL, so knows very well the old vaudeville saying of what “plays in Peoria.” He’s taken this innate industry insight and funnelled it into his passion for visual storytelling through his writing, directing and award-winning photography, which has been featured in Ron Howard’s Project Imaginat10n and Hasselblad’s Masters Competition. His scripts (pre-WGA) have placed at the American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition, Rhode Island International Film Festival (Academy and BAFTA Qualifying), PAGE Awards, the Cannes Script Contest, FilmQuest, the Austin Revolution Film Festival, Scriptapalooza, WorldFest Houston, Screencraft, New York Television Festival, and the New Hope Film Festival. Kamran is also a member of the NY State Bar where his passion for fictional storytelling is not as enthusiastically received.

Short Film: A Sari for Pallavi
Kate Chamuris | 10min | 2019 | United States

When traditional Thini & promiscuous Pallavi get into a culture clash, Pallavi has to decide between honouring the Indian traditions of her family or staying true to her modern American identity. A conversation about what not to wear spirals into a comedic exploration of cultural identity and tradition,

 

 

Filmmaker: Kate Chamuris

Originally from Bucks County Pennsylvania, Kate is a Puerto Rican/American producer, writer-director and actor based in LA. Her recent producing work includes AFI thesis films MILLER & SON (BAFTA Student Award for Live Action), IF THIS IS WRONG (Citizen Jane) and BALLOON (Palm Springs International ShortFest). She produced the AFI Directing Workshop for Women short, UNSPEAKABLE, which was named an official selection of SXSW and Series Fest. She is the creator and director of the comedic web series BREAKFAST IN BED that premiered at SideWalk Film Festival. Kate’s upcoming projects include developing the feature film adaptation of Danielle Sepulveres’s memoir LOSING IT…THE SEMI-SCANDALOUS STORY OF AN EX VIRGIN, that Kate is writing and will direct.

Short Film: A Sari for Pallavi
Kate Chamuris | 10min | 2019 | United States

When traditional Thini & promiscuous Pallavi get into a culture clash, Pallavi has to decide between honouring the Indian traditions of her family or staying true to her modern American identity. A conversation about what not to wear spirals into a comedic exploration of cultural identity and tradition,

 

 

Filmmaker: Kate Chamuris

Originally from Bucks County Pennsylvania, Kate is a Puerto Rican/American producer, writer-director and actor based in LA. Her recent producing work includes AFI thesis films MILLER & SON (BAFTA Student Award for Live Action), IF THIS IS WRONG (Citizen Jane) and BALLOON (Palm Springs International ShortFest). She produced the AFI Directing Workshop for Women short, UNSPEAKABLE, which was named an official selection of SXSW and Series Fest. She is the creator and director of the comedic web series BREAKFAST IN BED that premiered at SideWalk Film Festival. Kate’s upcoming projects include developing the feature film adaptation of Danielle Sepulveres’s memoir LOSING IT…THE SEMI-SCANDALOUS STORY OF AN EX VIRGIN, that Kate is writing and will direct.

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: The Concurrence

Esha More | 10min | 2019 | United States

A group of students in high school detention try to escape by trying various methods; meanwhile, the faculty of that school is trying to resolve an urgent academic crisis.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Esha More

Esha More graduated from the University of Washington in 2019. An actress around the Seattle area, she has also directed two films, The Book and The Concurrence. She interned at Cascade Public Media and the Seattle International Film Festival during college and gained an interest in filmmaking after discovering the need for diverse narratives on the big screen.

Short Film: Before I Go

Dennis Tran | 15min | 2019 | United States

This film highlights the impact mental illness has on family dynamics, as told through the relationship between a father, Rakesh, and his daughter Kareena. As they build their cupcake catering business, Rakesh struggles to cope with OCD while Kareena is faced with making a life-changing decision.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Dennis Tran

Dennis has had a passion for storytelling from a young age. Growing up in a Vietnamese household, Dennis has grappled with the Asian American experience for as long as he can remember. As a child of two different cultures, the feeling of alienation from both has fueled his drive for film and has allowed him to carve out his own identity in what it means to be Asian American. Since graduating from the University of Washington’s CineMedia program for visual storytelling, he continues to grow as a filmmaker, exploring the human condition as well as themes of cultural identity with his work. The concept of mental health as it exists within the Asian community has been a particular area of interest for him, to which he explores in his film Before I Go.

Short Film: Lucy and Tenzin

Khenrab Palden | 7min | 2019 | United States

When Lucy arrives at her friend Tenzin’ s house, she witnesses a most intimate ritual performed in Tibetan culture.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Khenrab Palden

Khenrab Palden was born in a small Tibetan refugee settlement in India in 1981. After completing middle school in Bir, Himachal Pradesh, where he was raised, in 2000 he joined Central University of Tibetan Studies in the Indian city of Varanasi. In 2005 he was awarded the Five College Tibetan Studies Program Scholarship at Hampshire College, Amherst, MA. Palden graduated from Hampshire College in 2009 with an undergraduate’s degree in Film Studies and Anthropology. Khenrab works for Tasveer, a non-profit based in Seattle where he has been the Sponsorship Coordinator since 2016. 

Work is important for Khenrab but creating a community around his work is more important to him. “It’s not about the best that comes out of what I do but rather it’s all about the best that I can give to it,” is Khenrab’s mantra in life.

Short Film: Tina

Gayatri Bahl | 9min | 2019 | United States

After undergoing self-transformation therapy, a woman is visited by an Indian classical dancer, forcing her to confront herself in a way she never expected.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Gayatri Bahl

Gayatri Bahl is an award-winning filmmaker, actor, and Indian classical dancer. Gayatri’s short film TINA, which she wrote, directed, produced, and starred in is currently on the festival circuit, where it recently won Best Short Film at the Big Apple Film Festival & Best Thriller/Horror at the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival. As an actor, she can be seen in Mr Robot, The Loudest Voice, Vinyl, Law & Order SVU, the Hindi film Let’s Dance, and Rishta.com (Netflix). As a dancer, Gayatri has performed at Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theatre, SummerStage, NJPAC, Lincoln Center and has been featured in Elle Magazine’s Movement Series.

Short Film: Brunch Wars
Kamran Khan | 10min | 2019 | United States

Three best friends meet every month for a cook-off where they each prepare a dish and try to outdo one another. But this time, revenge is on the menu when unresolved issues from their past bubble to the surface.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kamran Khan

Kamran grew up in Peoria, IL, so knows very well the old vaudeville saying of what “plays in Peoria.” He’s taken this innate industry insight and funnelled it into his passion for visual storytelling through his writing, directing and award-winning photography, which has been featured in Ron Howard’s Project Imaginat10n and Hasselblad’s Masters Competition. His scripts (pre-WGA) have placed at the American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition, Rhode Island International Film Festival (Academy and BAFTA Qualifying), PAGE Awards, the Cannes Script Contest, FilmQuest, the Austin Revolution Film Festival, Scriptapalooza, WorldFest Houston, Screencraft, New York Television Festival, and the New Hope Film Festival. Kamran is also a member of the NY State Bar where his passion for fictional storytelling is not as enthusiastically received.

Short Film: Closet Supes
Kesav Wable | 15min | 2019 | United States

Two East-Indian step-brothers, one straight and the other queer, host a podcast where they discuss queer innuendo in their favourite comics growing up. When a mysterious listener confronts one of them after an episode covering Hindu religious comics that were popular in 1980s India, the duo is taken on an unexpected journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kesav Wable

Kesav Wable is an award-winning actor/writer/director based in Brooklyn, New York. He won the 2006-07 inaugural Indo-American Arts Council playwriting fellowship at the Lark Play Development Center in New York City, for his play For Flow. He later co-produced a short film that he adapted from Flow which was a finalist at the 2011 HBO American Black Film Festival and later aired on HBO and Cinemax. His original feature screenplay, Dear Brother, was one of three scripts from the U.S.A selected for the Maison des Scenaristes Author-Producer meetings at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.

Short Film: Lucy and Tenzin

Khenrab Palden | 7min | 2019 | United States

When Lucy arrives at her friend Tenzin’ s house, she witnesses a most intimate ritual performed in Tibetan culture.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Khenrab Palden

Khenrab Palden was born in a small Tibetan refugee settlement in India in 1981. After completing middle school in Bir, Himachal Pradesh, where he was raised, in 2000 he joined Central University of Tibetan Studies in the Indian city of Varanasi. In 2005 he was awarded the Five College Tibetan Studies Program Scholarship at Hampshire College, Amherst, MA. Palden graduated from Hampshire College in 2009 with an undergraduate’s degree in Film Studies and Anthropology. Khenrab works for Tasveer, a non-profit based in Seattle where he has been the Sponsorship Coordinator since 2016. 

Work is important for Khenrab but creating a community around his work is more important to him. “It’s not about the best that comes out of what I do but rather it’s all about the best that I can give to it,” is Khenrab’s mantra in life.

Short Film: The Concurrence

Esha More | 10min | 2019 | United States

A group of students in high school detention try to escape by trying various methods; meanwhile, the faculty of that school is trying to resolve an urgent academic crisis.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Esha More

Esha More graduated from the University of Washington in 2019. An actress around the Seattle area, she has also directed two films, The Book and The Concurrence. She interned at Cascade Public Media and the Seattle International Film Festival during college and gained an interest in filmmaking after discovering the need for diverse narratives on the big screen.

Short Film: Before I Go

Dennis Tran | 15min | 2019 | United States

This film highlights the impact mental illness has on family dynamics, as told through the relationship between a father, Rakesh, and his daughter Kareena. As they build their cupcake catering business, Rakesh struggles to cope with OCD while Kareena is faced with making a life-changing decision.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Dennis Tran

Dennis has had a passion for storytelling from a young age. Growing up in a Vietnamese household, Dennis has grappled with the Asian American experience for as long as he can remember. As a child of two different cultures, the feeling of alienation from both has fueled his drive for film and has allowed him to carve out his own identity in what it means to be Asian American. Since graduating from the University of Washington’s CineMedia program for visual storytelling, he continues to grow as a filmmaker, exploring the human condition as well as themes of cultural identity with his work. The concept of mental health as it exists within the Asian community has been a particular area of interest for him, to which he explores in his film Before I Go.

Short Film: Tina

Gayatri Bahl | 9min | 2019 | United States

After undergoing self-transformation therapy, a woman is visited by an Indian classical dancer, forcing her to confront herself in a way she never expected.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Gayatri Bahl

Gayatri Bahl is an award-winning filmmaker, actor, and Indian classical dancer. Gayatri’s short film TINA, which she wrote, directed, produced, and starred in is currently on the festival circuit, where it recently won Best Short Film at the Big Apple Film Festival & Best Thriller/Horror at the Art of Brooklyn Film Festival. As an actor, she can be seen in Mr Robot, The Loudest Voice, Vinyl, Law & Order SVU, the Hindi film Let’s Dance, and Rishta.com (Netflix). As a dancer, Gayatri has performed at Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theatre, SummerStage, NJPAC, Lincoln Center and has been featured in Elle Magazine’s Movement Series.

Short Film: Brunch Wars
Kamran Khan | 10min | 2019 | United States

Three best friends meet every month for a cook-off where they each prepare a dish and try to outdo one another. But this time, revenge is on the menu when unresolved issues from their past bubble to the surface.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kamran Khan

Kamran grew up in Peoria, IL, so knows very well the old vaudeville saying of what “plays in Peoria.” He’s taken this innate industry insight and funnelled it into his passion for visual storytelling through his writing, directing and award-winning photography, which has been featured in Ron Howard’s Project Imaginat10n and Hasselblad’s Masters Competition. His scripts (pre-WGA) have placed at the American Zoetrope Screenplay Competition, Rhode Island International Film Festival (Academy and BAFTA Qualifying), PAGE Awards, the Cannes Script Contest, FilmQuest, the Austin Revolution Film Festival, Scriptapalooza, WorldFest Houston, Screencraft, New York Television Festival, and the New Hope Film Festival. Kamran is also a member of the NY State Bar where his passion for fictional storytelling is not as enthusiastically received.

Short Film: Closet Supes
Kesav Wable | 15min | 2019 | United States

Two East-Indian step-brothers, one straight and the other queer, host a podcast where they discuss queer innuendo in their favourite comics growing up. When a mysterious listener confronts one of them after an episode covering Hindu religious comics that were popular in 1980s India, the duo is taken on an unexpected journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Kesav Wable

Kesav Wable is an award-winning actor/writer/director based in Brooklyn, New York. He won the 2006-07 inaugural Indo-American Arts Council playwriting fellowship at the Lark Play Development Center in New York City, for his play For Flow. He later co-produced a short film that he adapted from Flow which was a finalist at the 2011 HBO American Black Film Festival and later aired on HBO and Cinemax. His original feature screenplay, Dear Brother, was one of three scripts from the U.S.A selected for the Maison des Scenaristes Author-Producer meetings at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.

Short Film: A Sari for Pallavi
Kate Chamuris | 10min | 2019 | United States

When traditional Thini & promiscuous Pallavi get into a culture clash, Pallavi has to decide between honouring the Indian traditions of her family or staying true to her modern American identity. A conversation about what not to wear spirals into a comedic exploration of cultural identity and tradition,

 

 

Filmmaker: Kate Chamuris

Originally from Bucks County Pennsylvania, Kate is a Puerto Rican/American producer, writer-director and actor based in LA. Her recent producing work includes AFI thesis films MILLER & SON (BAFTA Student Award for Live Action), IF THIS IS WRONG (Citizen Jane) and BALLOON (Palm Springs International ShortFest). She produced the AFI Directing Workshop for Women short, UNSPEAKABLE, which was named an official selection of SXSW and Series Fest. She is the creator and director of the comedic web series BREAKFAST IN BED that premiered at SideWalk Film Festival. Kate’s upcoming projects include developing the feature film adaptation of Danielle Sepulveres’s memoir LOSING IT…THE SEMI-SCANDALOUS STORY OF AN EX VIRGIN, that Kate is writing and will direct.

Short Film: Living With Snow Leopards: Tashi’s Story

Gayle Podrabsky | 10min | 2018 | United States

With the snow leopards‘ prey in decline, encounters between villagers and the cat are on the rise. Explore this fragile relationship through the eyes of Tashi, a local goat herder, and learn how his village has partnered with the Snow Leopard Trust to find ways to both live with and save one of the rarest cats on Earth.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Gayle Podrabsky

Gayle is an award-winning producer/director with over 25 years of experience in creating digital content. Her work can be seen on local and national PBS. Recently Living with Snow Leopards: Tashi’s Story won first place at the World Wildlife Day’s International Big Cat Film Festival in the category of People and Cats.

Her other films include The Source: The Story of Seattle’s Tap Water and Ron Ho Becoming Chinese: A Jewelers Tale.

 

Film: Pariah Dog

Jesse Alk | 97min | 2019 | India

Pariah Dog is a creative documentary focusing on several eccentric dog lovers in Kolkata, India. Shot over two-and-a-half years, the film paints a kaleidoscopic picture of the city of Kolkata, seen through the prism of four outsiders and the dogs they love. These men and women have found meaning and purpose in their shared mission to care for these neglected street dogs, who have existed in the towns and villages of India for thousands of years. For some this mission is enough, for others, dreams of a better life are always near.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Jesse Alk

Jesse Alk was born in Ottawa, Canada, to US parents. He graduated with honours from the University of California, Santa Cruz, studied briefly at the NYU TISCH School of the Arts film department, and then attended the University of California, Los Angeles MFA Directing Program in the School of Theater, Film, and Television. He is the son of the late documentary filmmaker Howard Alk. Pariah Dog is his first feature film.

Film: Pariah Dog

Jesse Alk | 97min | 2019 | India

Pariah Dog is a creative documentary focusing on several eccentric dog lovers in Kolkata, India. Shot over two-and-a-half years, the film paints a kaleidoscopic picture of the city of Kolkata, seen through the prism of four outsiders and the dogs they love. These men and women have found meaning and purpose in their shared mission to care for these neglected street dogs, who have existed in the towns and villages of India for thousands of years. For some this mission is enough, for others, dreams of a better life are always near.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Jesse Alk

Jesse Alk was born in Ottawa, Canada, to US parents. He graduated with honours from the University of California, Santa Cruz, studied briefly at the NYU TISCH School of the Arts film department, and then attended the University of California, Los Angeles MFA Directing Program in the School of Theater, Film, and Television. He is the son of the late documentary filmmaker Howard Alk. Pariah Dog is his first feature film.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Living With Snow Leopards: Tashi’s Story

Gayle Podrabsky | 10min | 2018 | United States

With the snow leopards‘ prey in decline, encounters between villagers and the cat are on the rise. Explore this fragile relationship through the eyes of Tashi, a local goat herder, and learn how his village has partnered with the Snow Leopard Trust to find ways to both live with and save one of the rarest cats on Earth.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Gayle Podrabsky

Gayle is an award-winning producer/director with over 25 years of experience in creating digital content. Her work can be seen on local and national PBS. Recently Living with Snow Leopards: Tashi’s Story won first place at the World Wildlife Day’s International Big Cat Film Festival in the category of People and Cats.

Her other films include The Source: The Story of Seattle’s Tap Water and Ron Ho Becoming Chinese: A Jewelers Tale.

 

 

 

Film: Coral Woman

Priya Thuvassery | 52min | 2019 | India

Coral Woman is a filmmaker’s journey with Uma, a certified scuba diver, exploring the underwater world and the threat to coral reefs of the Gulf of Mannar, India. Born in a traditional family in Tamil Nadu, 53 year-old homemaker Uma has been trying to bring attention to this alarming environmental issue through her paintings. It is, in fact, these corals that inspired Uma to learn how to swim, dive, and paint in her 50s.

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Priya Thuvassery

Priya Thuvassery is an independent filmmaker based in New Delhi, India, and has had the experience of directing, producing, and editing documentary films and television programs for New Delhi Television, Fox Traveler, National Human Rights Commission of India, Films Division of India, Public Service Broadcasting Trust, and Khabar Lahariya.

She has fundraised, directed and edited several documentaries: Khanabadosh, My Sacred Glass Bowl and Survey Number Zero. Coral Woman is her first feature-length documentary film.

 

 

 

 

Trailer

 

Short Film: Shit One Carries

Shuchi Kothari | 14min | 2019 | India

Avi, 45, returns home to India from California to care for his father. Unlike the warmth his father shares with his caregivers, the father and son’s relationship is prickly. One afternoon when the attendant is unavailable, Avi must deal with his father’s diarrhoea. A desperate Avi realises that he must let go of his own crap before he can deal with his father’s shit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Shuchi Kothari

Shuchi Kothari is a Kiwi-Indian filmmaker based in New Zealand. She has written and produced award-winning films (Firaaq, Apron Strings, Coffee & Allah, Fleeting Beauty) that have screened at over 100 international festivals including Venice, Toronto, BFI, Telluride, Cannes and Busan. She teaches Screen Production at the University of Auckland. Among other projects, she’s currently writing an animated feature screenplay set in USA and Japan. 

Shit One Carries is Shuchi’s fictional directorial debut.

Short Film: Soch

Varundeep Singh Chawla | 3min | 2019 | Canada

This Public Service Announcement is a narrative short about a single Indian mother who does the best she can to take care of her daughter despite her anxiety attacks. One day after school, at the daughter’s request, they go to an upscale ice-cream store where the mother has a panic attack while ordering. The daughter picks up on her mother not feeling well. Later at home, she approaches her mother and asks her if she’s feeling okay. The film ends with: “Take care of your mental health like you take care of your children.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Varundeep Singh Chawla

As a young filmmaker growing up in India, Varundeep’s journey into motion pictures started with filming and editing homemade videos at the age of 15. By 22, his passion for film and expanding his knowledge and experience would take him halfway across the planet, where he would study every aspect of filmmaking at Humber’s Film and Television Production Program in Toronto, Canada. After opening up the conversation about his own mental health concerns to his family, his aim has been to extend the discussion to his community and break the stigma against mental health. Varundeep hopes to make a positive impact in the world in every project he undertakes.

 

Short Film: The Seal
Richa Rudola | 16min | 2019 | United States

The Seal is a psychological thriller about a woman’s journey of healing from trauma. It’s about the battle between the mind that wants to forget, and the body that remembers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Richa Rudola

Richa is an award-winning NYC-based filmmaker.  Her first short film, Taaza Khoon (Fresh Blood), won 7 awards across 27 film festivals, eventually picking up distribution by Shorts TV India. Richa’s scripts have been shortlisted for Oscar-qualifying festivals such as HollyShorts Film Festival, Nashville Film Festival and have received accolades from ScreenCraft Film Fund, Shore Scripts Film Fund, and Ocktober Film Festival. She was selected as 1 of 50 film directors from across the world for the Shore Scripts’ Directors Roster. Her film writings have appeared on Static Mass Emporium, a UK-based independent film publication. Richa is a strong proponent for increasing diversity in storytelling and serves as the Vice President of Development for NYC Women Filmmakers, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting women in film.

Short Film: Cul De Sac
Cara Lawson | 13min | 2019 | United States

On the morning of her annual Memorial Day barbecue, a young mother, Jiya, is threatened by tormenting symptoms of postpartum psychosis. Overwhelmed, she tries to suppress the sense of dread as her mental state worsens, but her sense of reality begins to deteriorate when the final guest arrives–her mother.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Cara Lawson

With a background in behavioural psychology, Cara Lawson moved to study directing at Columbia College Chicago in 2011. Beginning in fall 2015, Lawson attended the AFI Conservatory to study directing. After the first year’s portfolio review, she was awarded a full-tuition scholarship. Lawson’s passion is to delve into other worlds. Whether it’s another planet or time period, her goal is to engage audiences in new experiences with emotionally rich and vibrant characters. Her work is heavily researched and she works to use her multi-ethnic background to fuse different cultures together and showcase diversity.

Short Film: The Seal
Richa Rudola | 16min | 2019 | United States

The Seal is a psychological thriller about a woman’s journey of healing from trauma. It’s about the battle between the mind that wants to forget, and the body that remembers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Richa Rudola

Richa is an award-winning NYC-based filmmaker.  Her first short film, Taaza Khoon (Fresh Blood), won 7 awards across 27 film festivals, eventually picking up distribution by Shorts TV India. Richa’s scripts have been shortlisted for Oscar-qualifying festivals such as HollyShorts Film Festival, Nashville Film Festival and have received accolades from ScreenCraft Film Fund, Shore Scripts Film Fund, and Ocktober Film Festival. She was selected as 1 of 50 film directors from across the world for the Shore Scripts’ Directors Roster. Her film writings have appeared on Static Mass Emporium, a UK-based independent film publication. Richa is a strong proponent for increasing diversity in storytelling and serves as the Vice President of Development for NYC Women Filmmakers, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting women in film.

 

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Shit One Carries

Shuchi Kothari | 14min | 2019 | India

Avi, 45, returns home to India from California to care for his father. Unlike the warmth his father shares with his caregivers, the father and son’s relationship is prickly. One afternoon when the attendant is unavailable, Avi must deal with his father’s diarrhea. A desperate Avi realises that he must let go of his own crap before he can deal with his father’s shit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Shuchi Kothari

Shuchi Kothari is a Kiwi-Indian filmmaker based in New Zealand. She has written and produced award-winning films (Firaaq, Apron Strings, Coffee & Allah, Fleeting Beauty) that have screened at over 100 international festivals including Venice, Toronto, BFI, Telluride, Cannes and Busan. She teaches Screen Production at the University of Auckland. Among other projects, she’s currently writing an animated feature screenplay set in USA and Japan. 

Shit One Carries is Shuchi’s fictional directorial debut.

Film: Coral Woman

Priya Thuvassery | 52min | 2019 | India

Coral Woman is a filmmaker’s journey with Uma, a certified scuba diver, exploring the underwater world and the threat to coral reefs of the Gulf of Mannar, India. Born in a traditional family in Tamil Nadu, 53 year-old homemaker Uma has been trying to bring attention to this alarming environmental issue through her paintings. It is, in fact, these corals that inspired Uma to learn how to swim, dive, and paint in her 50s.

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Priya Thuvassery

Priya Thuvassery is an independent filmmaker based in New Delhi, India, and has had the experience of directing, producing, and editing documentary films and television programs for New Delhi Television, Fox Traveler, National Human Rights Commission of India, Films Division of India, Public Service Broadcasting Trust, and Khabar Lahariya.

She has fundraised, directed and edited several documentaries: Khanabadosh, My Sacred Glass Bowl and Survey Number Zero. Coral Woman is her first feature-length documentary film.

 

Short Film: Soch

Varundeep Singh Chawla | 3min | 2019 | Canada

This Public Service Announcement is a narrative short about a single Indian mother who does the best she can to take care of her daughter despite her anxiety attacks. One day after school, at the daughter’s request, they go to an upscale ice-cream store where the mother has a panic attack while ordering. The daughter picks up on her mother not feeling well. Later at home, she approaches her mother and asks her if she’s feeling okay. The film ends with: “Take care of your mental health like you take care of your children.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Varundeep Singh Chawla

As a young filmmaker growing up in India, Varundeep’s journey into motion pictures started with filming and editing homemade videos at the age of 15. By 22, his passion for film and expanding his knowledge and experience would take him halfway across the planet, where he would study every aspect of filmmaking at Humber’s Film and Television Production Program in Toronto, Canada. After opening up the conversation about his own mental health concerns to his family, his aim has been to extend the discussion to his community and break the stigma against mental health. Varundeep hopes to make a positive impact in the world in every project he undertakes.

 

Short Film: Cul De Sac
Cara Lawson | 13min | 2019 | United States

On the morning of her annual Memorial Day barbecue, a young mother, Jiya, is threatened by tormenting symptoms of postpartum psychosis. Overwhelmed, she tries to suppress the sense of dread as her mental state worsens, but her sense of reality begins to deteriorate when the final guest arrives–her mother.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Cara Lawson

With a background in behavioural psychology, Cara Lawson moved to study directing at Columbia College Chicago in 2011. Beginning in fall 2015, Lawson attended the AFI Conservatory to study directing. After the first year’s portfolio review, she was awarded a full-tuition scholarship. Lawson’s passion is to delve into other worlds. Whether it’s another planet or time period, her goal is to engage audiences in new experiences with emotionally rich and vibrant characters. Her work is heavily researched and she works to use her multi-ethnic background to fuse different cultures together and showcase diversity.

Short Film: Cul De Sac
Cara Lawson | 13min | 2019 | United States

On the morning of her annual Memorial Day barbecue, a young mother, Jiya, is threatened by tormenting symptoms of postpartum psychosis. Overwhelmed, she tries to suppress the sense of dread as her mental state worsens, but her sense of reality begins to deteriorate when the final guest arrives–her mother.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Cara Lawson

With a background in behavioural psychology, Cara Lawson moved to study directing at Columbia College Chicago in 2011. Beginning in fall 2015, Lawson attended the AFI Conservatory to study directing. After the first year’s portfolio review, she was awarded a full-tuition scholarship. Lawson’s passion is to delve into other worlds. Whether it’s another planet or time period, her goal is to engage audiences in new experiences with emotionally rich and vibrant characters. Her work is heavily researched and she works to use her multi-ethnic background to fuse different cultures together and showcase diversity.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Shit One Carries

Shuchi Kothari | 14min | 2019 | India

Avi, 45, returns home to India from California to care for his father. Unlike the warmth his father shares with his caregivers, the father and son’s relationship is prickly. One afternoon when the attendant is unavailable, Avi must deal with his father’s diarrhoea. A desperate Avi realises that he must let go of his own crap before he can deal with his father’s shit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Shuchi Kothari

Shuchi Kothari is a Kiwi-Indian filmmaker based in New Zealand. She has written and produced award-winning films (Firaaq, Apron Strings, Coffee & Allah, Fleeting Beauty) that have screened at over 100 international festivals including Venice, Toronto, BFI, Telluride, Cannes and Busan. She teaches Screen Production at the University of Auckland. Among other projects, she’s currently writing an animated feature screenplay set in USA and Japan. 

Shit One Carries is Shuchi’s fictional directorial debut.

Film: Coral Woman

Priya Thuvassery | 52min | 2019 | India

Coral Woman is a filmmaker’s journey with Uma, a certified scuba diver, exploring the underwater world and the threat to coral reefs of the Gulf of Mannar, India. Born in a traditional family in Tamil Nadu, 53 year-old homemaker Uma has been trying to bring attention to this alarming environmental issue through her paintings. It is, in fact, these corals that inspired Uma to learn how to swim, dive, and paint in her 50s.

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Priya Thuvassery

Priya Thuvassery is an independent filmmaker based in New Delhi, India, and has had the experience of directing, producing, and editing documentary films and television programs for New Delhi Television, Fox Traveler, National Human Rights Commission of India, Films Division of India, Public Service Broadcasting Trust, and Khabar Lahariya.

She has fundraised, directed and edited several documentaries: Khanabadosh, My Sacred Glass Bowl and Survey Number Zero. Coral Woman is her first feature-length documentary film.

 

Short Film: Soch

Varundeep Singh Chawla | 3min | 2019 | Canada

This Public Service Announcement is a narrative short about a single Indian mother who does the best she can to take care of her daughter despite her anxiety attacks. One day after school, at the daughter’s request, they go to an upscale ice-cream store where the mother has a panic attack while ordering. The daughter picks up on her mother not feeling well. Later at home, she approaches her mother and asks her if she’s feeling okay. The film ends with: “Take care of your mental health like you take care of your children.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Varundeep Singh Chawla

As a young filmmaker growing up in India, Varundeep’s journey into motion pictures started with filming and editing homemade videos at the age of 15. By 22, his passion for film and expanding his knowledge and experience would take him halfway across the planet, where he would study every aspect of filmmaking at Humber’s Film and Television Production Program in Toronto, Canada. After opening up the conversation about his own mental health concerns to his family, his aim has been to extend the discussion to his community and break the stigma against mental health. Varundeep hopes to make a positive impact in the world in every project he undertakes.

 

Short Film: The Seal
Richa Rudola | 16min | 2019 | United States

The Seal is a psychological thriller about a woman’s journey of healing from trauma. It’s about the battle between the mind that wants to forget, and the body that remembers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Richa Rudola

Richa is an award-winning NYC-based filmmaker.  Her first short film, Taaza Khoon (Fresh Blood), won 7 awards across 27 film festivals, eventually picking up distribution by Shorts TV India. Richa’s scripts have been shortlisted for Oscar-qualifying festivals such as HollyShorts Film Festival, Nashville Film Festival and have received accolades from ScreenCraft Film Fund, Shore Scripts Film Fund, and Ocktober Film Festival. She was selected as 1 of 50 film directors from across the world for the Shore Scripts’ Directors Roster. Her film writings have appeared on Static Mass Emporium, a UK-based independent film publication. Richa is a strong proponent for increasing diversity in storytelling and serves as the Vice President of Development for NYC Women Filmmakers, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting women in film.

Short Film: Soch

Varundeep Singh Chawla | 3min | 2019 | Canada

This Public Service Announcement is a narrative short about a single Indian mother who does the best she can to take care of her daughter despite her anxiety attacks. One day after school, at the daughter’s request, they go to an upscale ice-cream store where the mother has a panic attack while ordering. The daughter picks up on her mother not feeling well. Later at home, she approaches her mother and asks her if she’s feeling okay. The film ends with: “Take care of your mental health like you take care of your children.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Varundeep Singh Chawla

As a young filmmaker growing up in India, Varundeep’s journey into motion pictures started with filming and editing homemade videos at the age of 15. By 22, his passion for film and expanding his knowledge and experience would take him halfway across the planet, where he would study every aspect of filmmaking at Humber’s Film and Television Production Program in Toronto, Canada. After opening up the conversation about his own mental health concerns to his family, his aim has been to extend the discussion to his community and break the stigma against mental health. Varundeep hopes to make a positive impact in the world in every project he undertakes.

 

Short Film: Shit One Carries

Shuchi Kothari | 14min | 2019 | India

Avi, 45, returns home to India from California to care for his father. Unlike the warmth his father shares with his caregivers, the father and son’s relationship is prickly. One afternoon when the attendant is unavailable, Avi must deal with his father’s diarrhoea. A desperate Avi realises that he must let go of his own crap before he can deal with his father’s shit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Shuchi Kothari

Shuchi Kothari is a Kiwi-Indian filmmaker based in New Zealand. She has written and produced award-winning films (Firaaq, Apron Strings, Coffee & Allah, Fleeting Beauty) that have screened at over 100 international festivals including Venice, Toronto, BFI, Telluride, Cannes and Busan. She teaches Screen Production at the University of Auckland. Among other projects, she’s currently writing an animated feature screenplay set in USA and Japan. 

Shit One Carries is Shuchi’s fictional directorial debut.

Film: Coral Woman

Priya Thuvassery | 52min | 2019 | India

Coral Woman is a filmmaker’s journey with Uma, a certified scuba diver, exploring the underwater world and the threat to coral reefs of the Gulf of Mannar, India. Born in a traditional family in Tamil Nadu, 53 year-old homemaker Uma has been trying to bring attention to this alarming environmental issue through her paintings. It is, in fact, these corals that inspired Uma to learn how to swim, dive, and paint in her 50s.

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Priya Thuvassery

Priya Thuvassery is an independent filmmaker based in New Delhi, India, and has had the experience of directing, producing, and editing documentary films and television programs for New Delhi Television, Fox Traveler, National Human Rights Commission of India, Films Division of India, Public Service Broadcasting Trust, and Khabar Lahariya.

She has fundraised, directed and edited several documentaries: Khanabadosh, My Sacred Glass Bowl and Survey Number Zero. Coral Woman is her first feature-length documentary film.

 

Short Film: The Seal
Richa Rudola | 16min | 2019 | United States

The Seal is a psychological thriller about a woman’s journey of healing from trauma. It’s about the battle between the mind that wants to forget, and the body that remembers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Richa Rudola

Richa is an award-winning NYC-based filmmaker.  Her first short film, Taaza Khoon (Fresh Blood), won 7 awards across 27 film festivals, eventually picking up distribution by Shorts TV India. Richa’s scripts have been shortlisted for Oscar-qualifying festivals such as HollyShorts Film Festival, Nashville Film Festival and have received accolades from ScreenCraft Film Fund, Shore Scripts Film Fund, and Ocktober Film Festival. She was selected as 1 of 50 film directors from across the world for the Shore Scripts’ Directors Roster. Her film writings have appeared on Static Mass Emporium, a UK-based independent film publication. Richa is a strong proponent for increasing diversity in storytelling and serves as the Vice President of Development for NYC Women Filmmakers, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting women in film.

Short Film: Cul De Sac
Cara Lawson | 13min | 2019 | United States

On the morning of her annual Memorial Day barbecue, a young mother, Jiya, is threatened by tormenting symptoms of postpartum psychosis. Overwhelmed, she tries to suppress the sense of dread as her mental state worsens, but her sense of reality begins to deteriorate when the final guest arrives–her mother.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Cara Lawson

With a background in behavioural psychology, Cara Lawson moved to study directing at Columbia College Chicago in 2011. Beginning in fall 2015, Lawson attended the AFI Conservatory to study directing. After the first year’s portfolio review, she was awarded a full-tuition scholarship. Lawson’s passion is to delve into other worlds. Whether it’s another planet or time period, her goal is to engage audiences in new experiences with emotionally rich and vibrant characters. Her work is heavily researched and she works to use her multi-ethnic background to fuse different cultures together and showcase diversity.

Short Film: Shit One Carries

Shuchi Kothari | 14min | 2019 | India/ New Zealand

Avi, 45, returns home to India from California to care for his father. Unlike the warmth his father shares with his caregivers, the father and son’s relationship is prickly. One afternoon when the attendant is unavailable, Avi must deal with his father’s diarrhea. A desperate Avi realizes that he must let go of his own crap before he can deal with his father’s shit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Shuchi Kothari

Shuchi Kothari is a Kiwi-Indian filmmaker based in New Zealand. She has written and produced award-winning films (Firaaq, Apron Strings, Coffee & Allah, Fleeting Beauty) that have screened at over 100 international festivals including Venice, Toronto, BFI, Telluride, Cannes and Busan. She teaches Screen Production at the University of Auckland. Among other projects, she’s currently writing an animated feature screenplay set in USA and Japan. 

Shit One Carries is Shuchi’s fictional directorial debut.

 

 

 

 

 

Trailer

Film: Coral Woman

Priya Thuvassery | 52min | 2019 | India

Coral Woman is a filmmaker’s journey with Uma, a certified scuba diver, exploring the underwater world and the threat to coral reefs of the Gulf of Mannar, India. Born in a traditional family in Tamil Nadu, 53 year-old homemaker Uma has been trying to bring attention to this alarming environmental issue through her paintings. It is, in fact, these corals that inspired Uma to learn how to swim, dive, and paint in her 50s.

 

 

 

Short Film: Soch

Varundeep Singh Chawla | 3min | 2019 | Canada

This Public Service Announcement is a narrative short about a single Indian mother who does the best she can to take care of her daughter despite her anxiety attacks. One day after school, at the daughter’s request, they go to an upscale ice-cream store where the mother has a panic attack while ordering. The daughter picks up on her mother not feeling well. Later at home, she approaches her mother and asks her if she’s feeling okay. The film ends with: “Take care of your mental health like you take care of your children.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Short Film: The Seal
Richa Rudola | 16min | 2019 | United States

The Seal is a psychological thriller about a woman’s journey of healing from trauma. It’s about the battle between the mind that wants to forget, and the body that remembers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Short Film: Cul De Sac
Cara Lawson | 13min | 2019 | United States

On the morning of her annual Memorial Day barbecue, a young mother, Jiya, is threatened by tormenting symptoms of postpartum psychosis. Overwhelmed, she tries to suppress the sense of dread as her mental state worsens, but her sense of reality begins to deteriorate when the final guest arrives–her mother.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Film: Jhalki

Brahmanand S Siingh | 102min | 2019 | India

 

In a twinkle of an eye, a life-altering disappearance of her 7-year old kid brother sets Jhalki off on a mission to find him at all costs. Armed with an intimate folk-tale of a tireless sparrow and her own charming presence of mind, Jhalki embarks on a relentless journey to find and free her brother. Unaware and ignorant of the deep-rooted corruption and cobwebs of the system, Jhalki takes on the monstrous and conniving with a purity of pursuit that is at once uplifting and inspirational.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Brahmanand S Siingh

Brahmanand S Siingh is an award-winning filmmaker and writer based out of Mumbai. He is best known for his films, ‘Kaagaz Ki Kashti’, a biopic on legendary ghazal maestro Jagjit Singh, and ‘Pancham Unmixed’, his award-winning feature-length documentary on R.D. Burman, which continues to enjoy an amazing cult and popular acclaim across viewing platforms.

 

 

 

 

 

Trailer

Film: Gadhvi

Gaurav Bakshi | 110min | 2019 | India

 

When a retired widower inadvertently takes on the establishment, the nondescript Ram Nath Gadhvi becomes the social media sensation, #Gadhvi. The story unfolds with a Gandhian (read pacifist) Gadhvi taking on the machinations of the hired gun, Omkar. However, Gadhvi is no ordinary Gandhian; he believes he is the reincarnation of Mahatma Gandhi himself. And only by shattering this apparent delusion can Omkar succeed in his mission of suppressing the swelling anger against his masters, the establishment. What starts off as a lively tale with a motley cast of characters takes a serious turn when Gadhvi becomes a social media hero, and the only way to bring him down seems to be to bring down his core beliefs. The satire works like a thriller where one is kept guessing about who is Gadhvi. Is Gadhvi really a Gandhi reincarnation? Will Omkar succeed? Will the truth set him free? Are we what we are destined to be? Or can we create our own destiny?

 

Filmmaker: Gaurav Bakshi

Gaurav Bakshi is an economics graduate from Delhi University and an MBA from IIM Bangalore. After 15 years in the corporate world as a marketing man, he switched tracks to follow his passion for film-making. Once back in India, he gained on-the-job experience by working as an Assistant Director on films such as Oye Lucky Lucky Oye (directed by Dibakar Bannerjee), Love Khichdi (directed by Srinivas Bhashyam), and Ishqiya (directed by Abhishek Chaubey). Occasionally consulting for various production houses and writing witty columns recording the ups and downs of a struggling writer in the big, bad world of films, he is now developing his own projects, both short and feature-length. His short films have been showcased at various film festivals across the world and have garnered wide viewership online. #Gadhvi is his first feature film.

 

 

Trailer

Film: Reason

Anand Patwardhan | 157min | 2019 | India

Reason takes us to a macrocosm – India, the world’s largest democracy. Its eight chapters are a chilling account of how murder and mind control is systematically dismantling secular democracy in a country which once aspired not just to Liberty, Egalite and Fraternity, but to lead the post-war world out of a mindless spiral of violence.

 

 

Awards

Best Feature Documentary International Film Festival of Amsterdam (IDFA) October 2018

https://variety.com/2018/film/festivals/idfa-awards-2018-the-jury-sees-reason-1203034904/

Audience Award, Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) 2019

https://www.nonfictionfilm.com/news/documentary-reason-wins-audience-award-at-indian-film-festival-of-los-angeles

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/indian-film-fest-los-angeles-unveils-award-winners-1202295

World Premiere

Toronto International Film Festival, Sept. 2018

https://www.tiff.net/tiff/reason/

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Anand Patwardhan

Anand Patwardhan has been making political documentaries for over four decades, pursuing diverse issues that are at the crux of socio-political life in India. Many of his films were at one time or another banned by the censors and by State television channels and became the subject of litigation. Anand, who successfully challenged these censorship rulings in court, has also been active in movements for communal harmony as well as movements against unjust, unsustainable development; casteism; militarism; and nuclear nationalism.

www.patwardhan.com

 

 

Anand Patwardhan will be attending in person.

Dr. Nalini Iyer will be moderating the Post-Film QnA.

 

Trailer

Film: The Sweet Requiem

Ritu Sarin, Tenzing Sonam | 91min | 2019 | Tibet

When a young, exiled Tibetan woman unexpectedly sees a man from her past, long-suppressed memories of her traumatic escape across the Himalayas are reignited and she is propelled on an obsessive search for reconciliation and closure.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Ritu Sarin, Tenzing Sonam

After graduating from Miranda House, Delhi University, Ritu Sarin did her MFA in lm and video from the California College of Arts. Tenzing was born in Darjeeling in northeastern India to Tibetan refugee parents. He graduated from St Stephen’s College, Delhi University, and studied broadcast journalism at the University of California, Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism. Working through their company, White Crane Films, they have made more than 20 documentaries, several video installations, and one dramatic feature. Their work has primarily focused on the subject of Tibet and has attempted to document, question and reflect on the issues of exile, identity, culture and politics that confront the Tibetan people.  Ritu and Tenzing are the directors of the Dharamshala International Film Festival, which they founded in 2012 and is now considered to be one of India’s leading independent lm festivals.
They were awarded the Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Residency in 2017.

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Babu

Eelum Dixit | 26min | 2019 | Nepal

When tragedy strikes a village in Nepal, ten-year-old Babu steps into his father’s shoes to keep what is left of his family together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Eelum Dixit

Eelum Dixit is a Nepali filmmaker who got his Masters in Film and TV Production from the USC School of Cinematic Arts. He has transferred his knowledge gained from theatre to create naturalistic dramas in which he often uses non-actors if the role suits. His filmography includes Red Monsoon (2012) and Kichkandi (2018).

Short Film: Daughters of the Polo God

Roopa Barua | 33min | 2019 | India

Set in Manipur, India, Daughters of the Polo God is the unique story of girls and horses empowering each other. It is a story about saving an endangered breed of pony and empowering women in the sport of polo at the same time.

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Roopa Barua

Roopa Barua is a fan of the cinematic medium. She seeks to create nuanced cinema that goes beyond geography and human boundaries. An award-winning documentary filmmaker, she has been documenting women’s polo in India starting with Team USPA’s Women’s India Visit 2016 for Manipur and Jaipur. Roopa has won multiple awards in 2015 for her documentary Riders of the Mist. She covered the Cannes Film Festival 2015 for films in both the Palme D’Or and the Un Certain Regard categories for this blog. Roopa has a Certificate in Film Production from New York Film Academy and has also taken film criticism courses at the University of California, Berkeley.

Short Film: Tattini – The Moon is Bright

Abinash Bikram Shah | 15min | 2019 | Nepal/Myanmar

The young widow of a migrant worker wants to start a new life with her husband’s insurance money but is challenged by her father-n-law.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Abinash Bikram Shah

Born in Nepal, Abinash Bikram Shah is a freelance writer/director based in Kathmandu. An alumnus of Locarno Filmmakers’ Academy, Berlinale Talents, and Asian Film Academy, Abinash has written, directed, and produced short films that have participated and won at many International Film Festivals. He has also written several feature films that premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival (2012) and the Venice International Film Festival (2015) and were also Nepal’s Official Entry for Academy Awards in Best Foreign Language Film Section. In addition to working as a teacher at Oscar International College (College of Film Studies) and as Programming Director of Ekadeshma International Short Film Festival, Abinash is currently preparing for his directorial debut film Season of Dragonflies.

Short Film: Elephantbird

Masoud Soheili | 15min | 2019 | Afghanistan

A mini-bus is on a journey across the mountains to Kabul. Each person on the bus has a reason to take this journey. An old man is travelling to give a turkey to his grandchild, as his last wish before dying. However, the main road is blocked by insurgents. They decide to use an alternative road, which is not very secure, and there is still the possibility of getting caught by insurgents.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Masoud Soheili

Amir Masoud Soheili is an internationally awarded short filmmaker, festival director and programmer. He has been one of the seven most honoured Iranian short filmmakers in 2015. He studied cinema in Indonesia and South Korea. With his second short film, Blue-eyed Boy (2014), he won 20 international awards from more than 140 international film festivals. He is co-founder and creative director of “Asia Peace Film Festival” in Islamabad, Pakistan and programmer of “Changing Perspective Intentional Film Festival” in Istanbul, Turkey. He was also worked as a festival director of Inaugural “Safe Community” International Film Festival in Mashhad, Iran (2017).

Short Film: Daughters of the Polo God

Roopa Barua | 33min | 2019 | India

Set in Manipur, India, Daughters of the Polo God  is the unique story of girls and horses empowering each other. It is a story about saving an endangered breed of pony and empowering women in the sport of polo at the same time.

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Roopa Barua

Roopa Barua is a fan of the cinematic medium. She seeks to create nuanced cinema that goes beyond geography and human boundaries. An award-winning documentary filmmaker, she has been documenting women’s polo in India starting with Team USPA’s Women’s India Visit 2016 for Manipur and Jaipur. Roopa has won multiple awards in 2015 for her documentary Riders of the Mist. She covered the Cannes Film Festival 2015 for films in both the Palme D’Or and the Un Certain Regard categories for this blog. Roopa has a Certificate in Film Production from New York Film Academy and has also taken film criticism courses at the University of California, Berkeley. 

 

 

 

Trailer

Short Film: Babu

Eelum Dixit | 26min | 2019 | Nepal

When tragedy strikes a village in Nepal, ten-year-old Babu steps into his father’s shoes to keep what is left of his family together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Eelum Dixit

Eelum Dixit is a Nepali filmmaker who got his Masters in Film and TV Production from the USC School of Cinematic Arts. He has transferred his knowledge gained from theatre to create naturalistic dramas in which he often uses non-actors if the role suits. His filmography includes Red Monsoon (2012) and Kichkandi (2018).

Short Film: Tattini – The Moon is Bright

Abinash Bikram Shah | 15min | 2019 | Nepal/Myanmar

The young widow of a migrant worker wants to start a new life with her husband’s insurance money but is challenged by her father-n-law.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Abinash Bikram Shah

Born in Nepal, Abinash Bikram Shah is a freelance writer/director based in Kathmandu. An alumnus of Locarno Filmmakers’ Academy, Berlinale Talents, and Asian Film Academy, Abinash has written, directed, and produced short films that have participated and won at many International Film Festivals. He has also written several feature films that premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival (2012) and the Venice International Film Festival (2015) and were also Nepal’s Official Entry for Academy Awards in Best Foreign Language Film Section. In addition to working as a teacher at Oscar International College (College of Film Studies) and as Programming Director of Ekadeshma International Short Film Festival, Abinash is currently preparing for his directorial debut film Season of Dragonflies.

Short Film: Elephantbird

Masoud Soheili | 15min | 2019 | Afghanistan

A mini-bus is on a journey across the mountains to Kabul. Each person on the bus has a reason to take this journey. An old man is travelling to give a turkey to his grandchild, as his last wish before dying. However, the main road is blocked by insurgents. They decide to use an alternative road, which is not very secure, and there is still the possibility of getting caught by insurgents.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Masoud Soheili

Amir Masoud Soheili is an internationally awarded short filmmaker, festival director and programmer. He has been one of the seven most honoured Iranian short filmmakers in 2015. He studied cinema in Indonesia and South Korea. With his second short film, Blue-eyed Boy (2014), he won 20 international awards from more than 140 international film festivals. He is co-founder and creative director of “Asia Peace Film Festival” in Islamabad, Pakistan and programmer of “Changing Perspective Intentional Film Festival” in Istanbul, Turkey. He was also worked as a festival director of Inaugural “Safe Community” International Film Festival in Mashhad, Iran (2017).

Short Film: Tattini – The Moon is Bright

Abinash Bikram Shah | 15min | 2019 | Nepal/Myanmar

The young widow of a migrant worker wants to start a new life with her husband’s insurance money but is challenged by her father-n-law.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Abinash Bikram Shah

Born in Nepal, Abinash Bikram Shah is a freelance writer/director based in Kathmandu. An alumnus of Locarno Filmmakers’ Academy, Berlinale Talents, and Asian Film Academy, Abinash has written, directed, and produced short films that have participated and won at many International Film Festivals. He has also written several feature films that premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival (2012) and the Venice International Film Festival (2015) and were also Nepal’s Official Entry for Academy Awards in Best Foreign Language Film Section. In addition to working as a teacher at Oscar International College (College of Film Studies) and as Programming Director of Ekadeshma International Short Film Festival, Abinash is currently preparing for his directorial debut film Season of Dragonflies.

 

Short Film: Daughters of the Polo God

Roopa Barua | 33min | 2019 | India

Set in Manipur, India, Daughters of the Polo God is the unique story of girls and horses empowering each other. It is a story about saving an endangered breed of pony and empowering women in the sport of polo at the same time.

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Roopa Barua

Roopa Barua is a fan of the cinematic medium. She seeks to create nuanced cinema that goes beyond geography and human boundaries. An award-winning documentary filmmaker, she has been documenting women’s polo in India starting with Team USPA’s Women’s India Visit 2016 for Manipur and Jaipur. Roopa has won multiple awards in 2015 for her documentary Riders of the Mist. She covered the Cannes Film Festival 2015 for films in both the Palme D’Or and the Un Certain Regard categories for this blog. Roopa has a Certificate in Film Production from New York Film Academy and has also taken film criticism courses at the University of California, Berkeley. 

Short Film: Babu

Eelum Dixit | 26min | 2019 | Nepal

When tragedy strikes a village in Nepal, ten-year-old Babu steps into his father’s shoes to keep what is left of his family together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmakers: Eelum Dixit

Eelum Dixit is a Nepali filmmaker who got his Masters in Film and TV Production from the USC School of Cinematic Arts. He has transferred his knowledge gained from theatre to create naturalistic dramas in which he often uses non-actors if the role suits. His filmography includes Red Monsoon (2012) and Kichkandi (2018).

 

 

 

Short Film: Elephantbird

Masoud Soheili | 15min | 2019 | Afghanistan

A mini-bus is on a journey across the mountains to Kabul. Each person on the bus has a reason to take this journey. An old man is travelling to give a turkey to his grandchild, as his last wish before dying. However, the main road is blocked by insurgents. They decide to use an alternative road, which is not very secure, and there is still the possibility of getting caught by insurgents.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Filmmaker: Masoud Soheili

Amir Masoud Soheili is an internationally awarded short filmmaker, festival director and programmer. He has been one of the seven most honoured Iranian short filmmakers in 2015. He studied cinema in Indonesia and South Korea. With his second short film, Blue-eyed Boy (2014), he won 20 international awards from more than 140 international film festivals. He is co-founder and creative director of “Asia Peace Film Festival” in Islamabad, Pakistan and programmer of “Changing Perspective Intentional Film Festival” in Istanbul, Turkey. He was also worked as a festival director of Inaugural “Safe Community” International Film Festival in Mashhad, Iran (2017).