Part of the 42nd Asian American International Film Festival
Presented by Asian CineVision in association with Asia Society

Beyond Queer: LGBTQ+ Shorts
DCP. 95 min.  

We are more than our gender identity, sexuality or race. These shorts show the beautiful depth of the queer Asian diaspora. From the gorgeous exploration in “Kiss of the Rabbit God,” the hilarity of relationships in “I Think She Likes You,” to the reawakening of love in middle age in “Halwa,” this block showcases that we are all more than our labels.

Followed by a Q&A. 

This program includes the following films:

SPINSTERHOOD
Dir. Jhanvi Motla. USA/India. 11 mins.
Sara Chatterjee is forced to come out to her family when her girlfriend Spencer discovers she secretly goes on dates with men to appease her parents.    

SAFE AMONG STARS
Dir. Jess X. Snow. USA/China. 10 mins. 
A queer Chinese-American woman struggles to tell her immigrant mother why she left school. She teleports into her own galaxy where no violence can touch her.    

KISS OF THE RABBIT GOD
Dir. Andrew Thomas Huang. USA. 15 mins. 
A repressed Chinese restaurant worker falls in love with an 18th century Qing dynasty god who leads him on a journey of sexual awakening and self discovery.    

HALWA
Dir. Gayatri Bajpai and Nirav Bhakta. USA. 17 mins. 
An Indian immigrant woman decides to rekindle her relationship with her childhood companion through facebook messages until her abusive husband finds out.    

ABLUTION
Dir. Omar Al Dakheel. USA. 15 mins.     
The bond between a disabled Muslim father and his son is tested when love is pitted against religion.    

PEPPER
Dir. Jayil Pak. South Korea/USA. 15 mins. 
When the Korean Goddess of Birth ushers one boy’s soul to grant a couple their son, an unforeseen ghost alters her plan.    

LIONHOOD
Dir. Jason Karman. Canada. 2 mins.  
A portrait of two teenaged hockey players which explores the intensity of adolescence: a time of unrestrained physicality and surging hormones, resulting in unchecked impulses and unseen emotions.    

I THINK SHE LIKES YOU
Dir. Bridey Elliott. USA. 9 mins. 
When Justine and Julia pick Jake up at a bar, it’s not quite the threesome he was expecting.    

The 42nd Asian American International Film Festival runs from July 25 to August 3.

The Asian American International Film Festival (AAIFF) premiered in the summer of 1978 in New York City answering a growing need for social understanding, cultural diversity in American life, and independent cinema. AAIFF is the first festival in the U.S. to showcase film and video work by artists of the Asian Diaspora. Forty years later, the AAIFF has grown to include films and video from more than 30 countries, a variety of topical panels and workshops, industry mixers, staged readings, exclusive interviews, receptions and more.