AFS Cinema Picks
$4 off tickets to any screening of the films below with code: AAAFF$4
Code is valid for any additional screening times that may be added by AFS.
April 2, 4, 6 | A BRIGHTER SUMMER DAY is a Taiwanese epic that unfolds against the backdrop of political and social turmoil in the 1960s. We follow the tumultuous life of a young boy, Xiao Si’r, as he navigates the complexities of adolescence, gang culture, and societal expectations. Edward Yang’s tender storytelling captures the intricacies of family dynamics and the search for identity.
ONIBABA (1964, Japan, In Japanese with English Subtitles)
April 5, 7, 10 | In Kaneto Shindô’s stately-but-shocking ghost story, a mother and daughter live on the fringes of a civil war, making a grim living killing soldiers who wander through their bamboo grove and selling their armor. As you might expect, the story takes a supernatural turn that is as stylish and spooky as anyone could hope. In 35mm.
ART COLLEGE 1994 (2023, China, In Chinese with English Subtitles)
April 7, 8, 11 | When China was opening to the West, they were opening their minds to James Joyce and Kurt Cobain. This quasi-memoir charmer from filmmaker Liu Jian (HAVE A NICE DAY) is a wry coming-of-age tale about a group of young artists’ first steps from dorm-room doodlers toward future adulthood. Featuring the stellar voice talents of a Chinese who’s who — including MOUNTAINS MAY DEPART breakout Dong Zijian, viral rock sensation Red Ke, and directors Jia Zhangke (A TOUCH OF SIN) and Bi Gan (LONG DAY’S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT) — ART COLLEGE 1994 is a look at slackers facing now and forever. US theatrical premiere.
A CONFUCIAN CONFUSION (1994, Taiwan, In Mandarin and Taiwanese with English Subtitles)
April 9, 11, 13 | In this newly restored film, Edward Yang charts the conflict of values in a Taiwan increasingly influenced by the Western world. A wry and witty satire following the head of a PR company who is forced to reevaluate everything after firing a colleague and threatening to dismantle the entire company.
MY HEART IS THAT ETERNAL ROSE (1989, Hong Kong, In Cantonese with English Subtitles)
April 12, 13, 14 | Tony Leung (HAPPY TOGETHER) stars in this tale of two old flames who reunite in the Hong Kong underworld after a Triad-job-gone-wrong split them apart six years ago. However, that spark between them ignites new jealousies and a gang war. Directed by Patrick Tam, Wong Kar-wai’s mentor and a key figure of the Hong Kong new wave, shot by venerated co-cinematographers Christopher Doyle and David Chung, and with music by Danny Chung, this neon-pulp wonder is as lush as ever in a new 2K restoration!
MAHJONG (1996, Taiwan, In Mandarin and English with English Subtitles)
April 16, 18, 20 | Newly restored, Edward Yang’s penultimate film is, as is usual for the filmmaker, a critique of and love letter to Taiwan. Displaying the clash of different languages and the ideas of its denizens, this dark screwball comedy involves two thugs following the son of a Taipei businessman who died with a debt of over $100 million to the mob.
YIYI (2000, Japan/Taiwan, In Mandarin, Min Nan, Hokkien, Japanese and French with English Subtitles)
April 23, 25, 27 | The final film by Taiwanese master Edward Yang is an exploration of love and familial connections between a father, his teenage daughter, and his young son over the course of a few months. Yang’s extraordinary gift for storytelling and sensitive approach to love and connection elevate this into a compelling work of cinema.
PERFECT DAYS (2024, Japan/Germany, In Japanese with English Subtitles)
April 26, May 2 | Kôji Yakusho (CURE), veteran of the Japanese silver screen, gives the performance of a lifetime as Hiroyama, a man content to exist on the margins as a toilet cleaner in Tokyo. Outside of his orderly routine, he relishes in the simple pleasures of listening to music on cassette tapes, reading, and taking photos of trees. Through an unexpected series of encounters, his past is revealed. A brilliant meditation on the beauty of the ordinary, PERFECT DAYS is a stirring return to form from master filmmaker Wim Wenders (WINGS OF DESIRE and PARIS, TEXAS). Nominated for Best International Feature Film at the 96th Academy Awards.
GUIÁN (2023, Costa Rica, In Spanish, Chinese Regional Dialects, and Mandarin with English Subtitles)
May 5 | Director Nicole Chi Amén, a Costa Rican filmmaker of Chinese descent, investigates her fascinating family story in this sensual diaristic film about language, nationality, and identity. As a young woman, Amén’s grandmother fled China’s cultural revolution, following a handful of relatives to Costa Rica. Exploring the textures, sounds, and objects connected to her grandmother, Amén searches for belonging in her family’s Chinese past. A selection of the Visions du Réel festival in Switzerland, GUIÁN was supported by an AFS Grant. With Nicole Chi Amén in person.
ABOUT DRY GRASSES (2023, Turkey, In Turkish with English Subtitles)
May 9, 13 | In the latest epic-length film from Turkish master Nuri Bilge Ceylan (WINTER SLEEP, THE WILD PEAR TREE), a selfish teacher, posted in remote Anatolia and itching for a transfer to a more desirable locale, is accused of inappropriate behavior by a student, and his feelings of despair deepen.
May 10 | Freely inspired by the life of star Sauve Sidle, here as Sol, an aspiring young rapper whose entree to the world of SoundCloud rappers and Instagram clout includes a once-in-a-lifetime invitation to join a crew on a bumpy road trip on the way to fulfill their dreams of “making it” in LA. Unable to shake his past, Sol soon begins to question all that he knows of himself — and the game — in this heady blend of lo-fi hip-hop and improvisational energy. With the AFS-supported LOST SOULZ, director Katherine Propper crafts a freewheeling paean to youthful ambition, friendship, and, of course, music. Take note, this is how you drop the mic. Featuring Aaron Melloul, Malachi Manson, Alexander Brackney, Krystall Poppin, Tauran Ambroise, and Micro TDH.
Featuring a post-show musical performance by cast members Malachi Mabson, Alex Brackney, Krystall Poppin, and Sauve Sidle, followed by a Q&A with director Katherine Propper, producers Andrés Figueredo Thomson and Juan Carlos Figueredo Thomson, and cast.
MILLENNIUM ACTRESS (2001, Japan, In Japanese with English Subtitles)
May 22, 25, 26 | Freely inspired by the life of Setsuko Hara, Ozu muse and star of 101 films, Satoshi Kon (PERFECT BLUE and PAPRIKA) brings his elliptical style to the story of a documentarian whose investigation into the life of an actress sends him on an adventure through time and straight into the heart of cinema.
June 5 | After the fall of Saigon, millions of Vietnamese “boat people” escaped their homeland by sea in a desperate attempt to find refuge. Many sought to build new lives along the Gulf Coast, finding available work and a favorable climate comparable to coast-rich, subtropical Vietnam. But the sudden influx of Vietnamese led to strained tensions in many fishing communities. In 1979, a fatal shooting in the small Texas fishing village of Seadrift ignited a maelstrom of hostilities against Vietnamese refugees along the Gulf Coast.
What really happened during this conflict, which was rife with rumors and false assumptions? How does a community recover and heal after a deep rift that erupted in violence? SEADRIFT examines this turbulent yet little-seen chapter of American history and explores the consequences that continue to reverberate today. The film’s director, Tim Tsai, will join us for an intro and Q&A following the screening. This screening is free and open to the public but requires a ticket reservation.
BEIJING WATERMELON (1989, Japan, In Japanese with English Subtitles)
June 23, July 1 | Dubbed a “Japanese masala,” this “multi-ethnic mix of spices” (Japan Society) from Nobuhiko Obayashi (HAUSU) crafts a subtle dish out of the tale of a Japanese greengrocer whose encounter with an annoying customer leads him to lend a hand to poor exchange students from China. Inspired by true events.
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