ContemporAsian
March 19, 2008–Ongoing
Watch the Flower in the Pocket trailer
Watch the Megane trailer
Asian cinema is fast becoming a cinema without borders. Digital filmmaking and international coproductions are rapidly transforming an industry in which the transnational flow of talent and resources, even between the U.S. and Asia, has become the norm. In the monthly exhibition ContemporAsian, MoMA showcases films that get little exposure outside of their home countries or on the international festival circuit, but which engage the various styles, histories, and changes in Asian cinema. Presented in special weeklong engagements, the films in the series include recent independent gems by both new and established filmmakers whose work represent the rapidly transforming visual culture of the region. Not only are audiences given the rare chance to enjoy these undistributed films on the big screen—they also experience the diversity and richness of Asian cinema in all its many forms.
Organized by Jytte Jensen, Curator, Department of Film, and and William Phuan, independent curator, with additional support from Asian CineVision.
Related Film Screenings
Upcoming
Meitjin haru (My Dear Enemy)
2009. South Korea. Directed and cowritten by Lee Yoon-ki. With Jeon Do-yeon, Ha Jeong-woo. A woman shows up unexpectedly at her ex-boyfriend’s favorite betting haunt and demands that he repay a $2,600 debt. In a fascinating pas de deux, Lee’s beautifully crafted film teases out the intricacies of modern relationships as it follows the ex-lovers on an unlikely road trip to gather the money. The natural chemistry between the two leads renders the characters’ prickly, inscrutable, and surprisingly tender partnership utterly believable. In Korean; English subtitles. 123 min.
Qilu tiantang (Sincerely Yours)
2009. Taiwan. Directed by Rich Lee. With Lola Amaria, Banlop Lomnoi, May Kuei-Mei Yang. Setia and Supayong are illegal workers in Taiwan. Setia works as domestic help to support her child and family back in Indonesia, while Supayong, from Thailand, takes on odd jobs to scrape together a living. Even as they enter a tentative love affair, the constant fear of deportation threatens to overwhelm them. Lee’s finely tuned debut film acutely captures the precarious plight of migrant workers, and the characters’ yearning for connection and a better life. In Mandarin; English subtitles. 96 min.
Past
Ling yi ban (The Other Half)
2006. China. Ying Liang. 111 min.
An Evening with Kazuhiro Soda
Senkyo (Campaign)
2007. Japan. Kazuhiro Soda. 119 min.
Mukhsin
2006. Malaysia. Yasmin Ahmad. 94 min.
Tirador (Slingshot)
2007. Philippines. Brillante Mendoza. 86 min.
Dinner with the President: A Nation's Journey
2007. Pakistan. Sabiha Sumar, Sachithanandam Sathananthan. 82 min.
Herbert
2006. India. Suman Mukhopadhyay. 142 min.
Megane
2007. Japan. Naoko Ogigami. 106 min.
Megane
2007. Japan. Naoko Ogigami. 106 min.
Kamome Shokudo (Seagull Diner)
2006. Japan. Naoko Ogigami. 106 min.
Hyazgar (Desert Dream)
2007. Mongolia/China. Lu Zhang. 123 min.
Flower in the Pocket
2007. Malaysia. Liew Seng Tat. 97 min.
Babi buta yang ingin terbang (Blind Pig Who Wants to Fly)
2008. Indonesia. Edwin. 77 min.
Dajang Soembi, perempoean jang dikawini andjing (Dajang Soembi, the Woman Who Was Married to a Dog)
2004. Indonesia. Edwin. 7 min.
Adela
2008. Philippines. Adolfo Alix Jr.. 88 min.
Meitjin haru (My Dear Enemy)
2009. South Korea. Lee Yoon-ki. 123 min.